Dead on the inside

And so, another chapter in Twilight’s book had begun. This was the first time ever that she and her friends would have to use their magic of friendship on something not from their own world. The task was not an easy one, and the stakes were high, everyone of them knew that, and it was exactly that feeling that drove them to try their best, for the only alternative would be an Equestria covered in darkness...a fate that nopony could ever wish to see.

Despite sometimes being a bit hard to tolerate because of his sense of humor that tends to mock others from time to time, Inhio was really cooperative. Ever since he lost his wife and let this darker side of him take over, he has been very content with taking orders. It didn’t really even matter who was giving them. He was not a weak-minded coward, he simply had nothing to strive for himself, so the word of others was where he found guidance.

Following Luna’s advice, the mane six decided to try and cheer Inhio up, one by one, saving Pinkie Pie for last, since she was undoubtedly the most fun one of them. Rainbow Dash insisted that she be the last before Pinkie, all that was left now was to figure out the order of the remaining four. Twilight’s friends insisted that she be the first one to go. Although convincing her that it is only fitting that she be the first one, since she was the princess and all that, they secretly talked behind her back and all agreed that Twilight was surely the most boring one of them all.

Even though the occasional laugh did pop out while they were discussing this, they generally still felt bad for talking behind Twilight’s back like that and dubbing her boring. Funny thing, they still hadn’t gotten used to her having her own castle now, and while they were talking about her, they were still talking as though she lived in a giant tree full of books, and the most interesting thing in it being a baby dragon. They only remembered this when they had already convinced Twilight to be the first in line.

At first, they each facehoofed themselves (except Fluttershy, who was actually the one to remind them of Twilight’s castle) once they had realized that Twilight might actually not be as boring as they had initially thought, but later they actually felt glad about how things had turned out, since this might just mean that this will all be over quick, and the man would be back to his normal self before the rest of them even got a chance to warm up.

At any rate, even if they were almost certain that Twilight would be the one to give Inhio a reason to live for, the order still had to be named for each of them. They convinced Rarity to go right after Twilight, since it really didn’t look like Inhio was a man of fashion. She wasn’t all that enthusiastic about the idea at first, and in the end, she only agreed to it with an unsatisfied: "Fine...At least it should be over quick, if my turn even arrives.”

That left only two ponies without a number – Applejack and Fluttershy. No one felt like offending any of them by implying that one of them is more boring than the other, and since the two were also good friends with one another as well, they didn’t want to say anything themselves either, especially Applejack, who knew damn well that Fluttershy was a gentle soul. The choice was indeed - not the easiest one. Luckily, Fluttershy herself offered to go first. She thought this whole fiasco with this order was just silly, and that true friends shouldn’t let numbers get between them. That thought made the other five rub the back of their heads as they started feeling slightly ashamed after they realized how silly this whole thing actually was, and yet, they had almost let it go to their heads.

The ponies that had previously pointed the hoof at each other, insisting that they were more fun than the other, were now staring at that pony with a slightly sad smile that had sorry written all over it. The sadness slowly turned to warmth, and the mane six all joined together for a warm, heartfelt hug.

"Aww, well ain’t that cute.” This time, they didn’t let Inhio’s mocking attitude get in the way, not many things could ruin this moment for them, and Inhio was not one of them. The order had been established, and the ponies were fueled up and ready to begin and end this thing.

***

And so it came to pass, and Her Majesty, princess Twilight herself, was the first in line. She had only just barely finished making her castle feel more like home just recently, let alone hang out there with her friends. So this first trip should prove to be as thrilling for Inhio as it will for Twilight’s friends...Or so they thought, at first.

Imagine that - the first human to ever set foot in Equestria, and instantly being welcomed into a giant castle of pure crystal by Ponyville’s own newest princess and her friends. One would think that even someone as emotionless as Inhio would feel honored about something like this. Although his face did not show it, he did indeed feel honored, he even said it himself as he bowed to Twilight for the first time since his visit here. "It is an honor to be welcomed in here, Your Majesty.” That almost made Twilight blush.

Unfortunately, honor and happiness are two different things. Twilight personally guided Inhio through every corner of her castle, letting him walk right beside her while her own friends were left walking behind them. Twilight got a bit more desperate after passing every room that didn’t make Inhio even raise an eyebrow. She had gotten it in her head that it was more the way how she presented it that left Inhio so unimpressed, rather than the things she was showing, so she decided to alter her attitude a bit after every room. Still, nothing fazed him at all, not the giant masterfully decorated hallway, not the throne room, not the balcony from which they could see more than just all of Ponyville, and certainly not the library she herself had only just recently installed in the castle.

By the time they had gotten to the last room, Twilight was already acting so crazy that her own friends began to wonder if she’s feeling all right. She was sane, she was just trying so hard to impress Inhio that she had completely forgotten what it meant to be a princess, but desperate times call for desperate measures, and when the fate of Equestria itself was at stake, acting a bit kooky was the least Twilight was willing to do. The last room that was left to visit was a chemistry lab - another one of Twilight’s personal installments. Certainly, a chemistry lab could prove to be quite a breathtaking sight for anyone, but at this point, Twilight was just acting so damn crazy that not even the most focused minds could keep their sight on the true purpose of this room.

The way Twilight danced, laughed and flew around the room in circles, standing on her head as much of the time as she spent of her hooves, tossing vials and flasks around the room and catching them so easily without even letting a drop of whatever dangerous chemical they might have contained fly over its edges, always maintaining that bizarre look on her face and those few loose strings of hair from her mane...Twilight’s friends probably would have long since burst into laughter by now if only they weren’t so concerned about her.

It no longer felt like she was the owner in charge of the laboratory and the guide for the rest of the group, but rather a young filly that had just seen anything outside her own home for the first time in months. She mixed a lot of chemicals in a desperate attempt to amuse Inhio. Although she knew exactly what would happen when mixing the ingredients, she tried to make it look like she chose them by accident. She sure didn’t leave the impression that she knew what she was doing as she constantly kept shouting out phrases like: "Ooh, look at this one. What do you think this one does? What do you think happens when we mix these two? Oh, would you look at that! Ha ha! Nothing happened! We all got worked up for nothing!” Always maintaining a childish tone, fit for such an act. Even Pinkie Pie could learn a thing or two from this encounter.

"Princess Twilight.” Twilight’s excitement got halted instantly by a calm, yet loud and clear voice. All eyes and ears were now on Inhio, who still hadn’t the slightest shade of a smile on his lips. Twilight’s right eye twitched a few times as she had just realized that all her efforts were in vain. "Please, princess Twilight,” Inhio continued. "I understand that you want nothing more than to bring me joy, but this is no way for a princess to behave.”

Twilight was still a bit dazed, but her wide eyes soon turned half shut, and her high raised eyebrows followed them downwards, as well. She put down the chemical containers she was still holding, climbed down from the table she was on and walked back to her friends and Inhio with a strongly disappointed look on her face. "I...failed.”

The purple pony walked back to her friends with her eyes not even partially open anymore. She seemed so sad that just by looking at her, anyone would feel a bit sadder themselves. This was not the first time Twilight had felt like this – like she had failed the assignment Celestia herself had entrusted her with, and this was not a feeling she could so easily get out of her mind. Her friends had already opened their mouths to try and cheer Twilight up somehow, but someone had already beaten them to it.

Five warm fingers slowly wrapped themselves around Twilight’s chin and lifted her head to be face to face with the owner of the hand. As Inhio knelt for the princess on one knee, a single tear from Twilight’s eye reached his index finger. "As long as I’m still breathing, you haven’t failed," Inhio said softly and quietly. No one had heard him sound so caring since he arrived in Equestria. Twilight still gazed at Inhio ever so sadly. She found some comfort in Inhio’s words, but clearly not enough.

"But I...”

"Or do you not trust in the strength of your own friends?” Inhio interrupted her.

"What?” Twilight exclaimed, surprised by Inhio’s way of making sense of her despair. She had never even thought of such a thing. "No, no, of course not! It’s just...”

"Then why despair?” Inhio interrupted Twilight, once again. "You are only one out of six, and a princess of friendship can only be as strong as her own friends.” Twilight listened to Inhio carefully, and so did her friends. "When one falls, another will always be there to lend a helping hoof. Don’t you see? All six of you are actually one whole, and as long as at least one of you still stands...” Inhio’s words had really intrigued the ponies around him, especially Twilight, who seemed to be past her sudden moment of sadness. After a few second pause, during which Inhio noticed a spark returning to the purple pony’s eyes, Inhio ended his sentence, "There can be no talk of failure.”

Twilight was no longer sad and teary-eyed, but still very much surprised. Neither she, nor her friends had ever expected to hear such wisdom from the same man that seemed to care about nothing and had a tendency to mock them, from time to time, with jokes that might have only seemed funny to him, if he could even laugh. Twilight’s frown had turned to a wide-eyed shock, but got replaced by confident smile, just as quickly.

Inhio released her chin and stood up, still keeping a straight line between his own shaded eyes and those of Twilight Sparkle. The princess looked at her friends that were standing behind Inhio and eagerly awaiting her with firm smiles on their faces. Twilight looked back at Inhio for a brief moment, only to see him make a gesture that suggested she should go and join her friends. Inhio quickly shifted his head halfway towards the side where Twilight’s friends were standing and then threw his head back to its initial position. This gesture only took a split second, but it was easy to understand.

"Thank you,” Twilight whispered to Inhio as she started walking towards her friends. Inhio did not answer, he only followed the pony with his eyes, turning around after a short moment, so he wouldn’t have to keep his head in a ridiculous angle only to still be able to keep the pony in his sights.

Twilight’s part in the fight was over, but she still stood ready for battle, and ready to guide her friends til the bitter end. "Lets go, girls,” Twilight addressed her friends in a confident tone as she she raised her hoof in the air. Each and every one of them were just as battle-ready as she was, herself. "It’s not over yet!”