Pinksomnia: The Darkest Descent

by Wolokai

Rating: teen
Tags: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Soarin, Granny Smith, Sad, Romance, Princess Luna, Original Character, Spike, Cutie Mark Crusaders, Gilda, Tragedy, Big Macintosh, Adventure, Princess Celestia, Crossover, Sex, Zecora, Spitfire, Main 6, Gore
Length: 30226

Pinkie Pie is gone, and Scootaloo is on the hunt. How far is she willing to go to bring her home?

The Following takes place after Pinknesia: The Darker Descent.

Canterlot has been saved...The Entity defeated...and the lives of many restored. Celestia raises the sun...Luna raises the moon, and for once in six years in an age of blood and misery...Canterlot and Ponyville knows a peace that hasn't been seen for years and years. Quill and Twilight are set to be married, and Applejack is still trying to find the courage to tell Rainbow how she really feels.

But what about dear Scootaloo...a mare, grown now, in her own right? What does she...a year after succumbing and returning from death, have to say about Pinkie Pie, her mother who is believed to be dead? No body, no proof, no forgiveness. Under her smile, under her eyes, under her coat...a darkness emanates. Anger...and Despair, rocking her to her very soul. She is hell bent on finding Pinkie Pie, and NOTHING will stand in her way. What lengths will she go to, to find the mother she loves, and bring her home? Nopony knows...come now, watch...and listen...as we witness The Darkest Descent of them all...of a mare named Scootaloo.

Published 2011-11-14 11:17:41 UTC
Last updated 2011-11-29 10:36:31 UTC

Of Orange Memories - The Prolouge

-Scootaloo-

I drew the mop across the hard, wooden surface. No problem, I had been doing this for weeks now. She was so messy, but I guess that was to be expected. Ponies do tend to flail around a bit. Luckily for me, I was just mopping just to mop, you never know when there'd be another he-...oh Celestia Dammit it all...

"Mama!!! Another customer!" I shouted towards the basement door, sighing as I placed the mop and bucket back in the closet and went towards the door to the basement, hearing the gentle thudding of hooves slowly make their way upwards. I sat on my haunches as the door opened, and a green hoof poked out of it, a green and red mare following shortly after. I smiled as she smiled at me, giving me a light muzzle and whispering

"Welcome him in dear, I'll be in the kitchen." I nodded, heading to the front of the store. A fancily dressed colt stood there, wearing a top hat and monocle and wearing a pitch black tuxedo. He looked at me and smiled, exclaiming

"Why, such an adorable little filly! Tell me, is the baker here?" I nodded excitedly and held out a hoof behind me, indicating her direction. He smiled and trotted past, myself following right after. I never got to see her actually do it...granted she didn't want me to see. I argued with her for much of the previous night, saying that since I was at least cleaning it up, I might as well be exposed to it anyway. Kind of like ripping off a band-aid rather then peeling it off slowly. I stood in the doorway as Mom spoke, her rich, business like voice nearly fooling even me. She held out a sample cupcake, offering to the colt to try while she prepared her ingredients. He took it and started to eat, chewing as she walked past him.

I had the perfect view...I'm not sure if Mom set it up that way but I couldn't complain I guess. I watched as she took up the kitchen knife in her mouth, and looked over at the colt. A hungry look sank into her eyes as she started to shiver slightly, a venomous smile spreading across her face and her face lighting up as if she were expressing joy. She pounced on the colt's back, pressing the knife against the colts neck, and pushed, impaling it directly. I watched with an amazed expression as the two flailed about, the colt falling and flinging his hooves about, smacking the floor and counters. He choked and gurgled savagely as Mom dug her knife around in his throat, blood splashing about on the floor and getting all over the lower cabinets.

The colt finally stop squirming, the small sounds of blood squishing out of his neck finally quieting as the body twitched for a minute, and finally stopped moving altogether. Mom panted, ripping the blade free with a sickening squishy sound. She looked over to me, and her expression revealed to me that she looked scared, probably scared of what I thought. I walked up, stepping all over the colt's body and into her arms, giving her a hug and whispering

"I love you Mama." She giggled and held me close

"I love you too dear, now hurry, let's get this cleaned up before Trottington comes for the Inspection."

I was so happy...so happy at that moment. I barely even noticed Mom's grip tightening around me. I winced, suddenly feeling the air being squeezed from me. I looked up and grew wide-eyed at my Mother's hateful expression. She dropped me on the ground, in the pool of blood and went for her knife. She turned on me as she grabbed it, charging at me. She was trying to kill me!!! I bolted for the kitchen door, rushing for the front of the shop. I pushed my hooves against it, bursting outside and gasping. I was in a large, dark forest, large trees surrounding me on all sides. I heard Mom coming after me from behind, and I galloped forward, trying to get away. I ran and ran, hoping to outrun her. I tripped on a root however, falling forward with a loud yelp. It wasn't long until I felt my body being flipped over, and my eyes were forced to stare into Mother's. She looked...delighted...happy. A dark shadow morphed behind her and swirled with sinister energy, coming together and spinning into the shape of a sphere...an orb.

I could do nothing, nothing but watch as Mom raised the knife and drove it down into my chest, gasping as she removed it and pushed it into my stomach. I retched a little, gasping in tiny pockets of air as I felt the knife slide into me and slide back out. My body twitching and my vision blurring. I gasped for air, blood gurgling up into my throat. I tried to push her off, my hooves pressing against her weakly but doing nothing except gently poking her. My hooves fell as the orb started to gleam brightly, with Mother raising her knife and slamming it down, my vision blackening as the knife was shoved into my mouth.

I woke up with a scream.

"FLUTTERSHYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

That was the last night I slept.

Chapter 1 - The Morning

Fluttershy burst into the room, rushing over and crawling into the bed, scooping up the screaming Scootaloo in her arms. Fluttershy cooed to her gently

"There there Scootaloo...it's ok...it's ok...Auntie Shy is here, easy...sssshhh" The orange mare sobbed, burying her face in Fluttershy's coat and shivering. Fluttershy sighed, holding and rocking the whimpering mare gently, the sobs gently subsiding into light sniffing. She looked down at the poor mare and whispered "Was it the nightmares again?" Scootaloo didn't say anything, merely nodding against her coat, leaving Fluttershy to sigh and hug her a little tighter. She looked over to the nightstand clock, the hands clearly displaying the time 4:12 A.M.

Fluttershy put her chin on top of Scootaloo's head and sighed again, rocking her back and forth and staring out the far window into the night sky. This was the seventh day in a row...a week now that Scootaloo's been having her nightmares. It made sense to the Canary-Yellow Mare...she knew what day was coming. It had been a year since that day...that day when Canterlot was destroyed, Twilight ponynapped, and herself...well...she died. Herself and Scootaloo had both died a year ago, but with The Entity's defeat, they were brought back...every-pony was brought back...save one.

Scootaloo had a hard time adjusting to Pinkie Pie being gone. She didn't talk as much, didn't eat as much...and now, she wasn't sleeping, barely at all. Before everything was fine, well, mostly. Fluttershy would often wake up in the middle of the night to get herself a warm glass of milk, only to hear Scootaloo mumbling, tossing, and turning in her sleep. Fluttershy figured maybe Scootaloo was just having some intense, deep sleep like dreams...but when the nightmares and screaming started, Fluttershy herself seldom slept herself. She wasn't angry or upset at Scootaloo because of her losing sleep, but she was becoming increasingly worried.

She had been trying everything to get Scootaloo to feel better and smile, taking her on small trips, helping with animals, parks, picnics, shows, reading, games, even giving her a lot of space and time to herself, to see if she just needed to be alone. Nothing was working, and everything was getting worse and worse. Fluttershy gave Scootaloo a gentle squeeze with her hug and whispered "You're not going back to bed, right?" Scootaloo nodded quickly, leaving Fluttershy to gently lead her out of bed, helping her out of the room and down the hallway, whispering still "Alrighty then, let's get you something to eat and maybe we can watch some television, they always have interesting shows for the late night ponies."

Scootaloo didn't say anything, keeping her face buried in Fluttershy's coat as Fluttershy draped a wing over her back, helping her down the stairs. They entered the kitchen, Fluttershy helping a weak and feeble Scootaloo into one of the wooden chairs and heading over to the fridge. She opened it with her teeth around the handle, looking about inside for a good late night treat, when she heard Scootaloo's hoarse voice from the table

"Fl...Fluttershy?" The yellow mare looked over from the fridge and saw Scootaloo looking down at the table, tears brimming in her eyes and whimpering "I'm...I'm sorry for waking you up, I'm so...I'm so sorry!" She burst into tears, making Fluttershy sigh again and gently walk over, pulling her into another hug and whispering

"Now now...it's alright. I don't mind it Scootaloo, I just want you to feel better. You don't bother me at all, ok?" Scootaloo sniffed and wiped her eyes, whispering

"Ok..." Fluttershy nodded, gently letting her go and heading back over to the fridge. She heard the chair moving across the ground and saw Scootaloo getting up, walking into the living room. She watched her go, and after a minute or two heard the TV turn on and she nodded, poking her head back into the fridge and sighing a little. It was going to be a long night.

~~~

Fluttershy groaned a little, her eyes opening slowly and closing immediately due to the sunlight basking through her windows. She felt something move against her and she lifted her head, turning and seeing Scootaloo with her side pressed up against hers, staring at the TV with a blank expression on her face and her eyes bloodshot. Fluttershy rubbed at her own eyes with her hooves and muttered

"What time is it...?" Scootaloo didn't even blink, saying back

"Around eleven." Fluttershy nodded and weakly got up, heading towards the stairs so she could head up to the bathroom to get herself properly groomed for the day. She combed her mane, brushed her teeth (with some careful hoof movement), and soaked her face in some water, sighing contently and heading back down. Scootaloo looked like she hadn't moved from the couch, but the T.V. had been turned off. Fluttershy head towards the front door, turning her head to Scootaloo who was STILL staring at the T.V. and saying

"Scootaloo, I'm going to go check the mail and check on the animals, ok?" Scootaloo didn't move, she didn't blink...just stared at the blank screen, watching. Fluttershy blinked and muttered "O....K....be right back." She pushed the door open with her hooves and headed outside, gently closing the door behind her and heading towards the mailbox, seeing a flying Pegasus heading her way. She smiled, letting out a breath of relief that she hadn't missed Ditzy Doo on her flight route. She always enjoyed talking to the wall-eyed mare, and she always had such interesting things to say.

She frowned however as the Pegasus drew closer, and saw that it wasn't the usual blonde-maned, gray-coated mare she was used to...but a cyan-coated, Rainbow-maned Rainbow Dash. She did a twirl in the air and landed in front of Fluttershy's house, saddlebags crammed with letters and packages over her back. She held up a hoof and shouted with glee

"Hey there Fluttershy!!! What's up?" Fluttershy gave a tiny wave and spoke in her usual timid voice

"Oh...Hi Rainbow...um, where's Ditzy Doo? Doesn't she...you know, usually take care of the mail? Not that I don't mind you doing it, I think you're doing a great job...well...I don't know what kind of job you're doing...you just got here...um...where's Ditzy Doo?" Rainbow Dash blinked for a moment, staring at her before the question registered in her head and she said

"Oh yeah! Ditzy Doo, she got sick and I offered to take her route for her. I owed her for a few high-priority packages I needed delivered, and when she got sick from some undercooked muffins, I told her I'd take her route!" Fluttershy let out a silent "Oh" and walked up to her Rainbow friend, who was now rummaging through the saddlebags for her mail. She handed Fluttershy some letters and asked, a bit quietly "How's Scoots...I know the...you know...the 'Day', is coming up. She doing ok?" Fluttershy winced a little, looking back towards the house and turning back to Rainbow

"It...could be better. I mean, I don't mind her being here...I want to do what I can to help her but...she's not sleeping much anymore, and she's getting nightmares." Rainbow nodded, pointing at her face and replying

"I see what you mean...you look a little red in the eyes. She keeping you up?"

Fluttershy shook her head quickly and whispered

"Oh no! I wake up sometimes in the middle of the night, to get some milk you know...what's this?" She trailed off, holding up a white envelope with yellow trim around it, twirling in fancy patterns. Rainbow Dash saw it and exclaimed

"Oh yeah!!! I forgot to mention, we're all getting invitations to Twilight's wedding! She's marrying Quill, remember?" Fluttershy looked up, appearing a bit upset

"Oh dear...I forgot all about it...how awful of me...when's the wedding?" Rainbow shrugged

"Meh, who even knows. It's probably in the envelope so...anyway, I need to get back to delivering, later Shy!" Fluttershy gave her signature, tiny, shy wave and turned, heading to the back yard while she tore open the letter and read

Dear Fluttershy,
You are most welcome and graciously
Invited to attend the Wedding of
Twilight Sparkle & White Quill
Next week on Wednesday.
The Wedding will take place
In the Town Hall, on the North
Side of Ponyville, Please RSVP!

P.S. Fluttershy darling, Do expect me at your house today, we have much to go over!!!
-Rarity

Fluttershy squeaked as she ran back to the house. "Oh my goodness! Rarity's coming, oh my goodness oh my goodness! I haven't cleaned, I haven't tidied up!!! EEE!!!!" She burst into the house, not even noticing Scootaloo was gone, and instantly began moving about the room, picking up her favorite feather duster and flying around the house, cleaning and dusting everywhere she moved. She was just dusting the T.V. when she heard something wet slap against the floor in her kitchen. She stopped for a moment, heading to the kitchen and finding Scootaloo mopping. She was wide-eyed, her mouth pressed into a thin line as she mopped back and forth, cleaning her floor. Fluttershy softly spoke as Scootaloo kept mopping "Um...Scootaloo...why are you mopping the floor? Was it dirty? It's ok, I could have done it you know...but if you wanted to that's...that's fine." Scootaloo looked up with her wide-eyed expression and mumbled

"You burst into the house and started cleaning...that means someone's coming right? It has to be clean, everything. Everything has to be clean." Fluttershy turned her head to one side, her eyes still on Scootaloo as she whispered

"Scootaloo...are you ok?"

Scootaloo said nothing, looking back down and mopping with greater effort now, mumbling

"Have to pass inspection...visitors...visitors. Always good at mopping...that's what I was...am...good at. Mop the floors, I got this." Fluttershy's jaw dropped a little, watching as Scootaloo spaced out again, mopping and humming lightly. Fluttershy slowly backed up, heading back into the living room and sitting on the couch. She couldn't ignore the feeling creeping up inside her...the feeling of fear. Scootaloo was starting to scare her, but she felt silly because of it...it was Scootaloo...she wouldn't do anything to hurt Fluttershy....would she? The yellow mare kept an eye on the kitchen opening, still hearing the sounds of mopping. She squirmed on the couch, growing more and more uncomfortable until she finally hopped off the couch and ran for the kitchen. She poked her head in and said

"Scootaloo, please stop mopping, the floor's clean enough!" She suddenly blinked in surprise however, seeing that Scootaloo was sitting at the table and drinking a juice-box...the mop nowhere to be seen. She blinked as Scootaloo looked at her funny, muttering

"Fluttershy...are you ok? I'm not mopping...I'm drinking juice." Fluttershy blinked, stunned. She looked around awkwardly before saying

"Oh...um...my mistake, Rarity's coming over so...um...if you wanted to see her, I'll let you know when she's here...ok?" Scootaloo nodded and said

"Alrighty. Sheesh Fluttershy, you think you'd know me by now after all these years!" Fluttershy cocked her head in confusion and asked

"What do you mean...?" Scootaloo looked at Fluttershy with a smile and a rolling of her eyes, saying

"Um...Fluttershy, I HATE mopping, remember? I wouldn't be caught dead doing it ever again, you know that!"

Chapter 2 - The Concern

"I see...and she's out back now?" Rarity asked, sipping her tea and looking at Fluttershy with a wide-eyed expression. Fluttershy nodded, heading over and looking out of the window for a moment before gulping and whispering

"Y...yes." Scootaloo was sitting out back on her haunches under a tree, its dark shadow cast over her. One would think she may be just trying to enjoy the outdoors...but Scootaloo was staring intently towards the house...unmoving. Some of Fluttershy's critters had even walked up, prancing around her, and walking about, but still the mare did not move. Fluttershy turned back to Rarity and sighed "I'm so worried about her...she barely talks...barely moves, eats, sleeps. I just don't know..." Rarity rolled her eyes and sighed, sipping her tea and taking a minute to savor it before saying

"Fluttershy darling, you really do worry yourself too much. Come now, we shall go to the spa and see if we can't get you feeling better. Would Scootaloo like to come? The steam room could do some good for her mood...and her dull coat..." Fluttershy looked towards the ground a moment, thinking before looking up slightly and muttering

"W...well, I guess that would be ok...let me go ask her."

Rarity continued to sip her tea calmly, Fluttershy heading out through the backdoor and over towards Scootaloo. Fluttershy was surprised...and somewhat creeped out again...by seeing Scootaloo laughing and jumping about with a few of the bunnies Fluttershy kept in the yard. They looked like they were playing a game of tag, as Scootaloo tripped and fell with a light thud, the bunnies jumping on her and making the orange mare laugh, shouting

"Ok! Ok I'm it!!! Ha!!!" She looked up as Fluttershy approached and said with glee "Oh hey Fluttershy! What's up?" Fluttershy smiled, happy that Scootaloo was acting like normal at last and said

"Oh, well, Rarity wanted me to go to the spa with her, and she wanted to know if you wanted to come with us." Scootaloo put a hoof to her chin, thinking for a moment before shaking her head

"Nah, I never was really into all that silly froo froo stuff, you go ahead. Thank you for asking though." Fluttershy nodded and looked at her with concern, partially whispering

"Will you be ok? You know, here alone?" Scootaloo nodded, stroking one of the bunnies over it's head and smiling

"Yep! I'm heading into town anyway, got some things I wanted to do." Fluttershy nods and puts a gentle hoof on her back, whispering

"Ok...well...if you need me, I'll be at the spa with Rarity..." Scootaloo didn't reply or even look at her, still smiling and stroking the bunny. Fluttershy blinked and slowly backed away, heading back inside.

~~~

The two mares walked through Mane Street, Rarity doing most of the talking and Fluttershy mostly listening. Fluttershy felt better, being outside and away from her house. Not because of Scootaloo though, it was merely due to the fact that with more and more animals to take care of, she rarely found much time to socialize or get out and away from her house. Rarity kept speaking as the spa building came into view "Oh yes and the dresses, oh my the DRESSES! They're coming together so wonderfully, I have Twilight's just about ready to go. Yours I still need a little work on, but not to worry, I'll have all of them done by the week's end!" Fluttershy looked over at her, mane partially hiding her face and saying

"You sound like you've got an awful lot to do...how many dresses do you have to make?" Rarity kept a smile on her face and said in the most nonchalant way possible

"Oh, around thirty or so." Fluttershy's jaw dropped as she stuttered

"T..thirty?! Rarity, how will you ever finish them all? It's already Wednesday!" Rarity simple smiled and shook her head

"Come now Fluttershy you MUST stop worrying! I've handled worse orders before, I'll be just fine" They continued down the street until a country-laced voice cried out

"Howdy y'all!!!" Rarity turned her head to look behind them, smiling as she exclaimed

"Oh Applejack! Good to see you!" Applejack galloped up along side Fluttershy, tipping her hat and greeting

"Well how y'all doing? Ah just got off my shift from the apple cart and ah figured I'd come into town and see what everpony's doin'." Fluttershy smiled and said

"Oh, I'm doing just fine, me and Rarity were just on our way to the spa to talk and relax!" Applejack raised a brow and muttered

"Uh huh..." Rarity caught this and smile mischievously, saying with as much hidden sarcasm as she could

"Oh come now Applejack, surely you're not going to judge! Why don't you come with us...it'll be soooooo...wonderful...to have you along, don't you think Fluttershy?" Fluttershy nodded in earnest as Applejack shook her head and replied with a bit of toughness in her voice

"Oooooh no! I see what you're tryin' to do Rarity, and the answer is no thank you. You know I don't like any of that girly girly froo froo stuff." Fluttershy frowned and her bottom lip quivered, giving Applejack the 'Sad Eyes' treatment and letting out a low whimper. Applejack looked down at her and sighed, rolling her eyes "Oh come on...that ain't even fair...ugh, fine! But only for a little bit...I don't want my face covered in any of that muddy green stuff...yech!" Fluttershy let out her signature 'Squee!' and together, they all three headed towards the spa building.

~~~

"Ahh...see, isn't this nice Applejack?" Rarity cooed from her side of the giant tub, a large towel wrapped around her head. Applejack sighed and shook her head, a few rollers in her hair and a towel wrapped around her head as well

"Yeah yeah...real relaxin'..." Fluttershy was content, smiling a little as she gently floated in the water. She wasn't much for arguing and fighting, but as long as it didn't get too serious, she enjoyed the little verbal jousts that Applejack and Rarity often found themselves in. She thought that in some weird way it brought them closer as friends.

"Oh come dear, try to be more optimistic! A good spa treatment would be good for you! After all...we want you looking your best for little Miss Rainbow Dash...don't we?" If Applejack had been eating anything she would surely have choked. She pointed a hoof at Rarity, her cheeks mad with the color red and stuttering

"W...what are you on bout' Rarity? Why would I need to go lookin' all prim and proper for Rainbow? She's mah friend!" Rarity smiled, she had her backed into the corner, perfectly! She cleared her throat, continuing with her well constructed, verbal poking of Applejack and said

"Oh? My mistake, I must have misheard Rainbow the other day while she was posing for me in the Boutique, helping me fit a dress. She was most concerned about how you thought about her, if she looked good, if she smelled good. All that over a kiss that happened just about three hundred and sixty five days ago...hmmm." Applejack blushed a horrific shade of crimson as she muttered to herself

"That damn Rainbow Mare...I'ma wring that pony's neck until her head pops off..." Rarity pointed a hoof at Applejack, shouting triumphantly

"AH HA! Admit it Applejack! Your blush says it all! You're harboring feelings for Rainbow Dash! And they say time may sometimes weaken the bonds of love, ha!" Applejack groaned, pushing her face in her hooves and shouting back

"Alright alright! Get off mah back about it...so I like Rainbow, big deal! I ain't got the time for mares n' colts when I gotta farm to buck!" Rarity flashed a scheming smile as she whispered

"Well...then if you're too busy with trees to buck...maybe we should find you the time to have a little Rainbow Fu-"

"RARITY!" Applejack shouted, cutting her off, her face as red as her apples. Fluttershy looked back and forth with wide eyes, telling herself in her mind that this was getting good. Rarity laughed, waving her hoof up in the air and trying not to snort

"T..that face!!! Ha ha ha ha!!! Oh Applejack darling, you're such a hoot! Come now, you know I'm only teasing. I am serious about finding you time though, can't Big Macintosh help by taking some of your chores for the day?" Fluttershy blushed at the mention of Macintosh's name as Applejack shook her head

"Ain't no way Macintosh would take over my work just so I could go tumbling in the hay with Rainbow" Rarity pointed a hoof at her again in triumph, squealing

"AH HA! GOT YOU! YOU DO WANT A LITTLE RAINBOW ALL TO YOURSELF!" Applejack pointed a hoof back at Rarity and started shouting, the both of them going back and forth with taunts and other sorts of interesting word combinations. Fluttershy sighed, sinking down into the water just below her nose, letting them go at it. One of the spa tenants burst into the room, wide-eyed as she shouted

"What's with all the screaming?! Is somepony hurt?" Applejack and Rarity stopped, Rarity being the first to reply

"Oh no dear, just a friendly joust between friends." The spa attendant smiled a little and nodded, looking over towards Fluttershy and asking

"Miss Fluttershy? I have a message for you." Fluttershy rose up in the water, turning to listen as the attendant spoke "There was a Miss 'Scootaloo' who passed by here about three minutes ago. She said that she would be very late coming home tonight so don't be worried. That's all, enjoy your bath!" The attendant left as Fluttershy sighed, sinking back down into the water as Applejack spoke up

"Things with Scootaloo gettin' pretty hard huh...?" Fluttershy nodded, gently speaking

"I don't understand...well I do and I don't...she's been having all these nightmares...not eating...barely sleeping...I'd like to think it's just because...you know...the day that Pinkie Pie went missing is coming up...but I don't know. She's been acting...weird." Applejack raised an eyebrow, a confused look on her face

"Weird how sugarcube?" Fluttershy kept her face towards the water but her eyes shifted up to meet Applejack's as she whispered

"The 'Catch somepony mopping the floor, leave the room, come back and find the pony drinking a juice box and saying that she hates mopping and would never, EVER be caught doing it' kind of weird..." Rarity blinked in amazement, Applejack simply scratching her chin and muttering

"Weird..." Rarity looked over to Applejack and whispered

"Yes...I have to say it's most peculiar...I'd ask Twilight or Quill if maybe they know something about her behavior...Twilight's got her library of information and Quill is a good therapist...but I don't really want to bother them with the wedding coming up so soon." Applejack nodded, looking towards Fluttershy

"Maybe ah can get Rainbow to have a talk with the poor Mare, ah know Scootaloo looks up to her so, maybe there's ah shot." Fluttershy nodded, tilting her head back and putting her hooves over her eyes, sighing. She kept telling herself it was just the time of year...it was just Pinkie Pie's disappearance...that Scootaloo was just sad. The more she thought however...the more she just couldn't believe that nothing was wrong. Something was going on with Scootaloo, and she was afraid to find out what it could be...

Chapter 3 - The Voice

5 Days Later...

Fluttershy sighed, staring up at the clouds and smiling as she heard laughing near by. The week had progressed surprisingly well, even though Scootaloo was coming home at ungodly hours of the night, and appeared to be sleeping less and less. Fluttershy looked over from laying on her back, smiling a bit wider as she saw Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo all sitting and laughing over something, the three of them enjoying the warm afternoon together. All worries she had before seemed to vanish now as she watched Scootaloo point her hoof at Applebloom and say something that caused another torrent of laughter.

The anniversary of Pinkie Pie's disappearance had been only yesterday, and on that day Scootaloo couldn't be found. It was as if she had simply vanished into thin air. Fluttershy had voiced her concerns to Rarity who simply said that she probably needed the day for herself. A deep voice spoke out beside her, breaking her train of thought "Um...Miss Shy? Is it mah turn? Cause ah think that one over yonder looks a little bit like an apple." Fluttershy looked over to her left, into the big green eyes of Big Macintosh. She blushed a little, looking up at the sky after a moment and letting her eyes follow the direction his hoof was pointing at. She smiled and whispered

"Oh...yes, that does look like an Apple." She found it quite ironic that Applejack said Big Macintosh wouldn't have let her ignore work just to pursue a mare...but seeing as all the harvesting had to be done before the wedding...there was quite literally no more work to be done for now. She smiled a bit wider, remembering the triumphant look on Rarity's face when she heard THAT bit of news.

~~~

Scootaloo wiped a tear out of her eye from laughing so hard, sighing and shaking her head, trying to talk and not burst out laughing again, squeaking "Oh...oh man! I couldn't believe she got her head stuck all the way up there, that was the greatest thing ever!" Applebloom and Sweetie Belle both nodded, still giggling a little as the clouds moved slowly and peacefully overhead. Scootaloo sighed but suddenly went wide-eyed, looking towards Sweetie Belle and asking "What time is it?!" Sweetie Belle shrugged as Scootaloo stood up with an apologetic look on her face, muttering "Sorry gals, I gotta go, Rarity needed me at the Boutique for my dress fitting and I think I'm late..." Applebloom waved an uncaring hoof and smiled, saying with glee

"Oh that's alright! You go ahead we'll catch up later." Scootaloo nodded and turned on her hooves, galloping forward and spreading her wings, jumping up and taking flight, pumping her wings downwards and carrying herself upwards. She sighed, her wings outstretched and carrying her forward in a gentle glide. She closed her eyes, gently banking to the right and letting the wind run over her. It was up here that she could actually think straight for once, to feel as if she's sleeping when in reality she really wasn't. It had been five days since Scootaloo had last slept...and more and more she was starting to feel like she was losing touch with reality. She couldn't remember things she had done the day before, and one particular morning she thought she saw roses blooming out of her cereal. She made a mental note to herself to go see Nurse Redheart, see if maybe she was coming down with something.

The rest of her flight was relatively uneventful, banking and doing a slight barrel roll downwards, landing in a gallop and stopping in front of Rarity's Boutique. She knocked on the door a few times, stifling a yawn and waiting. After a moment the door opened and Rarity poked her head out, smiling as she took sight of a tired looking Scootaloo on her porch.

"Oh Scootaloo! You're right on time, come in come in!" Rarity spoke with glee, opening the door and standing aside for the mare as she walked in. Rarity's horn gleamed a bright blue as measuring tapes and supplies came flying over from a few nearby shelves and dressers. Scootaloo yawned and hopped up on the platform in the middle of the store, assuming the usual pose Rarity had her in a few weeks prior. Rarity trotted around her, looking her up and down and taking her measurements, her eyes narrowed in concentration as one by one the measuring tapes flew over to her so she could read them.

Rarity nodded and looked over towards one of her closets, the door flying open and a mannequin with Scootaloo's dress floated out, landing gently behind Scootaloo. Rarity gently lifted the dress off as she spoke "Alright, your measurements are still the same, so the dress should fit perfectly, I do hope you like it dear...I tried to get a few different shades of purple to go with your mane. I couldn't use any orange, because obviously it would blend right into that rich orange coat you have." Scootaloo sighed and stared at the far wall, smiling a little as she spoke

"You sure know how to flatter a mare don't you Rarity...and here I thought thinking you weren't into girls." Rarity laughed and floated the dress over Scootaloo, gently lowering it and replying

"Good try Scootaloo, but I'm still the master in the art of word twisting. I'll have you know that Stallions are my preference, although that doesn't mean I don't keep an open mind about things." Scootaloo closed her eyes as she extended her wings, feeling the fabric slide around them and the dress fit over her back. She opened her eyes as she felt her hooves being raised by Rarity's, slipping on a pair of purple dress shoes on her front hooves. She felt her back hooves lifted and shoes applied to them as well, watching as Rarity lowered a necklace of pearls with a purple colored diamond around her neck, and a soft something tucked behind her right ear. Rarity took a step back, smiling as she looked Scootaloo up and down, whistling and muttering "My MY Scootaloo! You're going to be turning some colts' heads, that's for sure!".

Scootaloo watched as Rarity dragged over a mirror with her magic, her reflection staring back at her with the same, shocked expression. Her dress was a beautiful, flowing purple gown with a few butterfly patterns and bright violet trim. A yellow butterfly was tucked behind her right ear and she couldn't help but lift her right hoof up and give Rarity a sheepish grin as she heard Rarity's comment. She did a small turn, looking at herself in the mirror and whispering

"Wow...it looks great, no...wonderful Rarity! You did an awesome job, thank you!" Rarity waved a hoof at her, clicking her tongue at her once and sighing

"Oh Scootaloo, no need for that, I was happy to make your dress!" She magicked Scootaloo's dress, shoes, and accessories, setting them back up on the mannequin as Scootaloo walked up to the mirror, her smile fading and a miserable expression slowly making itself seen. Rarity turned as soon as the dress was fit and she walked over, putting a gently hoof on Scootaloo's back, gently cooing to her "You've grown up so much Scootaloo...I know you've not been sleeping...and Fluttershy's been getting a bit worried. I just want you to know...if you ever need anyone to talk to, that Fluttershy and myself are always willing to listen, ok?" Scootaloo looked over at Rarity and smiled a little, whispering

"Thanks Rarity...I'll keep that in mi-" She stopped in mid-sentence, her ears perking and her head turning towards the door. She blinked, whispering "Did you hear that?" Rarity looked towards the door, looking back at Scootaloo with concern and whispering

"Hear...what dear?" Scootaloo looked around the shop, her eyes shooting about and her head turning in different directions. She heard it again, a whisper in the air, towards the door

Ssssssscoooootalooooooo....

Scootaloo's pupils shrank a little and she rushed towards the door, running out before Rarity even had a chance to say anything. She looked this way and that, the streets before her empty. She heard the whisper again, traveling up the street. She galloped into the towns square, looking about in every direction as she heard the voice getting louder.

Sssscotaloooo...
Sssscootalooo!!!!!!

She rushed down one of the side streets, panicking as a heavy wind blew up the street against her rear, making her squeal a little. She burst out into an empty street, looking every which way as the voice hissed at her from every direction. She curled up in a ball, hooves over her eyes as she shook and whimpered, the voice getting louder and louder.

Ssccotalooo...
Ssscootalooo!!!
SSSSSSCOOOTALOOO!!!

"Scootaloo! Scootaloo! Are you ok?! Scootaloo!" Scootaloo opened her eyes, slightly hyperventilating and looking around frantically. Sweetie Belle was standing over her, gently shaking her with her two front hooves. "Scootaloo are you ok? I saw you running through the streets like a Manticore was after you! What happened!?" Scootaloo looked around, her breath slowly coming back to a moderate pant, sighing as she looked over at Sweetie Belle, coughing a little and whispering

"I...I think I'm going to be si- URRRGHH!!!" She stopped mid-sentence to turn her head to the side and vomit loudly, her front hooves pushing against her belly and her stomach heaving. Sweetie Belle squeaked in fright and started to shout

"Help!!! Somepony help me!!! HELP!!!!"

Chapter 4 - The Wedding

Scootaloo groaned, her eyes opening up slowly. White filled her view as she gently tried to roll over on her side. Her head was buried in the soft confines of a feather pillow, and a thick white sheet was tucking her in. She heard an assortment of beeping from somewhere nearby and she blinked, trying to get the blurriness of her vision to subside. A soft voice spoke as the sounds of scribbling made their way to Scootaloo's ear "Well, you're finally awake! That's good, I was starting to get a bit worried...you slept the entire day yesterday!" Scootaloo blinked a few more times, her vision clearing up and her head turning towards the voice. It was Nurse Redheart, and if she was here, that meant that she was in the Ponyville Medical Center. She put a hoof to her head and groaned, sitting up a little, the throbbing pounds of a headache starting to make their presence known. Nurse Redheart put a hoof on her shoulder and gently helped her up "Easy now...just take it easy...you still might be a little woozy.

Scootaloo sat all the way up, looking towards the nurse and muttering with a hoarse voice

"What...what happened?" The nurse looked at the beeping machine on her left and scribbled a few things down before turning and speaking

"Well, you were brought in about a day and a half ago by Miss Sweetie Belle, it appeared that you were falling ill over something. We took you in, put you to bed...and you didn't wake up for a good while. We thought maybe you had slipped into some kind of coma until Miss Fluttershy burst in, rambling on and asking if you were ok or not. She explained to us you hadn't been sleeping, so we figured it was mild to moderate sleep deprivation." Scootaloo looked up at her with weary eyes, muttering

"But...the voice, I heard a voice...it was coming from everywhere..." Nurse Redheart sighed and nodded, going on

"Well yes, Sleep Deprivation is a serious thing Miss Scootaloo, it's usually around five or six days of no sleep that your brain starts to trigger alarms of major fatigue, it loses touch with things, makes you hallucinate. I specifically remember one day back in medical school where I had stayed up six days straight studying for my medical final when I started to see roses blooming all over my textbook. You must have sleep dear, your body can actually shut itself down automatically if you don't give it the rest it needs, ok?" Scootaloo nodded and looked over towards the window, the sun just starting to come over the horizon. She narrowed her eyes for a moment before asking carefully

"What...day is it, today?" Nurse Redheart looked towards the ceiling, in thought for a second before looking at her and saying

"Why, it's Wednesday my dear." Scootaloo's eyes widened as she half-shouted

"Wednesday!? Oh horsefeathers, the wedding!!! I didn't miss it did I?!" Nurse Redheart sighed and shook her head

"No, you didn't miss it, do not worry dear. It's the talk of the town today though. Anyway...since you're awake and all, and you don't seem to be running any fever or have anything else wrong with you, I'd say you have a clean bill of health. Go enjoy the wedding Miss Scootaloo, but REMEMBER, your, body, needs, its, sleep!" She spoke each word sternly with a poking hoof, making Scootaloo nod and smile a little

"Thanks Nurse Redheart...have a good day" She slipped out of bed and headed for the door as Nurse Redheart nodded, turning off all the machines and lights in the room.

~~~

"Oh there you are darling, I was starting to get worried! Hurry now, we simply do not have a lot of time to waste!" Rarity said quickly, lowering the large bowl like helmet over Scootaloo's head, her hair done up in rollers and her hooves being manicured via magic. Scootaloo sighed, looking over to Fluttershy, who sat next to her and said

"But we still have like...six hours until the wedding, what's the rush?" Rarity scoffed as she held out Fluttershy's wing, going over the inner side with a soft brush and speaking to Scootaloo

"You obviously don't understand how long these type of things take Scootaloo! Every intricate detail is massively important. I can't have the bridesmaids looking like such a mess on our best friend's wedding day!" Scootaloo sighed and simply gave up, folding her front hooves in front of her and waiting, Fluttershy sipping a juice box next to her and humming a little.

Thirty minutes passed, and Scootaloo was getting a bit annoyed, her repeated outbursts of "OW!" and "Hey! Watch it!" making Rarity sigh and shake her head, grumbling

"Really now Scootaloo...why do you never take care of your mane properly...it knots up so easy, even with the hair drier." Scootaloo could do nothing except roll her eyes, smirking a little as Rarity floated her dress over towards her.

~~~

"Oh...do I look ok? You're sure the dress doesn't make me look fat?" Twilight squeaked, Rarity tightening the straps that crossed under her belly and tying them up.

"Honestly dear, you look so beautiful, everypony's going to love you no matter what." Twilight sighed with a simple

"I guess you're right" and looked up as the door opened. Rainbow Dash walked in wearing her old Gala dress, her hair done back and straight as she looked at a small golden watch wrapped around her foreleg, looking towards the girls and letting out a huff

"Today, maybe?! Honestly Twilight, if you keep letting Rarity have her way she's going to have you here until Quill turns to dust. Hurry up! The faster you get smooching and eating wedding cake, the faster you can get to making foals n' fillies, I have a schedule to keep up with you know!" Rarity could have sworn Twilight was blushing at least eight different shades of red and waved a hoof at Rainbow, hissing

"Oh do try to be less BARBARIC Rainbow Dash! A bride must be PERFECT for her groom! This is one of the single-most important days of Twilight's life! It has to be SPECTACULAR!" Rainbow rolled her eyes and backed out, closing the door behind. Rarity sighed, shaking her head as Twilight turned her head, her blush still prominent on her face

"D...do you think Quill will want a foal or filly with me...?" Rarity smiled mischievously, placing a beautiful bow shaped like Applebloom's behind her head, tying it into her hair. She gave Twilight a look over and nodded, holding the door open for her with magic and squealing with glee

"Oooh!!! Only one way to find out! Come darling, let's get you married!"

~~~

Quill gulped, standing on the stage, nearest to the pedestal. To his left, situated in a neat line, were six of his good friends from the Canterlot Royal Archives. Across from him stood Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Applebloom, all smiling at Quill and giving him silent "Good lucks!". He sighed, narrowing his eyes and staring towards the ground, muttering "It's not funny Celestia...I have a right to be nervous." Behind the pedestal stood none other then Princess Celestia herself, adorned in a white and yellow dress, behind her and to the left, Princess Luna with a black and blue dress. Celestia couldn't help but chuckle a little as she looked towards Quill and spoke with glee

"Oh come now White, I barely get out of the castle as it is, let me have a little fun!" Quill looked up at her with a small glare in his eyes, huffing

"On my wedding day of all days! You're too cruel!" Celestia merely shook her head, sighing and smiling. Her horn flared a bright yellow and the book before her on the pedestal sprang to life, flipping open and moving to the appropriate page. She gave Quill a wink and said

"You know I'm just teasing. Relax! Everything will be fine, you've got the two most powerful ponies in Equestria overseeing your wedding, what's the worst that could happen?" Quill rolled his eyes a little, sighing with

"Oh you just have to jinx things sometimes..." It was shortly after this that Luna looked towards a clock on the far wall of the Rotunda, the inside of the Mayor's Building lit up with lace streamers and lights, purple decorations adorned everywhere. Most of everypony in Ponyville was standing in front of the stage, many filling the balconies and looking down at the entire scene with awe. Luna took a closer look at the clock and turned towards the green mare known as Lyra, nodding. Lyra turned to Octavia and the other four ponies behind her, nodding as well and signaling them to raise their instruments. Celestia practically squealed with delight as she whispered to Quill

"Oooh! Here we go! Here we go!" Quill let out a loud 'Ulp!" as he stared straight across to Rarity, who simply stared back with a wide smile. She mouthed out the words

'You'll be fine!' as the music started to play.

Everypony's heads turned towards the entrance behind them, waiting. The doors opened and Rarity turned to look, her smile widening even more as she quickly turned her eyes back to Quill, signaling him to look. He did so slowly, his eyes shifting towards the door. He couldn't help but gasp, Celestia smiling as wide as her face allowed her to as she beheld Twilight Sparkle gently walking down the aisle, escorted on her left by Big Macintosh. Rarity gently whispered to Fluttershy who blushed horribly

"My MY! Big Macintosh looks so...handsome, doesn't he? Sexy even, huh Fluttershy?" Applejack looked over to Rarity, glaring as she whispered

"You hush! That's mah brother you're talkin' bout'!" Quill could not hear this, he couldn't hear anything. He could only see, see his wife to be, adorned in the most beautiful white gown ever crafted by Rarity's fine hooves. It flowed across her flank, hugged her tightly around her middle, and moved gracefully with the movement of her hooves. Atop her head was her Element of Magic Crown, her face blushing and her eyes locked on Quill's, a stare of love shared between the two. Quill smiled as Twilight gently ascended the stairs, Big Macintosh turning with a nod and heading to his seat in the crowd. Twilight took her place in front of Quill, a nervous smile on her face as Quill whispered

"You look...so...beautiful." Twilight blushed and whispered back

"Well you don't look so bad yourself" Quill let out a nervous chuckle as Celestia cleared her throat and spoke with a booming voice that even Luna could be jealous of

"PONIES OF PONYVILLE!!! We are gathered here today, to celebrate a bond of love so special, so beautiful, that even through life and death itself, it has bloomed and become a passion brighter then even the sun and moon itself! The unifying of the bonds of trust, love, and companionship is a wonderful thing, and it is here today that by the power vested in me as Ruler of Equestria, that I formally unite these two caring, compassionate, and adoring ponies in marriage!" She looked towards Twilight, speaking with a tone of happiness and friendship "Twilight Star Sparkle, do you take White Papyrus Quill to be your lawfully wedded Husband, to have and to hold with loving hooves, in sickness and in health, for as long as you both shall live?" Twilight looked at Quill with such love, such care in her eyes, that Quill could have sworn his heart melted a little as she proclaimed loudly

"I do." Celestia looked towards Quill and with a smile spoke

"And do you, White Papyrus Quill, take Twilight Star Sparkle, to be your lawfully wedded wife, to care and protect with strong hooves, in sickness and in health, for as long as you both shall live?" Quill couldn't help but smile, giving a unique response but still a formal one all the same

"I've died for you Twilight...but even as my breath stopped...my love for you did not. My love for you will never die...and with this I say...I do." Twilight felt tears gently stream down her face as Celestia held up a hoof and shouted with glee

"Bring forth the rings!" Spike hopped up, holding a pillow on his outstretched claws, two golden hoof rings placed next to one another. She held them up as Quill took Twilight's and gently slit it up her outstretched hoof, Twilight doing the same. She give Spike a wink as he smiled and hopped back off the stage, Celestia raising her hoof again and proclaiming "By the power vested in me, as Royal Princess and Ruler of Equestria, I pronounce these two wonderful ponies, Husband and Wife! Quill, you may kiss your bride!" Quill stared into Twilight's eyes, his own brimming with tears as he gently walked forward, pressing his forehead against Twilight's and whispering

"I love you..." Twilight smiled and whispered back

"I love you too..." and with that, they kissed, their lips pushing against one another's as the rotunda burst out in thunderous applause and cheers. The couple broke apart slowly, backing up and looking at each other with such warm expressions of love...and then of excitement as they turned to the crowd and shouted

"Alright Everypony!!! Let's get to partying!!!" The rotunda's roars of approval met them with equal vigor as off to the side, Vinyl Scratch twirled a record in her hoofs like a pro, smiling wide and flicking down her purple shades, whispering with a mischievous grin and muttering

"Buck yeah!"

Chapter 5 - The Second Escape

The wedding-party was a total success. Twilight and Quill took to the floor first, the traditional first dance of the Bride and Groom making the others give warm smiles and loud applause, with more and more ponies following in their stead, taking to the dance floor as well. Vinyl Scratch laid down two records on her turntable, flicking on her amps and letting the bass thump loudly. Celestia smiled, sitting up on the edge of the stage, watching over her little ponies as Luna sighed next to her, a warm smile on her face as well. Luna looked towards her sister, her eyes twinkling

"Well Tia', I say this went over well!" Celestia nodded, a motherly grin spreading across her face as she watched Twilight and Quill sharing a light kiss and a small sip of champagne. She sighed, speaking to the Luna

"I never thought...oh...she's grown up so much..." Luna blinked in surprise, looking up at her sister and whispering

"Tia'...are you...crying?!" Celestia sniffed and rubbed her eyes with her hoof, muttering

"N...no!" Luna sighed, shaking her head and looking out over the dancing crowd, lightly patting Celestia's back.

~~~

Everyone cheered as Twilight and Quill, with carefully placed hooves, slid the large knife down the wonderfully decorated wedding cake, the married couple each giving each other and slice and looking into one another's eyes. Speeches were made of course, with Quill giving his story of how he first came to Ponyville, the day that Fluttershy was released from Prison, and proceeded to his own death at the hands of The Entity, and finally to his declaration of love and intentions of marriage to Twilight, who accepted with a squealing "Yes yes yes yes yes!", hopping around the library with glee.

It wasn't until the sound of shattering glass and a mare's outburst of pain that the bright and happy mood of the wedding was crushed. Everypony's heads turned to see Sweetie Belle rushing over to Scootaloo, a thick cloth in her teeth. A broken champagne glass lay at Scootaloo's hooves, her front right hoof bleeding pretty badly, a few shards of glass stuck in her coat. Applejack trotted over quickly, shouting

"Holy horsefeathers, Scootaloo, you okay?!" Scootaloo didn't respond, simply staring down at her hoof in horror, her pupils shrinking and her breath coming out in ragged heaves. Sweetie Belle gently pulled the shards out of her hoof gently, wrapping the cloth around it and looking at Scootaloo with a frightened expression. Applejack approached Scootaloo slowly, her breath getting to a hyperventilating point. Applejack gently held out a hoof out to Scootaloo and whispered "Scootaloo...?"

"Scootaloo?"

Scootaloo looked up, Pinkie Pie looking down at her and smiling. Her mane done up in pigtails and the color of blood, her coat green as the apples that Applejack liked to pick sometimes. Scootaloo looked down at her cyan colored hoof, bleeding from one of the drinking glasses she accidentally stepped on. She looked up again, tears in her eyes and whimpering
"M...momma!" Pinkie Pie gently trotted over, holding Scootaloo's hoof up in her own and gently pulling the shards out of her hoof. Scootaloo sat on her haunches and winced a little, watching as her mother wrapped a cloth up her hoof and smiling, giving her a tiny pat on her head. Scootaloo smiled for a moment but it slowly started to fade...turning into a look of horror. Pinkie's eyes began to drip blood, like tears, the corner of her mouth dripping as well. Scootaloo started to move back slowly, hyperventilating as the walls began to warp, the ceiling cracking and splintering. Snow started to flow through windows that began to smash and fall from their wooden frames, a heavy wind blasting through and throwing about many of the appliances surrounding them. The walls fell outwards, the ceiling being lifted and tossed away like a ball of paper. Scootaloo looked towards Pinkie, a dark shadow hovering over her and morphing into the shape of a sphere. The ORB!, it was there! Scootaloo gasped as the snow around them turned a deadly red, the blizzard becoming a haze of bloody liquid. Behind Pinkie Pie stood a large statue of a pony wearing some sort of winter cap and a flag. The flag had a symbol of a hammer and sickle, and was covered with the color of blood. She heard a sharp unsheathing of a blade and looked back towards Pinkie, who now had a knife in her mouth.

Her head cocked to the side as she smiled widely, the blade tucked tightly between her heavily gritted teeth. The same voice that terrorized her in Ponyville terrorized her now as it whispered

"Sssscoootalooooo...
Come home Ssssscoootaloooo!!!!
COME!!!!! HOME!!!!"

Pinkie lunged with a savage growl, swinging the knife downwards towards her throat.

~~~

Scootaloo screamed in utter terror as Applejack's hoof gently poked her, her own hoof whipping about and smacking Applejack right in the face out of reflex. Applejack staggered back out of surprise, a hoof up to her own cheek as she shouted

"What in tarnation!?" Twilight gasped as Quill blinked in surprise, everypony staring dumbstruck at Scootaloo. The orange and purple mare started to hyperventilate, looking about quickly and shivering. She felt surrounded, claustrophobic. Sweetie Belle gently approached her, whispering

"S...Scootaloo? What's wrong? Are you o-EEEE!!!" She jumped back as Scootaloo took a sharp piece of glass up in her teeth and slashed at Sweetie Belle, backing away herself and screaming through bared teeth

"GET BACK!!!! GET THE BUCK BACK!!!!" She swung the glass around her, making several jump back and clear a path for her as she backed up through the crowd. Her pupils were contracted heavily as Celestia and Luna stared with utter shock. Scootaloo turned, swinging her head with the glass slashing at the air, making everypony near the entrance to move away. Scootaloo took her chance and bolted through, crashing through the double doors as Sweetie Belle shouted after her

"Scootaloo!!! WAIT!" A rumbling noise of muttering wafted up through the rotunda, everypony whispering and trying to understand what they had just seen. The girls rushed quickly over to the head table where Twilight sat, each of them sharing the same confused face. Twilight was the first to speak

"I...I don't understand! Why did she...what just happened?!" Rarity sighed and shook her head, muttering

"I don't know...oh Twilight I'm sorry...the others and I felt that Scootaloo would be up to this today...she's been feeling downright awful the past week...we didn't want to bother you or Quill with it because of the wedding and-" Twilight cut her off with a wave of her hoof and speaking with a tinge of worry in her voice

"Forget the wedding, Scootaloo's in trouble, and I want to know why! I've never known her to just...break down like that!" Fluttershy felt tears brimming in her eyes as she whimpered

"She...she's been having nightmares for the past week...about Pinkie Pie...I didn't think...I didn't know it'd get this bad...I'm sorry!" Quill sighed and shook his head, gently putting a hoof on Fluttershy's head and whispering with a comforting tone

"Now now Fluttershy...it's alright. Scootaloo's our friend...we're worried about her. There's no need to be sorry about anything. Wedding or not, you all SHOULD have bothered us...nothing we can do about it now..." Applejack sighed and looked around, her eyes narrowing as she looked around again, speaking to the others as she looked about

"Um...girls? Where the hay is Rainbow?"

~~~

Rainbow Dash had followed her, there was no way she was just going to let her go after something like that. She sat on her haunches outside Fluttershy's cottage, wondering what she should do. Scootaloo had looked up to her growing up, before the whole Trottington thing with Pinkie Pie. She felt awful...guilty mostly, about not being there for the little filly when she was truly Rainbow Dash's number one fan. She sighed, slipping off her Gala dress and setting it over Fluttershy's mailbox, trotting up to the door and putting a hoof up to it to knock. As he hoof pressed against the door it creaked open slowly, darkness answering the door. It was eerily dark inside the cottage as Rainbow Dash slowly walked inside, a lone lantern sitting on the table with a light flickering inside of it, giving the room a soft glow. She walked fully inside and squeaked with fright as the door slammed shut behind her, a gust of wind blowing about outside the house.

Rainbow sighed, looking about and calling out "Hey, Scootaloo! Are you here? It's Rainbow Dash! You don't have to be afraid or upset, you didn't do anything wrong!" She heard a light thud coming from upstairs and looked up, hearing something moving. She looked towards the stairs and trotted over, looking upwards at the blackness that waited at the top. She gulped, her heartbeat making itself heard as it thumped loudly in her chest. She started the slow ascension up the stairs. A few steps creaked under her hooves...and for some reason, Rainbow couldn't shake the suffocating feeling of terror that was winding it's way up through her insides and hugging her heart in an icy embrace. She reached the top of the stairs, looking to the left, seeing nothing. She looked to the right and saw a soft glow coming from the room at the end of the hall. She trotted over, gently placing a hoof on it and opening the door, whispering

"Scoota-BUCK!!!" Something hit her square in the face and she flew backwards, letting out a shout of pain and holding her nose, which started to bleed a little. Her eyes were watering and she tried to blink away the blurriness in her vision. She gasped as she heard Scootaloo's voice hiss down the hall

"Why are you here Rainbow DASH!!?" She spat her name with such venom it made Rainbow cringe, wiping at her eyes and blinking, adjusting her vision and looking up at Scootaloo with fright. Scootaloo looked down on her with disgust, her eyes following Rainbow's as she got up sluggishly, shouting

"What the hay is wrong with you!? What was THAT for!?" Scootaloo scoffed and shook her head at Rainbow, muttering darkly

"Seriously...you're going to ask what's wrong with me?! What about YOU!? Why do you even care, you didn't care before, you didn't care before Pinkie Pie! Oh, what, Pinkie Pie adopts me and shows me true kindness and compassion, and now everypony loves Scootaloo? You sick, disgusting BITCH!" Rainbow Dash looked at her in shock. This wasn't like Scootaloo at all! She shouted once again

"Hey! I came here to make sure you were ok! You flipped out and ran from the town square like a ghost was after you, you nearly CUT Sweetie Belle!!!" Scootaloo walked forward briskly, shouting so loudly that it made Rainbow back up to keep the distance even

"OH, What?! So Scootaloo goes crazy and NOW you're concerned!? What Rainbow, what do you think about all this huh?! Think I'm crazy? THINK I'M losing it?! Maybe I am! But do you want to know what's more crazy? The fact that you can dream about your stupid, bucking mare Applejack, and Twilight can have that shitbird Quill, and all of you can be happy...all of you can just FORGET Pinkie Pie so EASILY!" Rainbow Dash shook her head rapidly, backing up as Scootaloo continued to bear down on her, squeaking

"S...Scootaloo no! None of us have forgotten about Pinkie Pie! She sacrificed herself so all of us could li-" Scootaloo raised a hoof, punching Rainbow in the side of her face. Rainbow Dash fell backwards on her haunches, tears streaming down her face and whimpering "o...ow!!!" Scootaloo stood over her, shouting

"SACRIFICE!? You STUPID, IDIOT, MARE! That's it!? You're just going to give up on Pinkie?! I KNOW she's still alive! I can't SLEEP, I can't EAT, I can't do anything except swim in my own dark minded visions of blood and madness! There's no body!!! No PROOF!!!! She's calling to me in Stalliongrad, she's SHOWING me! She's waiting for me!!!" Rainbow Dash was at a loss for words. Scootaloo...she's lost her mind! There's no way she was the same Scootaloo, there's no way! Rainbow weakly raised a hoof and squeaked

"Scootaloo, there's...there's no way she could have survived!!! She s...stabbed herself so many times!!! SheeeaAAAARRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!" Rainbow Dash screamed as Scootaloo charged her, hitting her square in the stomach with her bowed head, like a bull. Rainbow flew back and off the top of the stairs, rolling down each step and crying out, her hooves flailing about. She finally reached the bottom step, rolling into a dresser with a loud 'BANG!', the piece of furniture swaying dangerously before falling forward on top of Rainbow. Screams were heard as Scootaloo slowly descended the stairs, stepping on top of the dresser as Rainbow cried "Scootaloo!!! WHY!!! WHYYY!!" She was sobbing, a cyan hoof reaching out, shaking from under the dresser. Scootaloo grimaced and jumped up and down on the dresser, each thud of her hooves bringing a fresh shout and cry of pain and sobbing from the Rainbow Mare. After about five jumps she hopped off, getting on her belly and looking underneath the dresser. Rainbow Dash had tears spilling from her eyes, a gash on her forehead and her hoof outstretched towards her. Rainbow continued to sob and weakly cry out "Why!!! Scoot....Scootaloo, why!?" Scootaloo looked at her with such hate and anger that for a moment she could have sworn steam was coming from her snout with each ragged breath. She hissed to Rainbow Dash, making her wide-eyed as she spoke

"Because I don't give up on anypony...unlike you" She stood, walking over to the lantern on the table. Saddlebags waited patiently on the couch for her, and were picked up by her, settling on her back with a few minor adjustments. She heard Rainbow Dash cry out to her, the dresser creaking a little from shifting weight. Scootaloo looked towards the lantern and shouted so Rainbow could hear "What's wrong Rainbow? Are you afraid? Are you upset? Funny...all that noise coming from the bravest mare I know...or knew. How does it feel? How does it feel to be left for dead, huh? You know I'm not going to help you. I want you to sit there, and feel like Pinkie, feel like she's feeling right now, abandoned, hurt, and broken. The only difference is...I'm going to save her...I'm not going to save you."

Scootaloo turned and bucked the lantern with all her might, the metal tube sailing over and crashing against the wall, raining liquid fire and oil onto one of Fluttershy's bookcases. She trotted over to a screaming Rainbow Dash who heard the flames starting to spread, getting on her belly and whispering "Fear...is a basic, pony emotion...what frightens you more Rainbow? The evil that you know...or the evil that you don't know...?" She got up and bucked the door open, bucking it shut behind her as she walked away from the burning cottage, and the frantic cries of help from Rainbow Dash.

She had a direction, she had a purpose, and now...she'd have her escape. She couldn't be forgiven...not now. Rainbow Dash's blood was on her hooves. She thought about Pinkie...with the blood of Trottington on her hooves...she now understood, finally at last. She was walking her mother's footsteps...her mother was trying to make her understand! She was escaping...just like her mother did...and she'd find her salvation in the city of the north, the city of snow, the city her mother waited in:

Stalliongrad.

Chapter 6 - The Element of Honesty

Bon Bon sighed, walking down the road. The Wedding party was pretty much over, most of everypony on the lookout or searching for Scootaloo or Rainbow Dash. Lyra stayed behind to help looking, and told Bon Bon that she would meet her at home. She didn't mind, after all, she WAS pretty tired. She looked to the edge of the path on her right, smiling a little at some mint green flowers, taking the time to stop and smell them. She sighed, taking in a big whiff, but immediately after she frowned. These didn't smell like mint...they smelled like.........smoke. She looked up, confused, looking around for a moment before gasping. A black plume of smoke was rising over Ponyville from what looked like the Everfree forest...or near it.

~~~

Applejack sighed, tipping her hat backwards and rubbing her forehead with her hoof. Quill was rubbing his wife's back as one by one, ponies flocked in and reported no sighting of Rainbow Dash or Scootaloo. Applejack frowned, mostly out of annoyance then worry as she muttered "Damn Rainbow Mare...sometimes I don't know if I want to kiss or kill that stubborn pony..." Another pony walked up, shaking her head as Twilight sighed, checking off another area on her clipboard. She looked at her husband with a worried expression on her face as she groaned

"Park, Sugar Cube Corner, Sweet Apple Acres, nowhere! It's like she just vanished, I mean the only place we didn't look is the-"

"EVERFREE FOREST!!!!" Bon Bon shouted, cutting off Twilight's speech and causing her to jump a little bit. Rarity whirled about, gasping

"The Everfree? What on earth is Scootaloo doing there?" Bon Bon shook her head frantically, shouting with panic

"No!!! There's a FIRE! It's near the Everfree forest!!!" Fluttershy gasped and took to the air, squealing

"MY ANIMALS!" Applejack tipped her hat back forward and turned to Rarity, shouting

"Well come on then! We gotta get out thayer!" Applejack rushed from the rotunda, Rarity, Twilight, and Quill right behind her. Fluttershy flew above them and together they tore through the streets of Ponyville, rushing towards Fluttershy's Cottage. They rushed down the final street, heading out into the fields as Fluttershy shrieked

"MY HOUSE!!! MY ANIMALS!!! ANGEL!!! ANGEL BUNNY!!!" Animals were scampering away from the blazing cottage, angel bunny bounding for Fluttershy. She landed as he jumped in her arms, the crying Pegasus hugging him tightly as Applejack heard screams coming from the house. She gasped

"No...NO!!!! RAINBOW!!!!" She heard the scream of her name calling back to her from inside and Applejack tore off her dress, rushing forward towards the building. Rarity shouted after her

"APPLEJACK NO! IT'S TOO DANGEROUS!!!" Applejack threw off her hat, rushing forward with herding speed as she shouted back

"I LOST THAT MARE ONCE, AND I AIN'T GONNA LOSE HER AGAIN!" She jumped, hooves stretched out in front of her as she crashed through one of the windows, rolling across the heated ground and narrowly avoiding the flames in front of her that engulfed much of Fluttershy's living room. Fire was spewing about everywhere, chunks of the ceiling coming down and the whole house creaking. Applejack coughed, her eyes watering from the smoke as she shouted frantically "Rainbow!!! RAINBOW!!!! Where ya at!?! Rainbow you better answer me before I stomp on your stubborn head!" She heard a scream to her right and she looked over towards the stair case, gasping loudly as she saw an outstretched cyan hoof grasping at the ground from under a fallen dresser. The flames were starting to catch the dresser on fire as Applejack rushed over, turning her body around and cocking her back hoofs up and ready. She had the strongest back legs out of anypony, EVERYPONY knew that! With the power of her apple-bucking hooves, she heaved her hooves back and smashed them against the dresser, the flaming piece of furniture flying upwards and off Rainbow Dash.

Applejack looked over her friend with tears in her eyes, seeing the injured and partially singed mare before her. Her right wing was twitching and her back hooves were a little singed, but what made her cringe the most was a deep gash on Rainbow's forehead, which was still bleeding a little. Rainbow looked up weakly, tears in her eyes as she cried out

"A...Applejack! APPLEJACK!" The country mare rushed over, nuzzling her for a moment and whispering

"Ah hear ya Rainbow, I'm right here! Come on, I got ya!" She pushed her nose against Rainbow's belly, trying to get her head under her. Rainbow weakly lifted her body up as Applejack slipped under her, hoisting her up and letting Rainbow's head rest against the back of her neck. She turned to the window she had jumped in through and went wide-eyed as she saw the flames roaring all over the floor in front of it. Applejack tried to keep her cool, looking around every which way, shouting to the mare on her back "Don't you worry! I'll get us outta here! You stay with me Rainbow, ya hear? I'll beat your face in if you go dyin' on me...again!" She felt hooves wrap around her and a body shake against hers as Applejack flew up the stairs, turning a corner and rushing for Fluttershy's room. She put a hoof on the door, not feeling any heat and pushed it open, rushing in. Fluttershy's room hadn't caught fire yet, and most of her belongings were still in one piece. She knew as a young filly she was taught to never care for personal belongings when faced with a house fire, but these weren't her belongings, and she wasn't about to let the kindest pony in Ponyville suffer even more. She rushed about, throwing as many things as she could on Fluttershy's bed, trying to get the most to the least valuable items in order. She heard crackling behind her and saw smoke starting to enter the room, giving Applejack the cue that it was DEFINITELY time to leave. She took the four corners of her blankets one by one and folded them to the middle, tying up the makeshift bag and throwing it at the bedroom window, a loud crash echoing through the air. Applejack looked back to Rainbow, eyes shut tight and crying. She whispered "Here we go hun...you hang on tight, I ain't gonna let you go, not again! Don't look Rainbow! Don't look!" She turned her head forward, pawing at the ground with her front hoof and bowing her head. "Here we go..." she whispered more to herself as the first set of flames started to catch the carpet on fire. She burst forward, letting out a furious shout and holding it out, pouncing forward with her hooves outstretched. She sailed through the shattered window, falling from the second story and hitting the ground with a loud 'Thud' and an outburst of "OW!!! BUCKING HAY!!!" She had landed on her belly, not two feet from Fluttershy's wrapped belongings.

Applejack groaned, Rainbow Dash sliding off her back to the left and landing with a soft thud. She looked over to the Rainbow Mare, whispering "You alright Rainbow...? Speak to me girl!" Rainbow Dash whimpered, holding her hooves over her eyes and letting out a light yelp, her right wing twitching

"It...it hurts!" Applejack reached over, placing a comforting hoof on Rainbow's and feeling fatigue wash over her. Her eyes drooped and with a final sigh, she let her head rest against the ground, and blacked out.

~~~

"I think she's waking up!"

"Applejack, are you ok?"

"Applejack!!!" The Country Mare groaned, raising a hoof to her forehead and wincing, a massive headache pounding away somewhere behind her eyes, which she opened slowly. She saw white, her vision blurry and her movements weak and sluggish. Her throat hurt and she spoke with a hoarse voice

"W...where am ah? What...what happene-" She gasped, sitting up quick as lightning and screaming "RAINBOW! Where's Rainbow!!! Where is sh-" A hoof pressed against her mouth as Twilight whispered

"Shhh!!!!" She inclined her head to the left as Applejack looked over, tears brimming in her eyes. Rainbow was laying in a hospital bed next to hers, her forehead, wings, and hooves bandaged and tucked with a few green leaves and some sort of yellowish cream, her eyes shut and a peaceful expression on her face. Twilight whispered "She's going to be fine...but the doctors demanded she have a good few day's rest and at least a few weeks ground time before she starts flying again...she was lucky to be alive...thanks to you." Applejack smiled as the tears finally began to flow, crying silently as she was hugged against Twilight, Rarity coming up as well and putting a comforting hoof on Applejack's side. The country mare choked out a sob and shook her head, whimpering

"Ah...ah couldn't do it, I couldn't let it happen again...not again...I couldn't lose her twice Twi'!" Twilight nodded, hugging Applejack's head into her shoulder and whispering

"I know...I know...she's safe now...shhhh...you did a brave thing today Applejack, you saved your mare..." Applejack sniffed, smiling a little as she thought to herself 'Mah Mare...I saved mah mare..." Applejack was pulled from Twilight just a little by Fluttershy's extended hoof, tears in her own eyes as well. She sniffed loudly and squeaked

"Y...you saved my things...oh Applejack...y...you nearly died because...y...you" Applejack shook her head with a smile, giving the canary-yellow mare a tight hug and whispering

"Twern't nothin' sugarcube...after all you've been through with Pinkie, Prison, Scootaloo an' all this...I couldn't let you suffer...not again, not anymore.." They cried into one another's coats, Quill coming up and putting a hoof on Twilight's foreleg and muttering

"She should really get her rest dear...she's been through enough for one day..." Twilight nodded and gently pried Fluttershy away from Applejack, who was still whispering over and over

"Thank you...thank you!" Applejack nodded and gave Rarity a weak hug, her body sore. She gave them all a tiny wave as they exited the hospital room, leaving her with Rainbow. She struggled to get out of bed, weakly stumbling over to Rainbow's bed and slowly crawling in with her. She snuggled her face into Rainbow's chest and let out a sighing breath, closing her eyes. She was the Element of Honesty...and she promised herself a year ago in her final moments with Rainbow Dash that she wouldn't let go...she wasn't about to break her promise today.

~~~

Applejack sighed with a low "Mmmmh..." as she felt something moving against her, and pull away. She opened her eyes slowly, hearing the silent clopping of hoofsteps and the scribbling of quill on paper. She rolled over, an annoyed expression on her face as she spoke sternly, making the bandaged Rainbow Dash jump as she tried to open the window "And just where in Tarnation do you think YOU'RE going little miss pony?" Rainbow frowned and looked sheepishly away, poking her two front hooves together and stuttering

"I...I uh...fresh air, yeah! I was going to get fresh air..." Applejack sighed and sat up, wincing a little at her sore limbs but getting out of bed regardless, gently walking over to Rainbow as she spoke

"Now see? That's the reason why I'M the Element ah Honesty and you're the Element ah Loyalty, you can't tell a lie for nuttin' and I know exactly where ya'll think you're ah goin'" Rainbow Dash sighed and looked towards Applejack with a sorrowful expression, whispering

"AJ...she's a lost pony who's gone and lost her marbles! I can't just let her fly about when she could hurt somepony else!" Applejack sat on her haunches and sighed, looking out into the crisp night sky, dotted with Luna's stars. She stared up at the moon and whispered

"She's not crazy Rainbow...she's just...grievin', everypony hurts in different ways...although I don't use that as an excuse for her to go and tryin' ta kill ya...she's a hurt pony RD...she's hurtin' bad..." Rainbow Dash nodded and sighed, but looked up as she heard Applejack mumble "...been hurtin' too..." she blinked and asked

"Huh? Applejack what did you say?" Applejack looked up, a slight blush on her face and mumbling

"Ah been hurtin' also Rainbow..." Rainbow Dash looked at her, confused and whispering

"But...why? What do you have to be sad about...you've got the farm and Big Macintosh brought back to life and-"

"You came back too Rainbow..." Rainbow Dash stopped, staring at the Apple Mare as she looked away nervously. Rainbow touched a hoof against Applejack's coat which made her shiver a little. She narrowed her eyes, staring at Applejack curiously and whispering

"Applejack...what's going on with you? Are you ok?" Applejack shook her head, feeling herself tearing up and sniffing. She looked up at Rainbow and spoke with a surprisingly annoyed tone

"Darnit Rainbow...I promised myself I wouldn't cry! Y'all making me...making me cry!" Applejack put her hooves over her eyes as Rainbow frowned, gently patting her friend on the side as she sniffed, scooting closer to her Rainbow friend.

"AJ...stop crying...come on...you know I hate it when you cry..." Applejack sniffed and sighed, nodding a little and whispering

"Ah'm sorry...it's just...ah nearly lost you again Rainbow...I couldn't stand the thought of losing you again...don't you ever do that to me again Rainbow!" Rainbow nodded slowly and asked

"Why...am I so important to you...I don't unders-"

"Close your eyes Rainbow" Applejack said, looking up with a sad look on her face. Rainbow Dash blinked in confusion for a moment before sighing, closing her eyes, listening to Applejack as she whispered "And don't you be openin' em..." Rainbow nodded, sitting and waiting.

She didn't now how long she sat there, waiting. She was nervous at first, but trusted AJ, sitting in the chilly room. She was about to ask what was going on until she felt something press against her cheek and rub against her, rubbing down the side of her face and against her neck. It took Rainbow Dash a minute...but she suddenly realized that Applejack was nuzzling her. She let out a low 'Meep!' as Applejack nuzzled her cheek and blew a hot stream of breath down her neck, making the Rainbow Mare shiver and her wing bandages rip slightly. Rainbow felt her move away, the scent of apples lingering on her coat as she whispered quietly "A...Applej-mmph!" She was cut off by something pressing against her lips. Her eyes flew open and stared deeply into the emerald color of Applejack's. Applejack's lips were pressed against her own, and moved away slightly to say

"I told you not to open em..." Rainbow Dash blushed, smiling a little as Applejack leaned in and kissed her again, this time however, Rainbow Dash kissed her back, gently wrapping her front hooves around her and pulling her into a tight embrace. They pecked each other's lips, holding one another tightly as their embrace started to get more and more desperate. For a moment Rainbow felt like the ground underneath her dissapeared, her back pressing against something soft and silky. She opened her eyes, staring up at Applejack from her position on the bed and looking at her nervously, whispering

"N...now? But we...I mean I..." Applejack gave her a tiny kiss and whispered

"If you don't wanna...ah understand...it's just that, ah lost you once, and ah nearly lost you again...you know we're both goin' after Scootaloo...and ah didn't want to leave loose ends unlassoed...just in case somthin' bad happened...you know?" Rainbow Dash smiled and blush, muttering

"You rea...really want to be my first...?" Applejack smiled and gave her answer with a deep kiss, Rainbow reaching her hoof over and pulling a white sheet over them both.

~~~

Scootaloo stood on top of a cliff...far to the north of Ponyville. From this height, she could spot the border where he biomes began to change, patches of snow littering the far north. She had a serious expression etched on her face which slowly started to turn into a grimace. She was making good time...it'd be only about three or four hours until she reached Stalliongrad...and at long last, she would be reunited with her mother.

She sighed a little, looking off the cliff into the shadowy abyss below. She started to feel guilty about killing Rainbow Dash...she felt that deep down...maybe Rainbow Dash was just trying to help. She shook her head furiously, looking back with a murderous glare. No...Rainbow was just another stupid mare...another mare who left Pinkie to die. She'd show them...she'd show them all. She would never forgive...and she would never forget.

She had always held onto the last word Pinkie Pie spoke before she was blasted to the moon, and it was because of this that she never forgot...

Just one word:

"Remember".

Chapter 7 - The "Snowvalker"

"Shut up Rainbow..."

"Wow...."

"Rainbow...shut...up!"

"W...wow......that was..."

"RAINBOW!" Applejack shouted, the noise making the two stallions at the head of the carriage turn their heads in concern and confusion. Rainbow Dash was practically glowing, smiling like an idiot as she hung her head out of the window, looking up towards the stars. Applejack was sitting next to her, clearing her throat and double checking her saddlebags. She mumbled to herself "Alright...we left a note...got warm clothin'...apples...ah don't think I'm missing anythin' else...what you think Rainbow?" Rainbow simply sighed happily, staring up at the moon with her sly grin and mumbling

"Wow...."

"RAINBOW!!!!!!!!"

~~~

Scootaloo dove, shivering like mad as she hurried to get out of the air. The temperature was dropping too much for what she was used to, and her wings had begun to lock up, nearly making her fall out of the sky like a large ice cube. She beat them as fast as she could as the ground neared, slowing her descent and allowing her to touch down in the snow. She sunk up to her belly in the whiteness of the field and shivered. She hadn't really prepared for the harsh winter of the north. She trudged forward, her head bowed against the heavy wind. She shivered like crazy, stopping and falling back on her haunches. She hugged herself tightly, trying to get herself at least a little warm before she moved again.

The night time wasn't helping much, the frigid wind throwing about the freezing night air and making Scootaloo's wings snap shut. She couldn't move...she couldn't even breathe, the air making her lungs cramp and hurt with every hoarse breath. However...amongst the howling of the wind...there was another sound. A whisper...tiny but still able to be discerned to the orange mare.

"Sssscootaloooo!!! K..Koltzan!!!Koltzan!!! Sssscootaloo!!!"

Scootaloo gasped as she looked around frantically, screaming

"MOM!? MOM!!!! Mom where are you!? Mom!!!" She heard barking in the distance to her left, the cold starting to envelop her in an icy hold. She slowly looked to her left, ice and snow starting to stick to her coat. eight dogs in two lines of four were bounding towards her, a large wooden sled like contraption behind them. She stared at the dogs and the sled, her eyes drooping. The last thing she heard before her head hit the cold, wet ground were the words

"Whooaa!! Slow down doggies ya?! Das good doggies! Let's see vut we have here..."

~~~

Blackness hugged Scootaloo tightly, carrying her through an abyss of dreams and deadly silence. She couldn't hear anything...only see. Visions morphed and swam by, showing her Hoofington...Inspector Trottington, her death as she clung to the raft...being ripped apart from the monsters in the river. But overall...the only thing she could feel was cold...harsh, unrelenting cold. She shivered for moment until she felt something wrap around her, and a blast of warmth coursed through her. She opened her eyes, and gasped as pink flooded her vision. She looked up slowly, into the face of a straight-haired Pinkie Pie, who smiled down at her and whispered

"Soon..."

Sleep found Scootaloo yet again...dragging her into it's sweet, black abyss of comfort. She had forgotten how wonderful sleep had been...a night free of fear, of nightmares. When she awoke again, she wasn't in the arms of Pinkie Pie, but rather, in the hold of a giant wool blanket wrapped around her, a fire crackling near by. She looked around slowly, noticing she was in a cave, far from the entrance which was blanketed in a blizzard. She sat up slowly, yawning as she felt movement to her right. She jumped a little, looking beside her with wide eyes. She didn't even notice the eight dogs laying down all around her, creating a tight ring of warmth that made her feel rather toasty. A voice had her looking up towards the other side of the fire, a colt with a thick Russcoltian accent.

"Da, doggies warm yes? Dats good doggies...alvays so helpvul and nice...you lucky be alive da? You nearly turn into Pegasus Ice cube, ha ha ha!" He had a cheery expression on his face as he took a swig from some sort of leather flask, getting up and walking over to her, the flask in his outstretched hoof. He sat on his haunches as she took it, speaking with a warning tone in his voice "You drink easy now da? It's not common drink vor south ponies like you, bit of kick!" Scootaloo took a small sip and grimaced heavily, coughing as the colt laughed, patting her on the back "Das good da?! Finest vine in all of da Stalliongrad, best there is! Too bad all da roads leading to city ave' been closed...I running out of vine...Chush' sobach'ya , vutever..." Scootaloo handed back the flask after a long, throat burning swig, giving the colt a look over.

He was a tall, muscular colt...maybe just about as big as Big Macintosh, but she doubted it. He had a dark, dark brown coat that was still a little white from the snow, and his mane was a lot longer then most colts she knew. She coughed a little and spoke a little hoarsely

"Who...are you?" The colt laughed at this and took a graceful bow, speaking with formality

"I am Dimitri Snowvalker, I run doggie sled in vich I carry da packages...it's like a...how you say in south, mailmare da? Only I no mare, I know this! HAHA!" Scootaloo couldn't help but smile a little. He certainly was a character...very cheery. She frowned as she thought of his previous statement however and muttered

"Stalliongrad...it's closed off? But that's where I'm headed..." At this Dimitri laughed, sitting on his haunches again, accidentally sitting on the tail of one of his dogs. The dog barked as Dimitri lightly bopped him on his head, shouting

"Zavali yebalo!!!" He grunted as the dog put his head down, snuggling back down into his comrades. Dimitri sighed and looked over to the mare, nodding "Da, city closed, too much snow. Oh vell, at least der is Koltzan to the north, such a lovely vittle to-" Scootaloo looked at him with wide eyes, cutting him off as she shouted

"Koltzan?! That's a place? How do I get there, where is it? How far is it!?" Dimitri blinked in surprise for a minute before laughing and adding another log to the fire, speaking out of the corner of his mouth to her

"Da, Koltzan is a vittle village north of Stalliongrad, just along the Volmare River. It's good place, good vine...well...it vus considered good till the place vus considered haunted..." Scootaloo narrowed her eyes a little, muttering

"Haunted you say....by what?" Dimitri shrugged, sitting back from the fire and taking another swig, swallowing and sighing before muttering

"I don't really know...I used to deliver for Koltzan until only a few veeks ago...then the lord of estate there goes vittle crazy, closes off half of town, claiming da snow ponies try to steal his vall...HA! Vullshit, da whole thing!" Scootaloo gulped a little, whispering

"His...ball?" Dimitri nodded, looking over towards Scootaloo and saying

"Da, some sort of orb or some dumb vullshit, I don't know"

~~~

"What in tarnation you mean the roads closed!!!?" Applejack shouted at the roadblock in front of them, a red and white wooden barrier blocking off the road with a sign. It was labeled with some strange, foreign language, but underneath the message was repeated in the common ponyfolk speak, according to Applejack. The carriage pulling colts, now wrapped heavily in cold-weather clothing, looked back at the country mare with the green earmuffs, wondering what she wanted to do now. Applejack sighed and shouted up at them "Well!? What other towns are nearby that we can rest at!?" The colt on the left thought for a moment before looking back at her and saying

"Well, there's Koltzan, further up north!"

~~~

"An...orb" Scootaloo muttered. Dimitri nodded and sighed, looking towards the fire

"Da...it's making things very bad for business...hard to deliver when crazy pony going coo-coo up in his big mansion." Scootaloo bit her bottom lip for a moment, thinking. The orb was in Koltzan...that's where the voice was telling her to go...it wasn't in Stalliongrad that the statue was located...it was Koltzan. She looked up to Dimitri and said

"Dimitri...I need to get to Koltzan...but there's no way I can make it on my own...I'm not built or equipped for cold weather flying...and to be honest I didn't really come out here with a sense of direction either..." Dimitri laughed at this and nodded, pointing at her and speaking with glee

"Very true da!? You vittle Popsicle Pegasus, HAHAHA! I can take you to Koltzan, but you must do something for me da?" Scootaloo frowned a bit nervously, wondering what in Celestia's name his price was. Noticing her look, he laughed even harder, holding onto this belly and trying to speak between fits of laughter "Oh!!! Oh you very silly pony! Dat face...hahaha!!!! You misunderstand Dimitri da? I very good pony, I not make you do bad things. Price for ride very simple da? Two things, I need name of mare!" Scootaloo gave a silent 'oh' and cleared her throat, holding her hoof up which Dimitri took and shook, saying

"My name's Scootaloo...Diane Pie...I'm from Ponyville." Dimitri went wide-eyed and smiled, looking truly amazed and saying

"Vow!!! A pony all the vay from down there!? Vunderful! It is pleasure to meet Miss Scootaloo Diane Pie." He looked around her at the dogs and sighed "And these vittle bastards...are my poochies..." He pointed to each of them as he said their names. "Dat one there, is vittle Ivan, dat's Lev, Leonid, Ludvig, Taras, Yuri, Yakov, and Yan. Don't let Taras fool you, he may act tough, but he just a poochie." Scootaloo smiled, watching the dogs lift their heads up at the mention of their names. Dimitri looked at Scootaloo and smiled "One more part of price, you put log in fire. Poochie sled is team, everyone contributes to team, and everyone is happy da?" Scootaloo nodded, reaching over from her blanket and dog-like fortress to grasp a log between her hooves, placing it on the fire and smiling. Dimitri clapped with his hooves and exclaimed with glee

"Vunderful! You is part of team now, but only for vittle bit da? I only keep room for one pony and eight poochies, so I take you to Koltzan, and then once you done, I even bring Scootaloo Diane Pie home da?" Scootaloo nodded and smiled

"Thank you so much Dimitri." Dimitri waved his hoof and shook away her thanks, puffing out his chest with pride and shouting

"No thanks needed Miss Scootaloo Diane Pie, I am dependable snow pony! OI! VAKE UP POOCHIES, WE PULL!" He pulled a whistle out of some nearby saddlebags and blew it hard, the dogs yelping and jumping up. They rushed over towards the sled that rested on the far side of the cave and starting slipping into their own harnesses, gearing up for travel. Scootaloo stood, keeping the wool blanket wrapped around her and whispering with awe

"Wow...they're well trained." Dimitri nodded and headed over, smiling as he spoke

"Of course! They need to be always ready to get their tootsies cold. Dangerous if doggies don't know how to live in cold da? Come Scootaloo Diane Pie, let us get you too Koltzan, ve get you some good vine yet!"

~~~

The journey was relatively swift and straight-forward, their only stops were to let the dogs use the trees. Scootaloo sat on the middle of the sled, bundled up in her blankets with a thick wool cap on her head, a red star stitched on the front. She shivered a little and stayed bundled up, the loud howling of wind and the shouting of Dimitri the only sounds in the area "MUSH DOGGIES!, MUSH! Ve get good vine at Koltzan!" Scootaloo closed her eyes, dozing off for a moment.

Warmth filled her, and for a moment she sighed happily, opening her eyes. She was laying in her bed in Fluttershy's spare bedroom, the morning sun just starting to rise. She felt something press against her back and she smiled, snuggling back into something warm and soft. She felt hooves wrap around her and Pinkie's voice whispering

"Wake up dear...wake up...wake up...

"Vake up da?! You dead pony? Ve are here!" Scootaloo blinked a little, putting a hoof to her forehead and sighing, her mind slow to wake up. She looked around slowly, eyes wide and filled with awe. She was in some kind of town square, bundled up ponies and large huskies moving about and going about their business. The buildings in the town were all two stories and covered with blankets of snow, smoke rising out of all the chimneys. What caught Scootaloo's eye was the statue...the statue in the direct center of town. It was an old grey color, featuring a large Stallion standing up on his rear legs with a flag in one hoof and a hammer in the other. The flag was colored a dull red, and was faded with age. Scootaloo looked up with a terrified expression on her face, a cold wave of fear coursing through her body and making her shiver.

It was the same statue her mother had shown her in the vision.

She had no doubt about it anymore.

Somewhere...in the town of Koltzan...was Pinkie Pie.

Chapter 8 - The Sleeping Mare

"NOPONY GETS IN, DAS FINAL!!!" Screamed one of the gate guards, shoving Scootaloo back with his hooves, pushing her into the snow. Dimitri swore and helped her up, shouting at the guard

"Vut kind of vay is that to treat lady!? You skunk ass, smell like unwashed dog ya!?" The Guard growled and stomped his front hooves, shouting

"GET OUT OF HERE, BEFORE I ARREST YOU!" Dimitri grumbled, helping Scootaloo up and leading her away from the gate. A large wooden wall had been erected around half of the town, splitting and isolating the north part of town. Scootaloo looked behind her as they moved away, muttering

"Sheesh...the town mayor sure has the place locked up tight..." Dimitri nodded sadly, sighing with his reply

"Da...I told you Miss Scootaloo Diane Pie...mayor keep place locked up tight...it's very bad in Koltzan..." Scootaloo scoffed, shaking her head as they headed for a nearby tavern, hoping to get out of the cold.

"Yeah...but over an ORB? Come on, nopony quarantines half a town over an orb. If he wanted to keep ponies out he could just close off his estate and mansion...but half the town?" Dimitri held open the door for Scootaloo, the two of them heading inside and being embraced with an overwhelming warmth. The scene inside could not be labeled anything else but cheery. Colts sat at the counter on stools and laughed heartily as the Bartender chuckled a little, cleaning a few glasses. Tables were crammed with mares and other colts, all laughing and drinking, sharing tales of their snowy adventures. A few colts were stumbling about with slurred speech, one colt in particular stumbling over a stool and falling, getting the bartender's attention. He pointed a glass at the drunken pony and shouted

"OI! You cut off you hear me? I vill beat ass if you break more chairs!" The drunken colt, grey and brown in color, waved a hoof about and spoke sluggishly

"Ooohhh...vlow it out ya ears Vlad...you issshh sshhtupid pony da?!" Dimitri laughed and rushed over, helping the drunken pony up and patting him on the back, shouting with glee

"Petr you silly pony! Vut you doing stumbling all over place, you ave' route to do no!?" The colt, Petr, smiled big and gave Dimitri a brotherly hug, stepping back and sitting on his haunches.

"Naahhh!!! No point in doing deliveries if so much snow, poochies can't run too deep!" Dimitri nodded and motioned for Scootaloo to come over, speaking to Peter

"Da, I know vut you mean, silly poochies. Come! Let us get some vine and have a seat, don't worry about Vlad I get you a round. "

Five minutes later, Dimitri was sitting next to Scootaloo, Petr across from them both and giving out a slight hiccup, speaking way to loud for a simple table conversation

"SO!!! Dimitri, you vullshitter, how goes delivery? I bet your poochies think you vull of shit by now da? Ha ha!" Dimitri shook his head, smiling and putting a hoof on Scootaloo's shoulder

"Nah, my poochies love me! They such good doggies. Vut no, delivery of packages is not vut I doing today. Today, I deliver Mare!" Petr laughed slyly, reaching over and poking Dimitri roughly in the chest, shouting in an accusing tone

"AAAHHH Dimitri!!! You sly pony you! You told me you vern't going to settle down for awhile! You find good mare eh?" Dimitri and Scootaloo both shared a deep blush as the sled pony laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his head and muttering

"Not...exactly. This is Miss Scootaloo Diane Pie, she vus lost in snow earlier, and I rescued her! I told her ve get her good vine in Koltzan, so here ve are! Well...at least I getting vine, she only vants water. Oh vell though, more for brave Dimitri!" Scootaloo raised a brow but smiled, watching Dimitri puffing out his chest and laughing a little. Petr scoffed, taking a heavy swig out of his tankard and hiccuping, pointing at him with the wooden cup

"Vell...Koltzan could use hero now da? You already see the big wall that coo coo Mayor put up da?" Dimitri frowned, nodding and leaning over the table and muttering

"Da...I wanted to ask you about this...vut's Mayor Grigori up to? If he so vull of his orb shit, vhy he put vall up huh?" Petr looked around nervously, as if he was checking for ponies listening in on them and leaned in close. Scootaloo and Dimitri leaned in as well as Petr whispered

"I got one of guards drunk da? I get him talking, see vut he knows. He says there somepony or something over vall that's hunting other ponies. Silly orb didn't show up until...maybe...eight, nine months ago. The vall only showed up about a few days ago." Scootaloo frowned and thought to herself

'Didn't show up until a few days ago...the anniversary of Pinkie's disappearance...' Dimitri nodded, rubbing his chin and whispering

"Alright...vell, do you know of way across vall? Miss Scootaloo Diane Pie say she needs to get over...although she very vague on why..." Dimitri gave her a questioning look, making Scootaloo frown a little. It was true, she didn't tell Dimitri exactly WHY she needed to get over the wall...only that it was desperate and she'd explain later. She was just about to open her mouth when the front door of the tavern burst open with a loud crash. Scootaloo jumped as a familiar voice shouted over at her

"THEY'RE SHE IS!!! Now don't you be ah runnin' Scootaloo! You'll regret it!" It was APPLEJACK! Scootaloo gasped and looked to Dimitri apologetically, whimpering

"Sorry!" She put her front hooves underneath the table and tipped it upwards, kicking up her stool and hurling it towards a nearby table. Drinks and plates were shattered as a clamor of angry ponies getting up. In the confusion a colt fell backwards out of his stool and into another table, quickly getting bucked for his clumsiness. Soon enough, the whole bar was in an uproar as Dimitri laughed, taking a heavy swig of his wine and shouting

"PETR!!! I THINK I AVE' FALLEN IN LOVE WITH MARE DA?! BAAARR FIIIGGGHHHT!!!!!" Scootaloo rushed through the chaos, the sounds of galloping hooves somewhere behind her. She turned her head and saw a very pissed-off looking Applejack coming after her, weaving in and out of the brawling as she shouted

"Ah been in plenty ah bar fights in my time Scootaloo! You best get back here!" Scootaloo bounded forward, heading for the rear entrance to the bar. She galloped up, pushing her front hooves against the door and letting in a cold blast of air. She rushed outwards, ready to make a break for it. Her plans of escape were cut short however as something shoved her in her side and sent her tumbling to the ground. She gave a yelp of pain and was flipped on her back, two front hooves pushing firmly against her chest. Scootaloo opened her eyes slowly and looked up, gasping as a very angry Rainbow Dash pinned her, glaring down at her and letting out a huff of steam through her nose. Scootaloo squeaked with fright and pointed a hoof up at her, stuttering

"B...but...but you're...you-"

"What, I'm DEAD?! Wrong!!!!" Rainbow spat down at her, Applejack rushing up beside her and shaking Scootaloo with her hooves, shouting

"What in the sam hay do you think you're doin', HUH!? Tryin' to kill Rainbow, and runnin' off to Celestia knows where!!! You crashed the wedding party too! Do you realize how worried all of us were!? Especially Fluttershy!!! Poor pony was shivering worse then what the cold weather up here is doin' to us!" Scootaloo was whimpering, hiding her face in her hooves and shivering, a few sobs being audible. Rainbow sighed, shaking her head and speaking with a much lower tone

"Scootaloo...listen. I'm mad, ok? You nearly killed me and nearly gave Applejack a heart attack because of it. But all that aside, we came up here to make sure you're ok...we know you haven't been sleeping, we know about you hearing voices...and Applejack's only here to make sure I make it through ok because of my injuries. You told me I abandoned Pinkie Pie...well I didn't, and I won't ever again. If you're looking for Pinkie Pie, then you can count me in too!" Scootaloo looked past her hooves, tears in her eyes and sniffing out weakly

"R...really?" Rainbow Dash nodded and smiled a little, whispering

"Um...Element of Loyalty...duh?" Scootaloo smiled as Rainbow Dash let her hooves up, letting Scootaloo get up and give the Rainbow Mare a large hug, sniffing and whispering

"I'm...I'm sorry about...the cottage...I'm so sorry..." Applejack smiled and hugged them both, the three of them holding one another and finding warmth in the cold snow. Rainbow smiled as she rubbed Scootaloo's back, whispering

"It's ok...I just want to know what's going on...how do you know Pinkie is here... you have tell us everything...ok?" Scootaloo nodded and jumped a little as a chair came flying out of the backdoor of the Tavern, falling near the three mares. As they looked, Dimitri and Peter came rushing out, covered in a few bruises and a few scratches. Dimitri bucked the door shut behind him and laughed, holding up his hooves in excitement and shouting

"YES!!! DAT VUS GOOD FIGHT! I knock Vlad in his big stupid head! Teach him to overprice vine da!?" Peter laughed and nodded his head, spotting the three hugging mares out of the corner of his eye and shouting over

"EY!!! Miss Scootaloo, you make good fight da?! That's more fun then I ave' in long time!" Rainbow Dash looked at Scootaloo, confused as the two colts came over, partially limping. Applejack tipped her hat back, mumbling to Scootaloo

"Friends ah yours?" Scootaloo nodded as she held out a hoof and stating formerly

"Applejack, Rainbow Dash, this is Dimitri Snow-walker and Petr, they're delivery ponies for Stalliongrad." Dimitri and Petr both bowed gracefully, Dimitri the first to stand back up and smile, speaking with glee

"How you do? You friends of Miss Scootaloo Diane Pie ya? Dat's good! I make sure she arrive safe, me and poochies saw to that!" Rainbow Dash nodded and smiled, looking back over to Scootaloo

"I think it's about time you told us what's going on...don't you think?" Scootaloo looked over to a curious Dimitri, indicating for her to go on. Scootaloo sighed, nodding and sitting back on her haunches, explaining all that she knew.

~~~

"So, just so ah get this straight...you've been a hearin' voices and what not, and seein' visions of Pinkie Pie...killin' ya?" Applejack asked with a whisper, the five of them buried in the snow and keeping a close watch on a lightly patrolled section of the wall surrounding the north part of Koltzan. Scootaloo nodded and whispered back "Yeah...I don't know why or how...but remember that orb The Entity had? It somehow made its way here to Koltzan, and now the Mayor's gone and put up a wall because of...what was it you said Petr?" At the mention of his name, Peter looked over and nodded, whispering across Dimitri to Scootaloo

"Da, I speak truth. Mayor Grigori made some sort of vullshit decree and sealed off whole town...and I heard something is killing ponies over there.No way to know, nothing goes in and out, so..." Rainbow Dash frowned, looking over to Scootaloo and whispering

"I don't get it...how do we know this isn't some sort of trap that The Entity's laid out for us...we don't actually know if Pinkie Pie is here!" Applejack shook her head, sighing

"Ah don't know Rainbow...Quill killed the Entity with ah knife to the back after Twilight busted his shield thingy, ah don't think The Entity can do any more harm to us." Dimitri frowned, whispering to Scootaloo

"Vut's this about Entity thing? Dis bad da?" Scootaloo nodded, whispering to Dimitri first

"Long story..." and then to the others "I don't know...but we're going to find out. Dimitri, Petr...can you do something about the guards?" The two colts smiled and nodded, Petr burrowing into the snow and moving stealthily forward. Dimitri chuckled a little as he watched his friend go, whispering to Scootaloo

"Ah, good old Petr...he still good infiltrator even after var...battle of Stalliongrad was very nasty..." Scootaloo looked over at Dimitri in confusion but suddenly squeaked, feeling Dimitri peck her cheek with his lips and winking "For good luck da? Alvays good to go into battle vith good luck from pretty mare!" He burrowed into the snow, following after Petr as Scootaloo blushed like mad, burying her face in the snow. Applejack gently reached over and put a hoof on her back, whispering

"You uh...you ok Scoota-WHOA NELLY!" She pulled her hoof back quickly as Scootaloo's wings shot up through the snow with a loud 'POOMF!', Rainbow Dash hissing in reply

"Now now dammit! Put them down, put them down!!! The guards are going to see us!"

Meanwhile, Dimitri slid up beside Peter, whispering

"If ve die, you owe me drink in hell da?" Peter chuckled, his eyes wearily scanning the wall and the two guards patrol routes, muttering

"Ve probably going to die, I still a vittle drunk...thish is your fault though, so you owe dear Petr drink!" Dimitri scoffed, sliding forward on his belly, moving quickly towards the guards. Applejack whistled with awe as she saw Dimitri slowly rise out of the snow and grab the Guard from behind, putting him in a sleeper hold and dragging him into the snow. Petr managed to do the same...only with a little bit of sluggishness in his movements. Dimitri gave a wave from his pile of snow, signaling the all clear.

~~~

Petr landed with a loud thud, grunting and rubbing his flank with a mumbled

"Ow...bucking vullshit" Scootaloo helped the bandaged Rainbow Dash down and looking about carefully, whispering to the others

"Where...is everypony?" The streets between the snowy buildings were completely barren...a few windows even boarded up. Dimitri looked around nervously, helping Petr to his hooves and mumbling

"Dis is veird...vhere there is streets...there should ve ponies on them..." Petr grumbled, still rubbing his sore flank as spoke

"Forget the streets, I think I broke flank bone...last time I listen to your silly ideas Di-" Applejack put a hoof against his mouth, letting out a quiet

"Shhhh! Anypony hear that...?" They all listened close, neither one of them making a single sound. It was Rainbow Dash to tense up first, her eyes growing wide. Scootaloo started to hear it to and her mouth started to open in shock.

Sproing! Sproing! Sproing! Sproing!

The sound was drowned out but a sudden shriek as two ponies flew around a corner, a panicked look on their faces. It was a colt and a mare, both of them galloping at full speed towards them. The colt spotted the group of five and shouted

"RUN SILLY PONIES!!! RUN!!! SHE IS RIGHT BEHIND US!!!" Rainbow Dash gulped and whimpered

"I don't like the sound of that!" Dimitri helped Petr along, shouting

"Forget how things sound, get tooshies moving before vutever it is chasing them catches US!" The mares nodded, following the colt quickly, the mare stranger picking up the rear. They weaved through many streets, jumping over small dumpsters and piles of trash. The mare tripped, letting out a loud yelp which made Applejack stop, rushing back. Rainbow stopped as well, shouting

"APPLEJACK!" Applejack yelled back as she went back for the mare

"You keep goin'! Ah'll catch up!" Rainbow looked towards her marefriend with a worried expression on her face but nodded anyway, turning and running to catch up with the group. Applejack was just about to reach the mare when she let out a yelp, something grabbing onto her rear hoof and trying to pull her around the corner of a building. Applejack dove, clutching the mare's front hooves in her own and shouting "Ah got ya! Hold on now ya hear?!" The Mare screamed

"Please!!! Help me! She vill kill me! Don't let her take m-ACK!" Applejack gasped as a Pink hoof shot out from around the corner of the building, grabbing the mare around her neck and tugging. Applejack felt her grip loosening and she shouted frantically

"Hold on!!! Don't let go!!! Don't le- NOOO!!!!!" The mare screamed as her grip on Applejack's hooves were broken, her body being pulled around the corner. Applejack lept back as the mare's screams intensified, the sickening sound of flesh being cut and chopping coming from around the corner. Applejack didn't even bother to watch the large pool of blood spread slowly across the snow in front of the building.

~~~

Dimitri panted, dropping to his belly and stuttering "V...vut was THAT!?" He looked up and blinked in surprise, witnessing the scene in front of him. The group had run into a two story building with a red cross out front, a hospital. The main lobby was filled and crammed with colts and mares, all bundled up and a few shaking, watching the new arrivals with frightful eyes. The sound of galloping had Dimitri jumping out of the way, the front door being bucked in suddenly. The meeting room lit up with cries of panic which were quickly quieted as they saw that it was only Applejack. Rainbow Dash rushed to the panting mare, grasping her in a tight hug and nuzzling her, a frantic tone in her voice

"Applejack! You're ok! Don't you ever do that to me again!" Applejack took in a deep breath, letting out a sigh and stuttering

"Ah...Ah'm sorry Rainbow...but...I think we've got bigger problems" Petr scoffed

"Vunderful...what could be vorse then that...?" Applejack looked towards Scootaloo with a pained expression etched on her face, whispering

"The mare was being dragged...dragged behind a building...by a pony with pink hooves..." Scootaloo's eyes widened and her jaw dropped, whimpering

"N...no! That couldn't have been her, it was the wrong pink pony! Pinkie left all the killing behind her, there's no way that was h-"

"Excuse me..." A voice called out, cutting her off. Their heads turned towards a white mare, a wool cap atop her head with a red cross on the front. A nurse. "Did you say something about a...Pink Pony?" Scootaloo nodded, her voice cracking a little as she spoke

"Y...yes. I've come here to look for her and...and I don't know if...I..." The nurse nodded and looked towards Dimitri, mumbling

"Snowvalker...you take Petr, get him cup off coffee da? I need to talk to the little miss here." Dimitri nodded, helping Petr up and escorting him to the kitchen with a simple

"Sure thing Natalia...you let me know vut is going on after da?" The Nurse, Natalia, nodded and motioned for Scootaloo and the other two mares to follow her. They walked down a dimly lit hallway, a few of the lights flickering and some of the doors were barricaded with stretchers and different kinds of carts. There was an awkward silence for a bit...the group of four walking down the hall in silence. When the silence did break, it was Rainbow who spoke up and asked

"Um...excuse me, Nurse Natalia...but...what exactly is going on? Why's this part of down blocked off from the rest? Is it because of that...thing?" Natalia stopped, turning her head and speaking in a hushed manner

"A few days ago...ve had ponies coming into Hosvital in great numbers. I thought 'sickness', da? Vut no...cuts, gashes, lacerations...attacks. Everypony say same thing: 'Pink Pony!', 'Pink Monster is attacking other ponies!'" She sighed, motioning them to keep following them as she spoke. "Ve got a patient in months ago...but she vus very injured, almost dead. I do not believe it vus her attacking the other ponies, because she is in very deep coma...hasn't voken up yet." She stopped in front of a room marked '#144', sighing and pointing to the door "I don't know vich pony you are looking for, but ven you said 'Pink', I figured maybe she vus the one. If not, I am sorry. I must go back to lobby...sick ponies to help" She walked away with a sad clop in her step, Applejack mumbling after her

"These northern' ponies shore are odd...speak funny an' everythin'..." Scootaloo looked up at the door, gulping and putting a shaking hoof on the handle. She turned her head to the girls, whispering

"Um...if it's ok...I want to go in alone...is that ok?" The two mares nodded and smiled, Rainbow Dash putting a hoof on her shoulder and whispering

"Go ahead Scoots...we'll be right out here." Scootaloo nodded, taking a deep breath and pushing the handle down with her hoof, nudging the door open and slipping inside. The room inside was pitch black, the only sounds and lights being the EKG and other hospital machines that sat near a single bed against the far wall. Scootaloo squinted her eyes, looking around for a lightswitch or a lamp she could turn on. She felt along the walls, moving slowly as to not trip over anything. Her hoof finally bumped into something and she smiled, flicking it up and nearly blinding herself with bright fluorescent lights. She looked over towards the bed and gasped loudly, her body freezing up and her eyes growing wide.

Tears brimmed heavily in her eyes as she squeaked "M...momma?". Laying in the bed, asleep with straight, pink hair fanned out along the pillow, and bandages covering her entire middle, was none other then Pinkie Pie, the Party Pony of Ponyville.

She had found her at last.

Chapter 9 - The Blood Trail

Scootaloo sat on her haunches, staring towards the hospital bed. Pinkie looked peaceful, her head turned to the right and her chest rising and falling gently. Tears flowed from the orange mare eyes, looking up and down her frail mother's form. She walked over slowly, her eyes glued to her mother, afraid that if she looked away, even for a split-second, that she would disappear again. She put her front hooves up on the edge of the bed and stood up on her hind legs, sniffing and whispering quietly "Hi momma..." Pinkie Pie didn't respond, didn't even move. She was looking in her direction though, which gave Scootaloo the comfort she needed. She smiled a little through her tears, whispering still "Y...you know, I heard you can still...hear ponies even if you're in a coma...can you hear me?" She knew Pinkie wasn't going to answer, so she went on "I missed you...things have been so hard without you...Running Sugar Cube Corner is a pain...and I haven't been sleeping good." She sighed, looking down at her front hooves and rubbing them together shamefully "I've done some bad things Mom...things I'm not proud of...and I wanted to do something good for once...so I came looking for you."

She looked at Pinkie for a good while, the moderate beep of the EKG machine the only sound that floated through the air. She felt cold...miserable even, even though she had found Pinkie Pie at last. She needed warmth...comfort...someone to hold her. She hoisted herself up onto the bed, slipping into the covers and snuggling into her mother, pressing the side of her face against her chest and crying silently. "I found you momma..." she whimpered, crying and trying to blink her tears away. A teardrop slid along the edge of her eyelid and fell, falling gently through the air and landing on Pinkie's chest. The EKG let out a loud 'BEEP!' which made Scootaloo look up. She peered towards the screen, the numbers and lines changing all over them. The lines started to move faster, and the beeping more rapid. She raised a brow in confusion, and suddenly felt something thumping against her hoof. She looked down at where her hoof was pressed, and gasped. She could feel Pinkie's heartbeat. She laid her head back down on her chest and smiled, nuzzling against her and letting her warmth tightly hug her soul.

She sighed, content for a moment, but suddenly gasped, her eyes widening in pure shock and her pupils shrinking. Something was moving against her sides slowly, and were wrapping around her, hugging her tightly. She looked up slowly and teared up, watching as Pinkie squinted her eyes a little and slowly open them, looking down slow and sluggishly. Her eyes met Scootaloo and for the first time in nearly a year, Pinkie smiled and whispered

"Ssscootaloo..." Scootaloo choked out a sob and hugged her tightly, pressing her head under Pinkie's chin and crying

"Oh mother...I missed you so much! I'll never leave you again! Ever!!!" Pinkie sighed happily, weakly stroking her back and whispering

"I missed you sweetie...but I...I have to tell you something...I'll fall back asleep soon...please listen, ok?" Scootaloo looked up, nodding and listening intently. Pinkie leaned her head back and sighed, hugging her snuggling daughter close to her. She looked up at the ceiling and whispered

"You have a right to know what happened...where I went...why I disappeared...and about the orb."

~One Year Earlier~

-Pinkie Pie-

"GOING IN ORDER!!!" I screamed at The Entity, gutting myself savagely with the knife and spilling my blood into the basin. I heard a shattering noise above her as I fell to the ground, dragging myself along the ground towards the balcony. I groaned as I pushed my way out of one of the doors and moved outside, the screams of

"THE ENTITY!!! TWILIGHT KILL IT!! KILL IT!!" floating from within the castle. I heard something clattering against the ground near me and I looked over, gasping as I saw the orb rolling away. I growled and reached out, grasping it with my hooves and shouting

"Oh no you don't...if we die we all die together! I'm taking you with me!!!" I looked over the edge of the balcony, to a rocky river below, the rapids churning violently with deadly force. I smiled weakly, my vision blurring a little and my voice coming out in a weak rasp "To the depths then!" I heaved myself over the balcony with the orb, rushing downwards towards the river of my demise. As I fell the orb gleamed with a blackish glow and my mind flooded with images of snow...the north...a village. I had no idea what any of the images meant...I saw a temple now...north of this town. The images suddenly flashed away an din the next moment, my life flashed before my eyes...and I could see everything. The lunch with Fluttershy, the body in my basement, you and I on the river dear Scootaloo, Hoofintgton, Trottington, everything. I sighed...filling my final thoughts and moments with you...my beautiful, adoring daughter. I made my peace with Celestia, praying that you be kept safe. As I crashed into the river, my vision gleamed white and...and I knew no more.

I don't know how long I swam in the white abyss of my mind, floating aimlessly as time lost its meaning. I sighed, thinking, wondering...hoping that you were ok. I heard a voice...a mare's...one I know I've heard before

"Bruised, broken, and cut up too?! Dear Pinkie Pie, what has happened to you?" Blackness entered my white plain of peace, and for a split-second I felt hooves wrap around me and pull me up. When I awoke, the first thing I smelled was some kind of herbal substance, along with the smell of daisies and some kind of other potent, sweet smell. I opened my eyes slowly, groaning and putting a hoof to my forehead. I looked about slowly, seeing various bottles and jars hanging from the ceiling from ropes, masks and other small trinkets lining the walls. I knew in an instant where I was, and the sound of clopsteps and her voice confirmed it "Save your strength, and your breath, you nearly succumbed to a nasty death."

Zecora smiled as she gently put a hoof on my forehead and whispered "Your fever's gone, this is good, you had me in such a frightful mood!" I started to sit up but winced, gasping out in pain as Zecora put a hoof on my back and gently eased me up "Be careful now my dear Pink mare, or else your bandages may tear! A lot of blood you seemed to lack, so take it easy and lie back!" I sighed, laying back slowly and looking down at the bandages that were wrapped around my middle, splotches of blood staining them in a few places. I looked over towards the zebra mare and groaned

"H...how long have I been out?" Zecora put a hoof to her own chin and thought for a moment, looking down at me after a moment and saying

"I almost lost track, your future was bleak, I'd say you've been here for one week" I nodded, sighing and looking towards the ceiling. I mumbled towards her

"And...the orb?" Zecora frowned heavily when I mentioned the dark artifact and she stepped aside, pointing over towards the other side of her hut

"The dark sphere, which I have stored, sits over there, inside my ward" I looked over weakly, noticing the orb had been wrapped with yellowish cloth and covered with some sort of leafy herb. I was about to ask what they were when the door burst open and a feathered creature came huffing into the room, a large pile of firewood on its back. A familiar, snobby voice carried over from the door

"Hey Cora'! Brought your wood, wasn't any problem at all for me." I turned my head upwards so I could see, and gulped. It was Gilda. The griffon looked over with a bit of surprise after she dropped the firewood in a pile and blinked for a moment. When she finally spoke, it was with a tone of half spite and half confusion

"What the hell is SHE doing here?" Zecora shook a hoof angrily at Gilda and half shouted

"Gilda your anger you must divert, for dear Pinkie Pie has been gravely hurt! She has fallen under a darkened spell, so it is up to us to make her well!" Gilda shrugged, heading over and looking up and down my body and whistling

"Damn Pinks, you took a beating...what roughed you up this bad?" I sat up again, forcing myself forward even though my middle roared in pain and pointed towards the covered orb. I winced as I spoke, trying to push through the fiery pain

"That...ow! That thing over there...it's dangerous...I need to f- OW! I need to find a way to get rid of it...I saw visions of where it may have come from...and I need to make it there as fast as I can!" Zecora shook her head and frowned, pointing a hoof at me

"But Pinkie Pie you are still too ill, you haven't the means, only the will!" I shook my head out of anger and shouted

"Forget about me! If I don't destroy that orb, EVERYTHING that me and my friends fought and died for will be all for nothing!" Gilda and Zecora looked at each other for a moment before the griffon turned her head back and muttered

"Fought...and died for? What's going on?" I put my hooves to my face and groaned, looking up and shouting

"Look, I don't have time to explain ok?! Gilda, you need to take me north, maybe around Stalliongrad or so, you can explain to Zecora what happened when you get back, ok!? FORGET about how I look or feel right now, I may be good as dead anyways. Please...consider it a last request, ok?!" Zecora looked towards Gilda for an answer, and for a moment the griffon sighed, bowing her head and pondering. Finally, she looked up at me and muttered

"Alright...but I better get answers..."

~~~

It taken a few good hours, but eventually I was stable enough and situated in just the right spot on Gilda's back to make a one-way trip to Stalliongrad. The orb was placed carefully into saddlebags that hung over Gilda's back, and with a few potions and specific directions from Zecora, we were off. The ride was quiet for awhile, and my wounds were aching. I knew I was dying, slowly maybe, but still dying. I was only running on visions the Orb had shown me, perhaps it was trying to get home...or luring me into a trap. It didn't really matter at this point...I didn't know if The Entity had been defeated...I didn't know if anypony was still alive...I didn't know anything. The quiet seemed to be too much for Gilda as she suddenly spoke up "So...what's going on? Why are we heading to an uncool place like Stalliongrad, and why are you all beat up?" I sighed, looking off towards my right, into the far horizon of the mountains as I told her over the course of maybe half an hour, all that had happened to me over the past few years, from Trottington to The Entity.

When I finished Gilda whistled, taking a moment to look back at me and say

"Wow, you've gone through some shit huh? I figured you'd be too care-free and happy to deal with anything like that...no offense." I shook my head and smiled, saying back

"None taken...besides, we both seem to be acting differently then what we use to be like, how'd you end up with Zecora and why'd you start acting so...so..."

"Unbitchy?" Gilda offered, making me nod a little. Gilda sighed and turned her head back forward, muttering "Well it wasn't easy...I was pretty mad that day Dash told me to bounce the fuck out. I went to the Everfree forest, trying to blow off steam...when a Manticore attacked me. Now I'm pretty badass in a fight...but that Manticore got lucky, tore my left wing up pretty bad. I passed out from the pain and blood loss...and when I woke up, I was in Zecora's hut. She was...nice, I guess. Took some time getting used to, but we eventually found some common ground. I offered to help her around the hut as payment for her caring of me, and she offered some...behavioral lessons. Apparently when she little lived in Hoofrika, she wasn't only a healer...but a school teacher as well. Never would have guessed..."

I smiled a little in nodded, the both of us falling into silence as we neared the Celestian border of South Equestria. However, the instant we passed over, Gilda's saddlebags had suddenly caught fire, and we both gave panicked shouts of surprise. We dove, heading down to the ground as fast as we could. The bags were giving free however, and for a moment it looked like the orb was going to fall out. I shot my hooves out and caught the orb just before it fell, my bandages tearing a little and my lungs hurling out a high shriek of "OW!!!" Gilda touched down, turning her head and shouting

"Pinkie, you ok?!" I nodded weakly and clambered off, nearly falling into the snow upon landing. I picked up the orb and turned to Gilda, speaking in a weak tone

"Gilda...I think this is as far as you can take me...I don't want the orb to throw us anymore surprises...you go on and head back." Gilda looked at me with concern and muttered

"You sure...you're gonna be ok?" I nodded and she sighed, looking towards the direction we were heading in and saying "Should be...another thirty to forty minutes towards the main road to Stalliongrad, and about another hour on foot to the gates. You be careful...ok?" I nodded again and thanked her, sitting back on my haunches to watch her take off with a loud 'WHOOSH!'.

It was an hour later that I found myself upon the roads, stumbling all over the place. I had tied the orb to my back with strands of the yellow cloth that had frayed, but my bandages were taking a turn for the worst. Blood dripped from me slowly, creating a dotted trail of red behind me. I didn't even notice the orb starting to glow, my mind trying to convince my body to keep going, that the gates were just ahead. A loud flash erupted from the orb and in the next instant I found myself facedown in the snow. I groaned, the snow under me starting to stain with the color of blood, and as I looked up, I gasped. A set of four, dark pink hooves were standing in front of me, and as I looked farther up, my eyes grew wider and my mouth more open in shock. I was standing...in front of myself. It was me, a poofy-haired, grinning Pinkie Pie. I stuttered, my mind still trying to grasp what was going on, terrified that I might have been losing my mind from so much blood loss and fatigue.
I didn't have much time to think on this however, as the other me reared up on her back hooves and brought her front ones down with a heavy 'TWHACK' atop my head. That was thing I remember before I woke up here in the hospital...mumbling incoherent words and sentences until eventually...the permanent blackness found me.

***

Scootaloo listened in wonder as Pinkie explained to her what had happened, whispering after she was done

"So...the orb...took out your dark side? Or...something like that?" Pinkie sighed, looking over towards the wall with a weak look on her face and mumbling quietly

"I don't know...I don't have the answers...not yet. The orb is using...that me...to run about and keep everypony away from the manor...it's trying to stay hidden. It knows that The Entity is probably dead or waiting to come back for it, so the orb is trying to keep itself safe I'd wager. Scootaloo...as long as that other me is walking around...I can't move...I can't breathe...I'm the only one who knows where to take the orb back to...everypony I try to explain it to ends up not understanding me for some reason. The Entity's magic is still trapped in that orb...and we need to get it back..." Scootaloo nodded and tilted her head to the side, asking

"What do I do?" Pinkie laid her head back, shuddering a little and whispering

"You need to kill...the other me. Kill Pinkamena...and then f..find a way i......n..into the..ma..mans..mansion...." She started to mumble too low for Scootaloo to hear, her eyes drooping and her EKG slowing back down. Scootaloo felt tears brim in her eyes as her mother closed her own eyes and fell back into her darkened coma. The orange mare gave her mother a tight hug, minding her bandages and whispering

"I'll be back...I promise...I won't ever...EVER...abandon you again."

Chapter 11 - The Duel of Minds

Pinkie sat atop a cliff, her old knife and sheath wrapped around one of her front legs, her eyes looking down across the frozen lake that stretched out before her, a small, snowy island in the middle. Rainbow Dash stared at it as well, looking towards Pinkie and muttering "So...that's it then? That little island? Why don't I just fly there and-"

"No" Pinkie said, cutting her off as she sighed, looking down in front of her hooves, the wrapped up orb sitting comfortably in the snow. She went on "The winds over that lake are too strong for even your wings Dashie...you'll get smashed into the ice faster then you can say 'Apple'." Rainbow Dash looked towards the lake nervously, indeed seeing a few tendrils of wind rocketing across the frozen surface of the lake. She gulped, turning back to Pinkie and whispering

"O...k...now what? How do we get across?" Pinkie put a hoof to her chin, thinking for a moment before sighing and shaking her head

"I don't know...I know a bit about ice from Ponyville, because of my ice-skating during the Winter Wrap-Up. We have to distribute our weight evenly across the ice or we could fall through...and more then likely die..." Rainbow Dash gulped again and mumbled with fright

"Wonderful..."

~~~

"Ok Dashie...nice...and easy" Pinkie mumbled, shivering as she laid out on the ice, her belly pressed up against the shimmering surface and her hooves sprawled out in all directions. She moved her right hoof up a little, then her left...and very gently dragged her body across the freezing ice. Rainbow Dash was shivering like mad, trying to drag herself along with Pinkie Pie towards the island. The Orb was being pushed slowly by one of Pinkie's front hooves, the two of them reaching the snow island at the same time. Rainbow Dash shook herself, wrapping her front hooves around her own body and shivering, looking towards a dark cave that opened up nearby. The opening was large enough for one pony to slip in through, and it was this hole that Pinkie approached, poking her head in and looking about.

After a moment she brought her head back out and turned to Dash, nodding "Alright, all we need to do is go in, drop the orb back in its shrine, and walk away, simple....but I probably should find a way to seal this cave...I don't want anypony finding this thing EVER again." Rainbow Dash nodded and approached Pinkie, ready to head in until she jumped back with fright, yelping as the cloth around the orb burst into flame. Pinkie jumped back as well as the orb fried its thin, rag barrier, a purple miasma of magic surrounding it. A bolt of black lightning burst from the orb, hitting the edge of the island and sprouting up a small circle of flames that rose to about six feet in height.

Pinkie Pie stared towards the circle of flames, and for a split second thought she saw something...moving...inside them. She quickly turned her head to Rainbow and shouted "Rainbow, take the orb inside! Go all the way down to...I don't know, I think it's some kind of shrine. Just look for something to put the orb on, a pedestal or something that looks like it'd hold it!" Rainbow Dash looked back towards the flames and then back at her, shouting back

"What about you!? Aren't you coming?" Pinkie shook her head, muttering

"No...I need to finish what I started...my revenge didn't stop with Trottington...not fully." The flames started to die down as Rainbow picked up the orb in her teeth, rushing forward towards the cave.

Pinkie watched the ring of flames with narrowed eyes, looking as a pink hoof stepped out of the ring, followed by another...and Pinkamena stepped out of the ring, her hair poofy and her eyes wide and menacing. The evil mare laughed as a flash of black magic lit off near her, a butcher's cleaver falling into the snow nearby. She shouted as she picked it up

"PARTY POOPER! YOU KILLED ME!!! Now it's MY TURN!" Pinkie Pie bowed her head, taking her prized kitchen knife...the same knife to kill Trottington, up in her mouth, drawing it free of its sheath and holding it steady. She mumbled through the handle

"This blade's tasted revenge before...and now...it'll taste it again. For six years you and The Entity tortured me...hurt me...blinded me. Well...Trottington's dead...The Entity's dead...I'm sure of it...and now, one remains..." Pinkamena simply giggled and held up her cleaver, crouching low and waiting. They stared at one another, Pinkie's straight hair flapping about in the wind, her eyes narrowed and determined.

It all came down to this...all loose ends to be finally tied by Pinkie Pie...the party pony of Ponyville. Two mares, two blades, two minds. Pinkie Pie, versus Pinkamena.

Pinkamena charged forward, jumping and twirling, bringing her cleaver up in an uppercut. Pinkie jumped back as the cleaver slashed up through the air, jumping back forward and swinging her knife hard to the right. Pinkamena brought the cleaver down, catching the knife in mid swing and pushing Pinkie back several feet. Pinkie ducked as the cleaver sailed over her head and she heaved her knife up, cutting Pinkamena up her chest, making the dark mare shriek and jump back in pain. Pinkamena didn't look like she was enjoying this anymore...her evil smile fading, replaced by a dark grimace. She let out a shrieking cry of anger and charged forward, her cleaver bearing down on Pinkie.

Pinkie met the evil mare half way, bringing up her knife and blocking the downward swing of the cleaver. They were in a lock, both of them pushing against their blades, each of them struggling to gain the upper hand. Pinkamena suddenly jumped to her left, making Pinkie Pie fall forward quickly from the force she was applying to her knife. She let out an "OOF!" of pain as Pinkamena bucked her in the flank, sending her tumbling forward onto the ice lake. Pinkie slid for a moment before carefully standing up, the sounds of ice cracking piercing the chilly calm of the air. Pinkamena jumped onto the ice as well and in that exact moment, a deafening cracking noise was heard as large cracks wound their way through the ice, large chunks starting to break off and float along the deadly, icy water. Pinkamena jumped from chunk to chunk, rushing towards Pinkie as the ice she was standing on broke away, herself floating along on an ice block. Pinkamena jumped as Pinkie thrusted her knife forward, hoping to gut her in the chest. Pinkamena swung downwards as she jumped however, slapping the knife blade away and slashing to her left, making Pinkie jump back onto another chunk of ice.

They jumped and slashed, jumped and slash, both of them battling it out upon the broken ice of the lake.

~~~

Rainbow Dash slowly moved through the cave, icy water dripping from the ceiling and walls, sharp and deadly looking icicles handing dangerously overhead. The Orb was still glowing in her teeth...and was starting to give her a headache. She pushed on quickly, winding her way down the steep slopes until she came to a large, open cavern. What she happened upon was so horrifying, she nearly spit out the orb and ran on instinct. Bones...pony bones, Pegasus bones, Unicorn bones...were massed along the floor of the large cavern. A small hill of dirt sat in the middle of the gruesome sea of dead ponies, a pillar there and a pedestal sitting atop it's marble surface.

She gulped, thankful she had wings and she fanned them out, ready to fly. She seethed in pain however, her joints and wings cramping up as she tried to take flight. Her wings were still hurting BADLY, and it was even a miracle she was able to use them at the mansion anyway, despite the doctor's orders. She sighed, gingerly stepping forward with her hoof onto the pile of bones. She slowly crept across the sea of pony bones, her mind overly grossed out and petrified with fear, her thoughts rapidly spewing out one word

"Ew ew ew ew ew ew ew ew ew ew ew!!!!" She continued on, grimacing as she heard cracking and splintering below her. As she made it halfway across, the orb let out a dark flash of light, and the cave began to rumble. Rainbow Dash looked around frantically, wondering what was going on, and suddenly squealed with fright.

A bony hoof had reached up and tried to grab her, the sea of dead ponies around her starting to move and squirm. Panicked, she bolted forward, the skeletons of ponies starting rise up and let out deep groans of hunger and savage anger. She dived, bolted, and jumped through the crowds that were starting to gather, trying to desperately avoid getting caught in their grasp. She saw the small island in sight and bolted forward, skeletons diving and reaching out for her. She put a hoof to the dirt and started to climb up when she felt a harsh tug on her tail and she fell forward. She turned her head and screamed through the orb in her teeth, a skeleton trying to pull her back with its teeth. She bucked backwards, crushing in the skeleton pony's skull and letting herself get back up.

The undead ponies were beginning to crawl towards the dirt as Rainbow Dash jumped up, kneeling over the pedestal and dropping the orb firmly on it's base. A bright flash of light exploded from the orb as the skeletons dissolved into dust rapidly and Rainbow Dash was thrown back by a powerful wind. The walls of the cave began to shake and rumble as cracks in the ceiling began to form.

Rainbow Dash was already on her hooves, turning and rushing back for the entrance, the deadly icicles from before breaking and sailing downwards with their menacing points ready to impale the cyan Pegasus. She ran up the tunnels, jumping and narrowly avoiding the sharp icicles and the heavy boulders that fell from the ceiling. She saw light at last, the entrance of the cave was in sight! She summed up all the strength she could and bolted forward with all her might, shouting as the cave crashed and crumbled in all around her.

~~~

Pinkamena and Pinkie tumbled onto the ice block, a tremor of rumbling making them both lose their footing. They scrambled to get up and both swung their blades at one another. Pinkie was the faster however, and aimed her strike perfectly, catching Pinkamena in the mouth with her blade and making the evil one scream, dropping her cleaver. Wasting no time, Pinkie aimed her knife and shoved herself forward, screaming as she pushed her deadly blade through Pinkamena's chest, gutting her fully. The dark mare looked down in shock as Pinkie twirled and bucked with all her might, screaming

"Bake this, BITCH!" She bucked the knife right in the handle, sending the knife nearly all the way through her body. Pinkamena staggered for a moment, her eyes twitching and blood pouring out of her mouth. Finally...gravity took her as she fell on her side, sliding from the block and into the icy water below.

Pinkie fell to her belly, panting as Rainbow Dash lept from the cave entrance, a thunderous 'BOOM!' sounding off behind her as the cave crumbled and sealed away the orb. She panted as well, looking up and seeing Pinkie giving a weak wave from her chunk of ice. Pinkie shouted over to her "You ok Dashie!?" Rainbow Dash sighed, shouting back

"Can we go now!? I'm like...days late for my nap!"

The Mare and her Mother - The Epilouge

Scootaloo smiled peacefully, staring down at the picture of her and Pinkie Pie smiling, the day that Pinkie had returned from the moon. She could remember the day like it had happened only yesterday...the distant roaring and cheering of crowds temporary breaking her out of her daydreaming. Two sets of hoofsteps were coming towards the locker rooms as she thought back to that day...the day The Orb was sealed away.

***

"Ve have good adventures da? You make sure Miss Scootaloo Diane Pie come back, ve get you good vine next time!" Dimitri Snow-walker shouted with glee, giving Scootaloo a tight hug as Rainbow Dash and Applejack thanked Petr for their help. Pinkie Pie looked towards her daughter with happiness as she was enveloped in the colt's hold. Scootaloo looked like she was trying to hold it together and not cry as she asked

"W...will I ever see you again Dimitri? You've done so much for me and I've only known you for days..." Dimitri responded by gently pulling his head back to stare at Scootaloo smiling and whispering

"Ve see each other again...you carry Snowvalker's heart vith you..." He gently moved his head forward as Scootaloo closed her eyes, their lips meeting gently. Scootaloo sighed, falling partially limp in Dimitri's arms, trying to make their moment last forever. When it did however, Dimitri smiled and whispered "Maybe Dimitri get used to south weather...maybe doggies too...ve getting tired of cold anyway da?" Pinkie could only smile as Scootaloo hugged him tightly, smiling at her new found love.

***

"You do good today da? You go kick ass!!!" Dimitri half shouted, picking Scootaloo up in a tight hug and giving her a loving kiss. She giggled as she was set down, the sound of the door opening making both their heads turn. Pinkie Pie bounced in, her hair poofy and her smile wide as she shouted

"Scootaloo!!! You're up soon you're up soon!!! You're gonna be great I just know it!" Scootaloo gave her adoptive mother a tight hug as well, smiling. Pinkie sighed happily, nuzzling her daughter as she spoke "Oh Scootaloo...you've made me so happy over the past few years...and I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world." Scootaloo nodded against her chest, tears in her eyes as she remembered the day they came home...

***

"WELCOME HOME PINKIE AND SCOOTALOO!!!" is the shout that several ponies let out, surprising Pinkie Pie and Scootaloo so much they nearly jumped to the ceiling. They had been invited over to Twilight's for a welcome home party...but they didn't expect it to be THIS huge! Ponies were lined all over the street, cheering as Twilight gave Pinkie Pie a dear hug.

"It's good to have you back Pinkie...we missed you so much" Twilight said with glee, her husband Quill trotting up next to her and smiling.

"All three of us did!" Quill said as Scootaloo blinked, confused.

"Huh...? Three?" She muttered as Pinkie Pie gasped, looking towards Twilight's belly as she sat on her haunches, her words coming out in stuttering

"T...Twilight...are...are you...?" Twilight smiled and nodded as Pinkie let out a squeal of delight, scooping her friend back up into another hug. "Oh TWI TWI I'm so happy for you oh my gosh we're going to throw the best party ever for you and we'll have cake and streamers and games and -" An apple was shoved into her mouth as Applejack sighed, having just walked up with Rainbow Dash, whose wings looked healthier then ever.

"Now calm down Pinkie, it's YOUR Party we're celebratin' ta'night. We'll get to Twi's later." Pinkie nodded, smiling and giving both of them a big hug, shouting

"Oh I missed you all so much! We're going to make tonight the best night EVER!" Scootaloo could only smile.

***

"Mama! Can I get Scootyloo's autograph!? Can I CAN I!?!?" A tiny voice shouted, making Twilight sigh and roll her eyes playfully, a small smile on her lips. A tiny lavender filly with purple and brown streaked mane sat next to Twilight, practically bouncing with excitement as Dimitri, Pinkie and Scootaloo approached them. Quill shook Scootaloo's hoof as he said

"Good luck up there, and go easy on Rainbow Dash...I know you two have a duel scheduled, so...be easy on the gal." Scootaloo smiled and nodded, giving Twilight a hug as the lavender mare spoke

"If it's not TOO much trouble...for the sake of me and Quill's sleep, could we get an autograph after the show?" Scootaloo nodded and gave the tiny filly a wink, making her squeal and jump around with excitement, screaming

"SHE'S GOING TO GIVE ME AN AUTOGRAPH!!! OH YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES!!!" The group laughed as Fluttershy poked her head through the door, a newborn red and yellow colt sleeping in a carrier on her back. She spoke gently

"Oh..um...I hope I'm not interrupting...cause if I am I can go but...they're asking for you Scootaloo...oh not that I'm rushing you I'm just...passing along the message." Scootaloo nodded as Pinkie Pie rushed over, giving Fluttershy a big hug and being careful not to wake up her newborn son. Scootaloo sighed, watching her as the memories kept flooding back.

***

"I now pronounce you, Husband and Wife! Mr. 'Big' Macintosh, you may kiss your bride!" Celestia shouted, the rotunda bursting out in applause as the red work horse sweeped Fluttershy up in an enveloping kiss, the both of them blushing like mad. Scootaloo clapped her hooves together with glee as Rainbow Dash muttered next to her

"Our turn's next, eh Applejack?"

"You hush Rainbow..."

"Awww...please?"

"Maybe...when you ask me feather-brain" Scootaloo smiled as Applejack chuckled, seeing the deep red blush splay out on Rainbow Dash's face. Rainbow shook her head, looking toward Scootaloo and whispering

"Hey...just a thought...after the party you and I should go flying...I've heard tryouts are coming earlier this year and I figured...why not give it a shot right?" Scootaloo smiled mischievously as she looked over to Rainbow, whispering back

"You sure? Wouldn't want to outshine the future Wonderbolt!" Rainbow Dash scoffed as Scootaloo playfully nudged her side. Rarity gave Rainbow Dash a look as she gave Scootaloo a noogie.

***

"You're gonna be great kiddo, just make sure mah dumb wife don't forget we still have-ta make it to the restaurant for them reservations, alright?" Applejack sighed, giving Scootaloo a tight hug as the stands roared loudly with applause and cheering. Scootaloo nodded as Applejack tipped her hat to the mare, a wedding band around her hoof. She made her way to the stands as Scootaloo headed to the entrance of the stadium, sitting on her haunches just behind the opening, looking up in awe at the thousands upon thousands of ponies waiting for the show to start. She felt a hoof on her shoulder and she turned her head, smiling as Pinkie Pie looked up into the sky, a proud look on her face.

***

Scootaloo sighed as she nestled her head into Dimitri's neck, the two of them watching the sunset. He had moved to Ponyville with his sled team only a few days ago...and since then, Scootaloo couldn't have been any happier. Dimitri smiled, staring towards the red horizon as he whispered

"Beautivul...beautivul sun....beautivul mare to share it with...so beautivul..." Scootaloo giggled and gave him a playful nudge, whispering

"Oh stop...you're so cheesy" A cough made their heads turn and Pinkie Pie, her hair bouncing with poofyness, walked up the cliff, smiling as she said

"I hope I'm not...interrupting, am I?" Dimitri shook his head and shouted

"Of course not Miss Pinkie Pie! Ve just sharing Beautivul sunset. Scootaloo I see you at home da? Ve get vine later" Scootaloo nodded and gave him a tender kiss, watching him as he walked down the hill with a nod to Pinkie Pie. Her mother approached, sighing and sitting next to her on her haunches, watching the sunset. The two of them were quiet for awhile, simply staring as Celestia's red orb floated gently behind the trees, the sky beginning to dim. Scootaloo looked over as Pinkie Pie suddenly spoke

"Scootaloo...we've been through a lot over the years. You were with me in Hoofington...when I came home from the moon...but I can't be forgiven for the year you and I both lost...I'm so sorry for leaving you Scootaloo..." Tears welled up in her eye as Scootaloo hugged her mom tightly, shaking her head as she felt pink hooves wrap around her.

"No...don't be sorry" Scootaloo whispered. "We're together again...that's all that matters...I have you, I have Dimitri...I have everything I've always wanted..." Pinkie nodded and stroked her mane, sighing as the wind blew gently around them.

"You've made me so proud...so proud to be a mother Scootaloo...we'll start right again, you and me, and Dimitri if you want. We'll be a family again, I promise..." Scootaloo smiled and hugged her even tighter, whispering as she cried tears of joy

"I know...I know..."

***

"You ready?" Pinkie asked as she pulled away from Scootaloo's hug. The mare nodded, smiling as Pinkie gave her a tiny pat on the back, whispering "I'll be in the stands...go on." Scootaloo nodded and galloped into the arena, the crowds roaring even louder as the announcer boomed

"AND HERE SHE IS!!! SCOOTALOO THE WIND-WALKER!!!" The crowds clapped and screamed as Scootaloo approached the four Pegasus Ponies waiting for her. Rainbow Dash smiled as she walked up, stretching her wings out and getting her muscles relaxed, shouting over the noise

"Well it's about time Scoots! We were just about to take off without you! Right Spitfire?" Spitfire looked over, smiling and shaking her head as she slipped her goggles on, Soarin' doing the same. Scootaloo smiled as Rainbow Dash put a hoof on her shoulder and shouted "Let's ROCK!" The four of them soared off into the air...leaving Scootaloo to look up, a tiny smile on her face. Her Wonderbolt uniform was shining in the light of the sun...and she couldn't have been happier.

The memories filled her with joy as she remembered all of the days...the days a year ago when she battled in Koltzan against Pinkamena, the days of joy after their return, Dimitri asking for her hoof in marriage months later...the thoughts of little fillies and colts happily dancing in their minds. Everything was just right, she thought, as her childhood hero soared in the air above her, waiting for the signal to begin the routine. As she pulled her goggles over her eyes, spread her wings out, and took off, she felt as if the hooves of all she had helped, met, and saved, were lifting her body, mind, heart, and spirit up. She smiled as she soared up towards Rainbow Dash...and felt the feeling Pinkie had felt so long ago...the feeling from her return from the moon...

"HERE THEY ARE!!! THE WONDERBOLTS!!!!!"

That all was right in the world.

~Special thanks to all those who were with me during the writing of Pinksomnia: The Darkest Descent! I couldn't have done this without all of your feedback and support! I want to extend a bigger hoof of thanks to Mist. Though we hadn't seen eye to eye sometimes, I still appreciate all that you've said and done to help me become a better writer. Stay strong my friend, stay strong.

~Be sure to read The Afterparty!!! We're going to party hard and celebrate as I let you in on the next big project me and a few of my friends have coming up!!! It's going to be a BLAST!!!! So hang on readers...a new adventure's about to begin!!!

The Afterparty!!! - Author's Notes

"Ponyville is in the house, toniiiight! Everypony's just having good times!!! And Pinkie make you loose yo minndd!!! We just want to see ya....FLANK THAT!"

*SLAM!*

There...good lord Vinyl knows how to turn up the beat...had to close the door, sorry. Anyway, welcome to The Afterparty readers!!! Thank you so much for all you've done to help make this story and series a success! I couldn't have do-

"HEY, HEY, HEY WOLOKAI, COME PARTAY!!!! WE'RE PLAYING PIN THE TAIL ON THE PONY!!!"

Christ, yes Pinkie I'll be there in a seco- *SLAM!*

...well then. Anyway things have been pretty good lately, we've got an interesting bit of projects lined up. Two big things we'll talk about right now, one, is a sort of chronicles kind of series.

It's a bit of a shipping/life collection of fics, all related to each other of course, but it's mostly about pushing one's limits and discovering things about yourself that you didn't think were possible.

This new little collection will be called Leap of Faith, and the first one we're going to crank out is

Leap of Faith: Rainbow Vs. Wild Be sure to catch it when it comes out!

Now, onto the next to-

"Hey Wolokai, what are you doing in here?" Oh hey Scootaloo, just wrapping some things up for the readers.

"Alright...just hurry up we're running out of cake" *SLAM!*

....I really need to put a lock on that door. ANYWAY! The second big project we have coming out is a sort of adventurous kind of deal. The cool thing about this is...me and my friends, are turning this into a machinima/movie type thing! We'll be doing this on a heavily modified minecraft server, and as we film, I'll be writing down the events in Fanfiction form, so we give you all a good written, AND visual story! Now, we don't have a title for it yet, but it's definitely going to be labeled as Adventure.

It's about a dark dragon attacking the world and a group of pony's quest to find artifacts and seal it away, yada yada you get the point right?

ANYWAY! I guess I better be getting to that cake...make sure you follow me so you can catch these two big projects coming out!!!

Again, thank you all so much! We'll see each other again...very soon!

*Open's door*

"PONYVILLE IS IN THE HOUSE, TONIIIGHT!!! EVERYPO-"

*Slam*

~"Sometimes, it's hard to think about all the impossible things that I can't do in the world, how I can't move mountains or move objects with my mind. But I smile when I think about the paper that has yet to receive my words...and think about my OWN world...where anything is possible."

Wolokai Evangiline Avangarde KuRR

Chapter 10 - The Mare and The Mansion

"So let me get this straight...we gotta kill Pinkie?!" Applejack half-shouted, a shocked look on her face as Scootaloo told her what was going on. Scootaloo shook her head and sighed, speaking with a frustrated tone

"No! Look, the orb's done something to Pinkie's mind, it's putting her in a coma to prevent her from taking it back to its...shrine, or resting place, whatever! The point is, the orb is manifesting all of Pinkie's negative emotions and putting them into some sort of...copy of her. It's the combination of all the bad emotions and depressive feelings she had for the last Six years! Don't you see!? If we can kill Pinkamena, we can save my mom!!!" Rainbow Dash scratched her chin and muttered

"Alright...well what are we going to do about the orb? If it made...um...Pinkamena or whatever, then it'll notice when she's dead, right? Won't it like...make things more difficult or something?" Applejack nodded and looked over towards her marefriend with a nod

"Ah reckon' that's what it's waitin' for. Ah don't think it knows we're here, and ah think we should keep it that way..." Scootaloo nodded and looked towards the window, sighing and muttering

"We're going to have to take them both out at the same time...if we go after the orb first Pinkamena might come after us...and if we go after Pinkamena the orb might disappear or do something...worse. Applejack, you and Rainbow Dash should go after the orb...I'll deal with Pinkamena." Applejack looked towards Scootaloo with concern and put a hoof on her shoulder, whispering

"Are ya sure you can handle that Scootaloo...? You know it's...not really Pinkie out there...you'll be able to do it...right?" Scootaloo gulped, grimacing a little and nodding her head. Applejack nodded and looked towards Rainbow, motioning with her head that it was time to go "Come on RD...let's break into a mansion"

~~~

Rainbow Dash scanned the walls around the mansion, sighing and shaking her head "It's useless...there's no way in for an Earth Pony, There's too many sentries!" Applejack put a hoof to her chin and thought a moment, heading over to one of the houses and tipping a barrel over, rolling it towards Rainbow Dash. The rainbow mare raised an eyebrow in confusion but suddenly let her jaw drop as she saw Applejack bring a board over next. Rainbow Dash shook her head adamantly, saying with a stern voice "Nuh uh, no, WAY! Applejack this is crazy!" Applejack looked up at her after she dug in the snow, finding a small enough rock to hold between her hooves. She gave Rainbow a small smile and whispered

"Trust me Rainbow, this'll work, once I get inside, I'ma go find that orb thingy, and I'll bring it back over to the crashed window. Once you see me, you fly on over lickedy split, and we can high-tail it outta there!" Rainbow stood looked a little worried, frowning at the prospect of Applejack going in alone. She mumbled, looking dejected

"W...why can't I go with you?" Applejack put the board over the barrel, getting it centered and replying

"Because Sugarcube...I need you to create a distraction out here. make sure noone comes snoopin' for me, alright?"
Rainbow Dash sighed, looking towards the ground sadly, Applejack walking over to her and tilting her head up with her hoof. She whispered gently "Hay...I'm gonna be ok...alright? Nothing's gonna happen to us...not again." Rainbow Dash looked into her emerald eyes and whimpered

"B...but I...I'm scared Applej-" She was cut off as Applejack leaned forward, pushing her lips against Rainbow's and sighing through her nose. Rainbow let her worries ease away as she wrapped her front hooves around Applejack and pulled her tightly into their embrace, kissing her back in full. They stayed wrapped in one another's hold for what seemed like forever, both of them wishing this moment in the snow could last forever. But alas, Applejack slowly pulled away, staring into Rainbow's eyes and whispering gently

"Ah love you Rainbow...we're going to be fine...ah promise ya" Rainbow Dash sniffed and smiled a little, whispering back

"I love you too AJ...come on, let's get you set up." Applejack trotted over, sitting on her haunches on one end of the board, the stone in her hooves. Rainbow Dash fanned out her wings and soared upwards, looking down at Applejack and sighing, praying that her dearest would be ok. She closed her wings and began her plummet, angling her rear hooves just right so she would land directly on the board. Her descent came to an abrupt stop as she landed perfectly on the board and launched Applejack upwards, sending her forward towards the mansion. The guards were scanning the ground, and the Pegasus guards had just moved out of the way of AJ's flight path, their eyes diverted away from her. She clenched her eyes tight and turned in the mid-air, her back towards the mansion. The crash that emitted from the window was near-deafening, the country mare crashing through the window and sliding into a wall. She wasted no time in getting up, dropping the stone on top of the shattered glass and looking for a quick hiding spot. She noticed a wooden wardrobe in one of the halls and dashed towards it, opening the oak doors and slipping inside quickly, concealing herself in a few winter coats.

Loud hoofsteps ran by her as several shouts were heard throughout the hall

"What was that!?"

"Did anyone see what happened?!"

"Look sir, a stone...probably the local fillies...dumb bastards." Applejack let out a silent 'whew!', her plan working so far. She waited for a good ten minutes before poking her head out, looking around quickly and slipping out, heading down the hall.

~~~

Scootaloo cautiously walked down the snowy streets of North Koltzan, knife in her mouth and her wings shivering. She was terrified, to be honest, knowing an evil Pinkamena was stalking her or crawling through the shadows around her. It was a deadly game of cat and mouse...each of them moving in circles around the town...waiting...watching...preparing to meet in a deadly battle of blades and blood. The Pegasus had been trying to calm her mind during her trek, trying to come to terms with the fact that she would have to, in some way, kill her own mother.

Could she do it? She knew that this Pinkie wasn't really her mother but...it was still hard to rationalize it. She let out a tiny whimper and a loud squeak as something crashed loudly in the alley in front of her. An empty garbage can rolled out into the street, stopping and settling in the snow. She stopped, staring at the metal can, shivering. Gulping, she took a gentle step forward, sweating a little and keeping her eyes on the corner. She slowly looked around the edge, her contracted pupils looking about quickly, darting back and forth and seeing nothing. She let out a sigh of relief, preparing to move back when an icy pain cut across her back and she yelped loudly. Jumping forward and turning, she gasped as she saw Pinkamena, hair poofy and her eyes wide and wild. She looked like she was panting, a bloody meat cleaver in her hoof the widest, creepiest smile she had ever seen in her life. Scootaloo looked over her shoulder and gave a loud 'EEP!', realizing that Pinkamena had left a slash mark going up her back, blood leaking down her side in a few lines. She turned and stared in horror as Pinkamena stood on her rear hooves, holding her cleaver up high and screaming

"HI SCOOTALOO!!!! ARE YOU READY TO PARTY!?!!?!"

Scootaloo screamed as she ducked, the butcher's knife soaring over her head with a sharp shriek of the wind. She turned and bolted, running down the alley way as Pinkamena's explosive, overjoyed voice boomed out behind her "WAIT! COME BACK!!! THE PARTY'S GOING TO BE FUN!!! WE'LL HAVE CUPCAKES AND BAKING AND EYEBALLS, OH MYYY!!!!!!" Scootaloo's wings were snapped to her side out of fear and pure adrenaline, her hooves carrying her forward faster than maybe even Applejack at her best. She huffed for breath, turning her head for just a moment to look behind her. She shrieked and ducked as the cleaver came spinning through the spot her neck had just been in like a disc. It hit the side of a house with a loud 'TWHACK', the black embedding itself in the wood. Scootaloo bolted to the left from the T-intersection, hearing Pinkamena rip her blade free of the wood and shout "DON'T YOU WANNA PARTY SCOOTALOO!? WE COULD HAVE SO MUCH FUN!!! YOU WOULD MAKE A GREAT SOURCE OF DECORATIONS!"

~~~

Applejack moved silently down the hallway, ducking back behind curtains and statues to avoid being seen by panicking guards. Apparently a rainbow-maned Pegasus was dropping rocks on them from the sky...giving Applejack the distraction she needed. She had gotten a chance to study a layout of the mansion when she slipped into a Janitor's closet as the guards rushed by, and thought that her best bet would be the Atrium near the center of the mansion. She poked her head out from behind the statue she hid behind and looked back and forth, galloping quickly towards the door at the end of the hall. She pushed it open and gasped, the Atrium opening up before her. It was a rotunda sort of room, the walls black as night and a few torches burning on the walls. What her eyes centered on however, was The Orb, sitting on a small pedestal in the middle of the room, raised on a short marble column.

She approached cautiously, tipping her hat off for a moment to reveal a white cloth she tied into her mane. Slipping it off her head and reapplying her hat, she prepared to cover the orb with the cloth. As she reached towards it however, a hoof smacked her hand away, causing her to fly back. An elderly looking colt had approached, his coat a faded grey and his mane a little darker. Applejack kept her distance, circling around the column as the elderly colt spoke

"I believe you are trespassing in my home Miss...you do not have any right to be galloping about on Lord Alexi's estate! I will never left you steal from me my precious artifact!" Applejack snorted steam through her snout and spoke with a venom in her voice

"That there orb ain't caused anythin' but trouble, and ahm walking out ah here with it!" Lord Alexi raised an eyebrow as he scoffed, sizing up the country mare.

"You? Take away MY precious darling? Like I would EVER DARE to let your inbred hooves touch my glorious glass, you hic'!" Applejack glared daggers as she pushed the brim of her hat forward, uttering with supreme anger in her voice

"That does it...put em up asshole..." She let out a shout and charged Lord Alexi, the colt running towards her as well with equal vigor and dove, both of them colliding and rolling about, bucking and punching. Applejack swung with her right hoof, catching the lord in his snout and turned, bucking him full force in his stomach with her back hooves. Those who know Applejack knew if you ever got in the way of her super-power pony buck...that somepony was just plain askin' for it. Lord Alexi flew backwards, clutching his stomach as Applejack rushed forward, ready to deliver another buck with her mighty hooves. However, it was in this moment that Alexi chose to rush forward, one hoof clutching his stomach, but the other extending outward and clothes lining Applejack, hitting her square in the throat. She fell on her back, holding her throat and retching.

Alexi scoffed and trotted over to one of the near windows, opening it a tiny bit and shouting

"GUARDS!!! Hurry up out there! Put that Rainbow bitch down and take of this imbr-" He was silenced as two swift back hooves smashed against the back of his skull with a sickening crack. Alexi flew forward, smashing through the window and spiraling downwards with a horrendous scream. Applejack coughed, sitting on her haunches and holding her throat, still retching a tiny bit. She heard the beat of wings and the crunching of glass, her eyes darting up quickly, her hooves ready for more. She dropped them however, sighing in relief as Rainbow floated through the door, landing and running up to her, shouting

"Applejack! Are you ok? Oh baby you're hurt!" She put a gentle cyan hoof on her throat, looking at her with an intense feeling of worry. Applejack shook her head, speaking with a very hoarse voice

"N...nuttin' too it! We gotta...g..get that orb!" Rainbow Dash pushed her lips against Applejack's gently for a moment, pulling back and whispering

"Shhh....save your voice, I'll grab the orb"

~~~

"HOLD STILL DEAR, IT'S HARD TO CUT YOU IF YOU RUN!!! YOU SILLY FILLY!" Pinkamena cackled, laughing in hysterics as she swung her butcher's cleaver erratically, one of her swings clipping Scootaloo in the leg. The orange mare yelped and started to limp, hobbling around another corner and trying as hard as she could to keep away from her. She didn't know how she was going to kill Pinkamena now. She rushed out of the alley and gasped, looking around her frantically. She was standing in a walled off courtyard, her only escape route behind her. She heard a tiny giggle and she started to turn her head slowly, her pupils contracting with fear. Her eyes shifted to the right to look down the alley and froze. Mere inches from her right eye, a pink eye was staring directly into hers. "Boo!"

Scootaloo screamed and jumped away, Pinkamena laughing hysterically and crying tears...tears of blood. "Oh!!! OH Scootaloo, you're so FUNNY!" She started to approach the orange mare slowly, a wide grin and savage eyes set on her face. Scootaloo backed up, her knife still tucked between her teeth. She held the blade up, shaking as he squeaked

"S...stay back! I'll cut you!" Pinkamena simply laughed before galloping forward, screaming

"SILLY FILLY, YOU CAN'T CUT ME, IT'S MY JOB TO CUT YOU!"

Blades clashed as Scootaloo directed her knife up defensively, blocking the meat cleaver with a ringing of metal. She shoved the blade off, moving to cut Pinkamena but receiving a buck in the side, sending her sprawling away. She had just enough time to stagger up and hold her head up as Pinkamena's cleaver came down, crashing again into Scootaloo's knife. Pinkamena brought the cleaver up and swung to the left, hitting the blade so hard that Scootaloo couldn't keep her grip and the knife flew over towards the entrance to the alley, landing in the snow. Pinkamena started to laugh even hard, tears of blood flowing from her eyes and her eyes manic and filled with thoughts of insanity. She suddenly let out a cry of surprise as Scootaloo tackled her full on, the both of them tumbling in the snow and rolling about, swiping at once another. Scootaloo tried to pin Pinkamena down, hitting her across the face with her left hoof, but was suddenly thrown off by a quick shove, Pinkamena rushing forward with her cleaver and swinging. She caught Scootaloo in her right side and let out a cry of delight as Scootaloo screamed in agony, falling backwards and holding her bleeding side. She tried to crawl, dragging herself through the snow, the white of the falling spectacles turning into a sickening red as blood oozed out between her hooves.

Scootaloo cried, tears flowing from her eyes as she tried to get away, tried to crawl, just to live. She felt a hoof against her side and in the next moment she was flung onto her back, her legs pinned as Pinkie straddled her, her cleaver raised high up in the air. Scootaloo looked up with fear, and regret, knowing she had failed and broken her one final promise to her mother. Just as the Cleaver started to come down, Pinkamena's head jerked forward a moment as a loud 'THUD' echoed across the courtyard. Pinkamena stared down at Scootaloo for a moment before slowly tipping to the left, her cleaver dropping and her body hitting the snow, a knife sticking out of the back of her head.

Pinkie Pie stood near the front of the alley, her head still bowed from the momentum she used to hurl Scootaloo's knife at her own darkened self. She limped over to Scootaloo, sitting on her haunches and pulling her severely wounded daughter in her arms, tears brimming in her eyes. Scootaloo looked weakly towards her mother and whispered

"M...momma? You...you're awake?" Pinkie nodded, smiling a little as she said

"I had to save up my strength...use what I could of it to find you...I didn't want you to have to face her alone...I'm so sorry baby!" She nuzzled Scootaloo's face, crying hot tears of sadness as Scootaloo weakly held her back, her own tears slowly dripping down her face.

~~~

"Just hang on, we'll make it....we'll make it sweetie!" Pinkie groaned, trudging through the snow with Scootaloo on her back. It was just then that a pair of voices shouted

"Pinkie Pie!!!" Turning her head to the left, Pinkie saw an orange and a cyan mare running towards her. She sighed happily before shouting

"Applejack! Dashie!" The two mares approached, Rainbow Dash smiling with glee at first but quickly frowning as she stared in horror at Scootaloo, draped across Pinkie's back.

"S...Scoots?" Pinkie gently sank to her belly, turning to Applejack and with an urgent tone, spoke

"Applejack, please...please take Scootaloo to the hospital...I know you have questions, I'll answer ALL of them! But please, I have to finish this, this needs to end once and for all! Rainbow Dash you come with me, ok?" Rainbow Dash nodded as Applejack slowly sank to her own belly besides Scootaloo, letting Pinkie gently shift her daughter onto the country pony's back. Pinkie got up, nodding to Applejack to nodded back, rushing down the street towards the hospital. She watched the country mare's form disappear around a corner and she sighed, feeling a comforting hoof on her shoulder. Pinkie turned and nodded her head to Rainbow Dash, turning to leave, but stopping for a moment to look back, whispering to the wind

"Please...hurry!"

(Links for the two Projects!)

Machinima / Story!
The Shattered World of Manecraft

Leap of Faith series! (One of these WILL include Scootaloo and Dimitri Snow-walker from the Pinksomnia Universe!!!)
Leap of Faith: Rainbow Vs. Wild