The Incantation

"Well, we're just glad you're okay," Twilight concluded after I'd went over with her and the others exactly - well, almost exactly - what happened. They'd all come over after Fluttershy rushed out and got them, explaining that I was, "Covered in blood". Not quite true, but not a lie, either.

Me and Fluttershy sat on the couch as she wrapped my injuries. The others stood around in the living room, talking about the situation and trying to come up with solutions. It was almost entertaining.

Fluttershy tugged a bit too hard on the gauze, causing me to flinch.

"Oh - I'm so sorry! did I hurt you?" she asked, horrified.

I grimaced. "Only a little. It's okay though." I tried to sound as reassuring as possible, but with Fluttershy, I've noticed it's a guessing game as to whether she's actually been reassured.

She pouted and continued her work, only much, much gentler.

She wasn't convinced.

"Emerald," Twilight interrupted our sweet little moment, "I think you should get rid of the crown. If that guy wanted it so badly, you probably shouldn't have it. At least not out in public."

"Yeah," Rainbow Dash agreed, hovering above us, staring out the windows. "He must've been stalking you all day to know you had that crown in your bag. What a freak."

"An' you were supposed ta be watchin' him, Rainbow Dash," Applejack said, making a valid point. "Not sleepin' the day away on them fluffy clouds of yers."

Rainbow flew down and landed beside her. "Well, how was I supposed to know Emerald had stalkers?"

Everypony gave her looks.

"The gala?" Rarity hinted.

Rainbow laughed in embarrassment. "Haha...right. That."

Twilight stepped in. "None of that matters. We can't change what's already happened. We need to be sure it doesn't happen again," she said. "And you really need to get rid of that crown, Emerald. If something like this happens again, you might not get so lucky."

"Well, you know what they say - three's a charm," I joked.

"This isn't funny, Emerald. It's serious."

Fluttershy finished and got up to put the materials she was using away. "Maybe I could keep a better eye on him...?"

I laughed. "I don't need to be babysat. I'm plenty capable of watching myself."

"We have enough eyes on him," Twilight replied, rubbing her chin with a hoof. "Maybe Princess Celestia needs to be more involved with this."

Great. "Sure. You do that, and I'll stay here and...ditch the crown," I mumbled, sagging on the couch.

There was a few moments of silence before anypony spoke.

"Is...there something bothering you, Emerald?" Pinkie pie asked.

I sighed heavily. "There's plenty wrong, but none of it you guys can help me with," I replied sadly, glancing at Fluttershy, who was still putting up the first aid kit. "Let's just leave it at that."

AJ cleared her throat. "Heya, Fluttershy, would ya mind making some tea?"

"Not at all," she said, going into the kitchen.

The others watched her leave, and when she did, they all looked at me.

"You're worried about her, aren't you, dear?" Rarity inquired gently, her voice lowered.

I glanced out the window at the rising moon. "Yeah."

Twilight came over and put a hoof on my shoulder. I looked up at her. "We promise, nopony will let anything happen to either of you," she said confidently.

I looked back out the window. If only I actually believed that...

"You what?" Storm demanded angrily when Steelwing had admitted he'd confronted Emerald alone.

He had gone back to Appleloosa to report what he'd learned, and hopefully get Storm's approval. So far, it didn't look good.

"I made sure he didn't know my identity or about my mission," Steel said in his defense. He stood off to the side in Storm's room. Storm stood at the window, a popular place for him when he was upset.

"Damnit, he still knows somepony's on to him, you fool! Have you no sense at all?" Storm raged, spinning around and giving a seething glare to his assistant.

"Look, boss, I think it's time. We got what we needed to know. Let's go hit him." He inched toward the door in case he'd just angered his boss more.

Storm's expression changed. "I see." He turned back to the window. "Very well. I will be heading to Ponyville tonight. You go and get Orion. We will meet at the Town Hall."

Steel gave a relieved sigh. "As you wish, boss. So we are doing this tonight? We're going to finish this finally?"

Storm turned slowly. "We are."

Shortly after Fluttershy made the tea and everypony had a cup, they left, leaving me and Fluttershy alone for the night. They asked us to get one of them if anything went amiss. I knew Fluttershy would, but I began feeling the guilt I deserved. They were being dragged into something that they shouldn't be in. I felt even more pathetic when Fluttershy started blaming herself for the incident that occurred earlier, saying if she was with me, "It wouldn't have happened".

As if that would've helped. I'm glad she wasn't there. If she got hurt because of me...

I shook off that thought. I didn't want anything to happen to her or my friends. I was almost considering coming clean. Maybe they'd understand.

Then again, maybe they wouldn't.

"Emerald?"

I looked at Fluttershy, who sat beside me, looking all sorts of worried and concerned.

Celestia, I loved that mare. But I was doing her dirty, and the guilt was eating me alive.

"Yeah, Flutters? Are you alright?" I asked, shifting uncomfortably as my mind raced, trying to determine if I should tell her everything.

She looked down at the floor. "Well, yes, but I was about to ask you the same thing."

I sighed and looked down at the floor. "No, Fluttershy. I'm not okay. I, uh," I swallowed hard. "I have something I need to tell you, but I-I'm not sure I can."

She took my hoof in hers. "You can tell me anything Emerald. You know I'll listen."

I looked up into her beautiful eyes. I saw real love.

Love that I was likely about to lose.

"Okay..."

Ponyville was dark and quiet when Storm arrived.

On the way there, he'd pondered about his decision to attack instead of spy, and the more he did, the more he liked the idea.

It was time.

Storm went out of the train station and casually strolled over to the Town Hall. No need to rush.

When he got there, Orion and Steelwing were waiting, geared up and ready to go.

Storm approached them with a cold smile. "Well, Gentlecolts, it's that time. Time for us to become unimaginably, inconceivably rich. Are we ready?"

They both nodded.

Storm's grin widened. "Than let us begin."

Fluttershy didn't look like she was expecting bad news, even though that's what she was about to get. And I still wasn't sure I could bring myself to admit I'd been lying about everything this whole time. I couldn't bear to lose her or my new friends. But the truth would eventually prevail anyway, so it was best to fess up now.

"Emerald, you look really upset. I'm worried about you," Fluttershy said, interrupting my internal conflict.

"I am," I replied, "but I'm still not sure I can tell you. It might...it might ruin things."

She move closer to me, our bodies pressed together. "I promise it won't."

Tears welled up in my eyes. "Yes it will."

Storm was looking directly at the cottage that Emerald was supposed to be living in. The lights were on downstairs, so it was assumed that was where Emerald would be.

"Boss, he's here," Steel said, pointing to one of the windows.

Storm glanced inside. Sure enough, Emerald and the mare he supposedly was with were sitting on the couch, apparently having a conversation.

Looking around the area, there didn't appear to be anypony else - Emerald and the girl were alone.

"Excellent. Now, Orion, you will go through to upstairs window, me and Steel will come in downstairs. We don't kill either of them. Get them, subdue them, find the crown, and we leave with Emerald and the girl. No witnesses. Got it?" Storm asked, laying out the plan.

"Yes, but just one thing, boss."

Storm frowned. "What, Orion?"

"Why not just kill them?"

"Because I said so, that's why," Storm snapped. "Anything else? No? Good. Let's go." Storm started off towards the home.

Steel and Orion glanced uneasily at each other and followed their boss.

This was it. I was going to tell her. My conscious finally won, and I felt it was best to admit everything. But I also considered how much I was about to lose.

"You know, if it's something embarrassing, I won't laugh...or tell anypony else," Fluttershy assured me.

I looked out the window once more. "No, it isn't embarrassing...it's..."

I felt her hoof moving up and down my arm. It sent chills up my spine, and only made me sadder for what I was about to do.

"Come on, tell me handsome," she urged me playfully.

At that point, the waterworks were almost inevitable. I was about to break her heart, and she didn't even know it. I'm a slimy, two-faced thief, and it's all I'll ever be. I didn't deserve Fluttershy, or my friends.

So I took a deep breath. "Fluttershy, I'm not - "

The front door busted in, sending splinters of wood all over the floor. The window behind us on the couch shattered as somepony came barreling in.

Fluttershy screamed, and I dragged her off the couch with me onto the floor, pulling her away from the door and window. I went for the stairs, but soon noticed that there was a griffon at the top, glaring down at us.

"Wahhh!" Fluttershy wailed.

"This way!" I yelled as I turned for the kitchen, but a dark colored pegasus with a smug grin blocked the

way. Toward the front door was the pegasus from earlier, the one who'd attacked me.

I stopped and put Fluttershy behind me, backing against the wall, shielding her.

"What do you want from us?" I demanded angrily. "That stupid crown?"

"Stupid isn't the word, fool," the dark colored one snarled. "It's my paycheck, and it doesn't belong in the hooves somepony with the likes of yours. Hand it over!"

"Get out! I'm not giving you a damn thing! Stop harassing me and my friends!"

"Harassing you?" he asked in mock-disbelief, then laughed hysterically. "You are so ignorant. If you hadn't stolen the crown in the first place, if you weren't a thief to begin with, and a terrible liar, you wouldn't even be in this situation, Emerald Rain. But your selfishness got you here, now you face consequences, and you think it's just going to go away? It doesn't. You can't run from your past when it follows you. This is what you've earned, now you must deal with the results of your evil."

There it was. Fluttershy knew everything now. It was all out in the open.

I sighed and glanced back at her, but she was looking down, crying softly.

I looked back at the two pegasi in front of me. "This wasn't what I wanted. I wasn't evil, I just - "

"Stole for food? Money? Not for selfish desire?" the dark one snorted. "Come on, Emerald. Don't be so naive. You did evil. You stole a crown that possesses unlimited power. And you still have it. Does that sound like a pony who stole for good intentions?"

I let my head down, overcome with guilt.

The dark pony came up to me, and I glanced up at him.

"My job is to get the crown and take care of you," he looked back at Fluttershy. "And any witnesses. And I don't plan on failing. So, where is the crown?"

I sighed, then pointed to my saddlebag beside the couch.

He went over and emptied it on the floor, and the crown came bouncing out. He picked it up and smiled. "It's about time." He turned to the other pony. "Tie them up."

The guy grinned and turned to me.

"I don't think so!"

Rainbow Dash came sailing in through the broken window, slamming right into the silver pony. He was knocked against the wall.

The others came in through the front door.

The dark pony growled angrily. "Damn! The Princess!"

Twilight stepped up to him bravely, with the others around behind her. "You're outnumbered. And you made a big mistake attacking one of my friends."

The other pony struggled to his hooves and limped over to the dark pony. "We need to go boss."

I ducked as the griffon sailed overhead and landed by the other two.

The dark pony scowled at me. "We'll be back, Emerald Rain." Then he reached in his saddlebag and tossed a newspaper on the floor. He and the other two flew out the broken window and into the night.

I glanced down at the paper, and I knew exactly what it was. I looked back up at the others, who glared back at me.

Twilight picked up the paper, read some of the front page, and came up to me, dropping it on the floor.

I seen the familiar article about me. When I looked back up at her, she didn't look at all amused.

"You have a lot of explaining to do, Emerald Rain," she said sternly.