Legends of The 7

Truly, the fate of Golden Rich is a tragic one. Unfortunately, Golden Rich is only the first in a long line of ponies who will suffer the same horrifying experience. Follow me and learn the story of Loving Heart, a pony who loved everypony and everything.

Loving Heart was a young and shy mare who lived in Neighagara Falls. It was a quaint little tourist town that sat next to the legendary falls themselves. Loving Heart worked at a candy store downtown called "Carrie's Sweet Shoppe". Unfortunately, the titular Carrie passed on a few years back, but her spirit lived on in the store. Loving Heart worked hard making candy all day. Her specialty were chewy candy hearts that tasted like cherries. She loved watching couples come into the store and get the candy hearts. She loved love in general. Using her magic, she had the ability to gaze into other ponies' hearts and see how much they love other ponies and how strong their hearts are. She never abused this power and only did it when asked to. She didn't want to spy. Yet, with all the love she gave to everypony and everything, she never seemed to receive any in return. That is, until today...

Loving Heart was working at the store, same as always. She had a lot of candies to make for the upcoming "Famous Figures of the Falls" event that was going on tomorrow. It was a celebration of the most important people in the town's history. Among them were Mr. Neighagara, the discoverer of the falls, Maid Misty, the town's founder, and even Carrie herself, who put the town back on the map with her outstanding sweets. Loving Heart couldn't wait to see all the customers flocking to the store to get a taste of the legendary confections that saved the town. Alongside her was her friend Butterscotch Candies. He was a goldish orange pony with a dirty blond mane and blue eyes. In front of his blue eyes, were a big pair of glasses. His specialty was butterscotch, as to be expected, but he also liked making sour candies. As Loving Heart was busy making some saltwater taffy, the bell above the door rang, signifying a customer.

"I got it!" Loving Heart called to Butterscotch. She went up to the counter to greet the pony who had come in. He was a turquoise-colored stallion with a blue and white mane, making him look like a walking river.

"Welcome to 'Carrie's Sweet Shoppe', how can I help you?" Loving Heart greeted him.

The stallion seemed distracted for a bit, then snapped out of it. "I'd like some gummy sharks, please." he requested.

"Sure thing." said Loving Heart. "One order of gummy sharks please!" she called to Butterscotch. She and the stallion just stood there waiting for the candy to be made.

"I'm River Rapids by the way." he said, extending his hoof.

"I'm Loving Heart." she said, shaking it.

"With a name like that, I assume you must be pretty nice."

"Well, with a name like River Rapids, I can assume you like water."

"Actually, I have a talent for white-water rafting."

"Interesting. I shower everything I see with kindness; at least, that's what my parents said when I asked them about my name."

"Here's your Gummy Sharks." Butterscotch Candies said, handing the bag to Loving Heart then walking back into the Candy Room.

"Here you go, sir." Loving Heart said, handing the bag to River Rapids.

"Thanks." he said. "Would you mind meeting me at the café when you're done working?" he asked suddenly.

Loving Heart tried her best not to blush. "Sure." she said.

"Great, see you there." said River Rapids as he headed out the door.

"OooOOoooo!" Butterscotch said when River Rapids had left. "Looks like somepony's got a date."

"It's not a date!" Loving Heart insisted.

"Sure it's not."

"If we weren't at work right now I'd beat your plot into the ground!"

"I know you would. I know better than to cheese you off."

"Awww." Loving Heart made puppy dog eyes at Butterscotch. "You really do care about me." she said in the schmaltziest voice she could muster.

"Whatever." Butterscotch said, his cheeks becoming red. "I gotta get back to making candy." he said, trotting back into the Candy Room.

Loving Heart's horn lit up and she gazed into Butterscotch's soul before he could leave. His heart was purple, indicating Shy Love

After work, Loving Heart went to the café downtown. There, she saw River Rapids waiting for her and sat down.

"So, how long have you lived here?" he asked her.

"My whole life. I just love it here." she replied.

"I moved here a few days ago."

"How do you like it so far?"

"It seems nice enough. It's gotten a lot better today though"

Loving Heart blushed. "I heard that."

"Heard what?"

"Nothing." Loving Heart said coyly.

"So, do you know about the 'Famous Figures of the Falls' event tomorrow?"

"Yes?" Loving Heart's eyes started to glow.

"Do you want to go with me?"

Inside her mind, Loving Heart tackled River Rapids in a giant hug and screamed Yes! at the top of her lungs. In reality, she gave a polite nod and a modest "I would love to."

"Great, see you there." River Rapids said before dashing away.

Loving Heart had just enough time to peek at his heart before he was out of reach. It was a pink color, signifying Infatuation.

Loving Heart could barely think straight that day. She was too anxious for the upcoming evening.

What if he doesn't like me? What if I don't like him? What's going to happen?! she asked herself.

"Get a hold of yourself Loving Heart." she told herself. She went back to the Candy Room to handle an order of Carrie's Cherries, a cherry shaped chewy candy that had a chocolate flavored pit on the inside. They were originally called Choco-Cherries, but Loving Heart decided to change the name the day Carrie passed away as a way of remembering her. Loving Heart thought back to the day she first met Carrie. She was but a little filly, still in elementary school.

"How do you put the chocolate in the cherries?" she'd asked the snow-white mare behind the counter.

Carrie had looked around to make sure no one was watching. "Come here." she said. She then led Loving Heart into the back room.

"After making the cherry, we slice it in half and cut out a hole for the pit." Carrie said, well into her explanation. "Then, we take the chocolate, mold it into a ball, and let it harden in the freezer." she then did exactly that and waited a while for the chocolate ball to freeze. "Then, you put the chocolate into the pit hole, seal the cherry together with this red candy-paste, and Voilá!" she declared, presenting the finished Choco-Cherry like a trophy.

"Wow! But how do you make so many?" Loving Heart asked.

"You certainly are a curious filly aren't you?" Carrie asked Loving Heart. "Don't tell anypony, but I do this." Carrie's horn began to glow with a pastel red magic and the single Choco-Cherry turned into a dozen identical copies.

"Wow! I wish I could do that." she said.

"Well my little pony, if you ever see me round town when you're older, you can work here and I'll teach you everything I know."

"Really?!" Loving Hear's eyes sparkled like stars

"I promise or my name isn't Carrie Marshmallow Creame."

"Is Marshmallow really your middle name?"

"No, that's just what the townsfolk call me." Carrie said as she began to laugh.

Loving Heart laughed with her. It had been a sweet day.

At the end of the day, Loving Heart hung up her apron and waited outside for River Rapids. He arrived at around 7:30 and the two walked to the park where the festivities were about to take place. Pretty much everypony in town was gathered at the park, waiting for the show to start. At precisely 8:00, a unicorn stepped out onto a stage and their horn lit up. Suddenly, the air filled with differently-colored clouds of smoke. The smoke began swirling in a circle before splitting off into three separate clouds. The cloud that was a light-grey color formed itself into Mr. Neighagara, a bulky stallion with a handlebar mustache and a blue captain's uniform.

In 1604 I happened upon these great falls. he began.

"What's happening?" River Rapids whispered to Loving Heart

"The unicorns use their magic to bring the ponies' ghosts back for a short while." she replied.

"Spooky."

And that is how these great falls were discovered. Mr. Neighagara finished. Now I shall go back to rest. He then turned back into a light-grey cloud of smoke and flew off to where he was buried.

When the smoke had left, the bright blue cloud of smoke settled itself on the stage. The smoke formed itself into Maid Misty, a pretty, cerulean mare in a sailor suit.

"I was on an expedition with a few friends, including my coltfriend when we arrived at the falls." she began her tale. "Seeing the beauty of their rushing waters, I never wanted to leave, so me and a couple others set up camp and waited for the others to send ponies over from our motherland. While we waited, my coltfriend asked me up to the falls. When we were up there, he pulled out a diamond ring and asked for my hoof in marriage. It is because of this momentous occasion for me that I founded the town with an aura of love. she finished. Now, I return to my place in the falls' mist. Maid Misty then turned back into smoke and flew to the falls.

The final cloud, a pure white mist, settled onto the stage and morphed into Carrie Creame. Loving Heart expected her to be the frail old mare she had worked for for the past few years but, to her surprise, Carrie looked to be about the same age as she was.

I was a plucky young mare just out of college when I moved to Neighagara Falls. she began. I took a job at the local confectionary shop. The sweets were okay, but I began experimenting to make them even better. Word spread fast and soon ponies from all over Equestria came flocking to the store, putting our sweet little town back on the maps. I inherited the shop when the owner passed away and worked there till my last breath was drawn. Carrie paused and suddenly her horn lit up with its cherry-colored magic and she dragged Loving Heart and Butterscotch onto the stage.

It is thanks to these young ponies that my sweets shall live on in our beloved town. Everypony cheered for Loving Heart and Butterscotch Candies while Carrie sat there beaming with pride. I'll be away for a while, but I'll be back next year.

Loving Heart jumped off the stage and went to rejoin River Rapids. She looked back to see Carrie. Was it her, or did she look like she was afraid for split second? Before Loving Heart could get a better look, Carrie turned to mist and returned to the cemetery to rest.

After the party, River Rapids walked Loving Heart home.

"I had a great time." he said

"Me too."

"Well, bye." River Rapids waved as he started walking away. Suddenly, he turned around, kissed Loving Heart on her lips and bolted away before she could react. Loving Heart swooned, but had the foresight to conjure a cloud so she didn't hit her head on the sidewalk. The cloud floated her up to her room and dropped her into her bed before poofing out of existence.

Loving Heart woke up the next morning and her eyes shot open. The sun was high in the sky. She'd overslept! She quickly put on her apron and teleported herself to work.

"Where have you been?!" Butterscotch Candies demanded.

"I overslept. I'm sorry!" Loving Heart replied.

"You're lucky it's a slow day." Butterscotch then went to the back to whip up some fudge.

"I need to focus." Loving Heart told herself. Her horn then lit up with a hot pink aura and a sparkle of magic lit up on her forehead. She had cast a Focus Spell to clear her mind of any invasive thoughts. "Let's do this!" she said.

After work, she locked up the shop and started heading home. Then, all of a sudden, she crashed into somepony and fell to the ground. Looking up, she saw River Rapids standing there with a concerned look on his face.

"Are you ok?" he asked. "That was a pretty hard fall."

"Yeah, I'm fine." Loving Heart reassured him.

"That's good."

"I have nothing going on. You wanna come back to my place?"

"Sure." The two ponies then walked to Loving Heart's house. When they arrived, Loving Heart hung up her apron and sat down on the couch while River stood by the door.

"Are you gonna stand there the whole time or are you going to join me?" Loving Heart said with an unexpected sultriness in her voice. Where did that come from? she wondered to herself.

"I don't know." River responded with a coy smile. "I've been told that mares can't keep their hooves off me."

"Listen. I don't know what I just said, but I'm not looking for anything intimate right now."

"Oh, sorry."

"It's ok, just, no sweet talk yet."

"That's ok." River then joined her on the couch.

"Do you want to kiss me?"

"Yes."

"Then what are you waiting for?" Loving Heart then closed her eyes and puckered her lips. River was confused at first, but decided to go along with it. The two ponies sat there, kissing each other repeatedly until it was almost 8 PM. River Rapids pulled away from Loving Heart and headed home.

"I had a nice time." he said.

"Mmmmmmm" was all Loving Heart could get out. River Rapids then waved goodbye and headed home. Loving Heart got up and realized how hungry she was. She went to the bathroom and washed her hooves to start preparing for dinner. When she finished she looked in the mirror and saw a troubling sight. Her mane had become a darker shade of red and her coat was salmon-colored instead of its usual creamy pink. Worried, she took her temperature, which came out to be 98.6°.

"Weird..." she said to herself. She would have thought on it more, but her grumbling stomach took her mind off of it. "Right, time for dinner!"

After her dinner, Loving Heart went upstairs and went to bed. In her dream she was swimming in the Neighagra River, which was made of candy hearts instead of water. In her dream, she thought about how great the visit with River Rapids was. It was exhilarating to say the least. Suddenly, the soft candy hearts of the river turned into shards of hard, red candy. The points of the shards tore into Loving Hearts hide and sliced her all over. Loving Heart, in a panic, frantically swam for the river's edge, but it was too late. Loving Heart, still in immense pain went over the Falls and fell into the ravine below...

Loving Heart's eyes shot open and she catapulted herself out of bed. She clutched her heart as if it was about to fall out of her. Her sweat was ice cold and her breathing fast and shallow. She went downstairs and brewed herself some tea to calm down. On her way to work, she purposefully avoided seeing the river, not wanting to relive her nightmare. While at work River Rapids came to see her.

"Hi." he said. At the sight of him, Loving Heart's coat and mane started turning red again. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Loving Heart assured him. "I'm just a little under the weather."

"Ok, one order of peanut butter fudge to go, please." Loving Heart grabbed a bag, reached into the display, and gave River his peanut butter fudge. "Bye!"

"See ya!" Loving Heart replied. If I'm getting sick, I should take some precautionary measures she thought to herself. She went to the back and put on a pair of gloves and a surgical mask. Then, she cast a spell to make them invisible so ponies wouldn't get the wrong idea. She worked hard the rest of the day and left Butterscotch to close up while she went to the doctor.

"There doesn't appear to be anything wrong with you." the doctor said. "What did you say your symptoms were again?"

"For some reason, my coat and mane colors start turning red anytime I'm around this stallion I'm seeing." said Loving Heart.

"And this hasn't happened at any point before meeting this stallion?"

"Not that I know of."

"Well, I'll run some tests and see what we can find." the doctor then reached over and took a lollipop from a cup of them he had on his desk. "I normally give these to foals, but here's one for your troubles." Loving Heart graciously took the candy and put it in her apron pocket.

"Thank you." she said.

"No problem." the doctor said before pausing. "Do get some rest, though. Sleep never hurts."

"Ok, I will." Loving Heart then exited the doctor's office and went home.

While reading a book, Loving Heart heard a knock at her door. I wonder who it could be? she thought. She opened the door to see River Rapids standing there. She suddenly felt hot and energized at his presence and hastily let him in.

"Your eyes are contracting." River Rapids said

"Good..." Loving Heart said with a smooth and slightly promiscuous voice.

I think we can just skip this next bit...

River Rapids and Loving Heart were laying down on her couch, content and restful.

"I have to go." said River, glancing at the clock.

"Do you have to?" Loving Heart whined as if she'd just been woken up.

"It's getting late, and I won't be able to find my way home if it's too dark to see."

"Fine!" Loving Heart begrudgingly agreed. River then kissed her goodbye and headed home.

Loving Heart pushed herself off the couch and went to the bathroom to wash up.

"I wish he could've stayed longer." she said to nopony in particular. She splashed some water on her muzzle and looked in the mirror. Her reflection was even more red than normal and had eyes the size of peas.

"I think you should go all the way with that stallion!" her reflection said with a whispering voice that only sounded vaguely like the pony it was supposed to be.

"I don't think that's a good idea." she said "It's all too much too fast."

"Stallions love a mare who knows what she wants." the reflection argued. "I'm sure he's all too eager to do the same with you."

"You think so?"

"I know so." Loving Heart thought over this for a second before snapping back to reality and remembering who she was.

"No! I won't do it! It's too early!" she shouted.

"You're going to do it wether you like it or not!" her reflection screamed back in a voice that no longer resembled Loving Heart. "It is your destiny!"

"Leave me alone!" Loving Heart screamed before running out of the bathroom and slamming the door behind her.

Loving Heart made herself some dinner and went to bed early, remembering the doctor's suggestion. Sleep took its time getting to her after what had happened earlier with the mirror, but she eventually felt herself drift off to the world of dreams. Her dream tonight wasn't as terrifying as the one she'd had the night prior, but it was very peculiar. All that Loving Heart could see were two red, lizard-like eyes staring blankly at her in an infinite blackness. Suddenly, a mouth full of sharp teeth opened and said in a whispering voice: It's happening...

Loving Heart woke with a start and checked the clock on her wall which read 3:45

"I need to go." she said, crossing her hind legs before sprinting downstairs to the bathroom. Knowing what might await her, she lit up the room with her magic and stared intently at the mirror. Her reflection had her normal coat colors, same-sized eyes, and mimicked her every motion. At ease, Loving Heart relieved herself, washed her hooves, and got a glass of water. When she'd finished drinking, she took a last look into the mirror and saw something that chilled her very soul. In the mirror was a blood-red creature with the same lizard-like eyes and sharp teeth from her dream. Its mane and tail were short and sleek and matched its coat's coloring. Out of its back were two dragon wings that flapped violently as the creature scraped it claws against its side of the mirror, as if it were trying to break it and gouge Loving Heart's eyes out. In the second she had to process all of this, Loving Heart instinctively grabbed her manebrush, turned the singular mirror into countless shards, and ran out of the bathroom in terror. She then teleported her blanket from her bed and sat on the couch shivering as if she'd just been thrown in the river during winter. She then conjured up a mirror she knew she could trust and saw her same pink coat and her same pink and red mane. Her pink-colored eyes were ablaze with fear.

"Get it together, Loving Heart." she reassured herself. "Whatever it was, it can't hurt you now." She looked over at the pile of broken glass in the now darkened bathroom. It can't hurt you now. her mind echoed her words to her.

Loving Heart knew she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep, so she read some books to pass the time until morning. She went to the Shoppe just as Butterscotch was opening up.

"Do you think you can run the store by yourself today?" she asked.

"Why?"

"I think I'm coming down with something and I don't want to get other ponies sick."

"I should be able to handle it, but you owe me one."

"Duly noted. Thank you." she then gave him a hug

"Hey, it's what I do." Butterscotch said, trying to hide his embarrassment. He then went inside while Loving Heart made her way back home. Loving Heart wasn't used to having the day off and didn't know what to do. She took a quick nap to make up for the sleep she'd lost, read some books, and made some candy to pass the time. At about 4 in the afternoon, she heard a knock on her door. She opened it to see River Rapids standing there.

"Are you ok?" he asked. "I went to the Sweet Shoppe to see you, but the stallion behind the counter said you were feeling sick and took the day off."

"I'm fine." she replied. "I'm just feeling a little off today."

"That's a relief. So what do you want to do?" Loving Heart knew that whatever was happening only happened when she was around River Rapids, so she stopped him before he kissed her.

"I think we should lay off the intimacy for today." she said. "I wouldn't want you getting sick."

"Right, sorry."

"How about we play a board game?"

"I guess that sounds fun." So the two previously promiscuous ponies passed the time by playing different board and card games. Night began to fall and Loving Heart began feeling weird.

"I think you should go." she said, remembering what happened last night.

"I can't. It's too dark out. Can I crash here for the night?" Loving Heart knew she needed to act fast.

"Of-course-you-can-sleep-in-the-spare-bedroom-upsatirs. Excuse-me-I-gotta-go-to-the-bathroom." she blurted before sprinting into the bathroom. Inside she teleported a quill and ink to her and began writing a letter to Butterscotch.

Dear Butterscotch Candies,

I can't shake the feeling that something bad is going to happen tonight. I don't know why, but I know I'm not feeling like myself right now. Please come to my house tomorrow morning and check to see if I'm ok. I'll owe you two solids if I have to, but PLEASE do it! I'm kind of freaking out!

Your Friend Forever,

Loving Heart

Loving Heart's coat was beginning to turn red again so, with the last of her consciousness, she sent the letter to his house. She then stepped out of the bathroom to greet River Rapids. Her coat was back to the salmon color it had been before and her mane and tail were blood red.

"Oh my goodness! Are you alright?!" River Rapids shouted, running to her side.

"I'm fine." Loving Heart said in a faraway voice, as if she was talking to somepony else. "I think I need some bedrest."

"Of course. I'll take you upstairs."

"Carry me please?"

"Ok." So River Rapids picked her up and hauled her to her room. He got her a blanket and tucked her in before giving her a peck on her forehead. "Get well soon." he said.

"Thank you..." Loving Heart said before sprouting fiendish smile. In a moment's notice, she teleported to and locked the door and shut and barred the windows.

"What are you doing?!" River Rapids demanded.

"I'm making sure you don't try to escape." Loving Heart said, her voice turning whispery and reptilian in nature. She began edging towards River, who was frantically trying to leap out the window. Loving Heart's horn evaporated and her coat became the same color as her now short and straightened mane. Her teeth began to sharpen and her eyes turned into pools of bright red with black slits for irises. Finally, a pair of dragon's wings sprouted from her back and fluttered to her side. The creature that was once Loving Heart then dashed towards River Rapids, picked him up with one hoof and slammed him down onto the bed.

"You're mine now!" it declared.

An interesting fact about Neighagra Falls: The houses are sound-proofed so that ponies can't hear the roar of the falls outside if they're trying to sleep. Because of these implementations, nopony could hear River Rapids' scream of terror.

The next morning, Butterscotch hurried to Loving Heart's house like her letter said to. He walked into the living room to find board games strewn about everywhere.

"Loving Heart! Are you home?!" He called into the house. Not getting a response, he decided to go upstairs to see if she was still sleeping. Her bedroom door was locked, so he knocked.

"Loving! You in there?" After a while, he grew impatient and kicked the door in.

"I'll fix it later, I just want to know if you're okay." he said, expecting to see Loving Heart in her bed. But Loving Heart was nowhere to be found. Instead, River Rapids' body was on her bed, cold and stiff. It wore an expression of absolute fear. Butterscotch immediately ran outside to call for the police. After that, he went back inside to look at the body once more to make sure all of this was really happening. He noticed light was shining on it and looked up to see a hole in the ceiling.

"Loving Heart..." he said to himself, holding back tears. "What in Equestria happened to you?"