It was a warm summer day in Ponyville, birds chirping in the trees and a slight breeze keeping things from getting too warm. A pair of mares, one alabaster white, one lavender purple, were making their way along one of the roads in town toward a well-known boutique. What not everyone knew however, is that there were not two mares on the road at that moment, but three. The third pony being a mare of the mind. That mare, Valiente, had been created by dark magic as a completely separate entity within Rarity for the purpose of enslaving her: mind, body and soul. Valiente had repudiated that purpose and now the two shared their one body as sisters.

“Rarity,” said Twilight as they walked along. “All I’m asking for is one more trip into your mindscape. You do realize that you two are completely unique in the annals of pony mental health? What’s going on with you and Valiente is like disassociative identity disorder but you both have a level of coordination and even cooperation that is astounding.”

“Twilight,” replied Rarity. “You’re getting that look in your eyes again.” Indeed Twilight was. Her eyes were beginning to glaze over as she warmed to her subject material, but Rarity could see how Twilight’s classic manic devotion to learning was off somehow, as if she was just going through the motions. Rarity pondered this even as they reached the Boutique and went inside.

“I mean the level of communication between your two personalities is incredible,” said Twilight, looking around and noting that they were alone in the Boutique. “I really have to insist on one more chance to study something that is so absolutely, positively unprecedented, Rarity.”

“Do you want me to handle this, dear Heart?” came the inner voice of Rarity’s sister of the mind, Valiente. Rarity thought for a moment. Rarity knew she had yet to fully heal, after she had sacrificed herself to give Valiente the chance for the kill shot on their mutual enemy, Sombra. Plus, Valiente had a gift for dealing with emotions and emotional turmoil, being a creature of thought. What was more, even Rarity could feel something was off with their friend, Twilight.

At the start of the climactic battle in the Badlands—of Sombra and his dog soldiers, versus Luna, Twilight, herself and the Moon Dogs—Twilight had sacrificed her mind to save Luna from a terrible weapon. Though she managed to hold the effects off until after the battle, Twilight had been reduced to a blank slate, or, "Tabula Rasa", as that meek, submissive pony had called herself afterwards. It had taken a full-scale intervention, requiring both Luna and Celestia, all of Twilight’s friends, and one of their greatest enemies to restore Twilight. Few realized that, in spite of that heroic effort, Twilight was still a deeply-wounded pony.

“Yes dear,” thought Rarity to Valiente. “I do think you should take over. Something is not right with our dear Twilight. She is pushing too hard on this, trying to distract herself from something. I have a feeling that maybe, if we do this right, she may finally open up. Nudge her that way, if you can.” With that Rarity turned her focus and “fell” backwards. As she did she felt Valiente moving past her, giving an affectionate mental nuzzle as she passed by. Suddenly, Rarity was a spectator in her own body and mind as Valiente took control of their shared body with a firm hoof.

“Darling,” said Valiente, in those liquid syllables that marked her speech. “What aren’t you telling me?”

“Wh-What do you mean, Valiente?” asked Twilight, clearly taken aback by the sudden change of topic and conversation partner.

“Dear, sweet Twilight,” said Valiente in a comforting voice as she reached out to stroke the side of Twilight’s face. “Even Rarity can tell something is wrong. Talk to us.”

“I don’t know what you mean,” said Twilight. But even as she said the words she turned her head away from Valiente, who could see the glisten of the unshed tears that were suddenly in Twilight’s eyes.

Valiente stepped around the table and embraced Twilight, placing the head of the lavender alicorn on her shoulder. The wordless comfort being given proved to be the blow that broke Twilight’s reserve, and suddenly Valiente’s shoulder was soaked as Twilight sobbed and her tears flowed. Valiente just held her friend, stroking the back of Twilight’s head and making comforting noises. Simply being there for Twilight.

“Finally,” huffed Rarity from inside. “Nearly two months it’s taken for her to finally acknowledge how badly she was hurt. This won’t be a short cry or a pretty one.”

“I know,” replied Valiente. “We weren’t any better when we finally opened up. Just stay close, in case I need some help.” In response, she felt a wave of support and encouragement from Rarity. Twilight never noticed the split seconds the unhearable conversation between the soul sisters had taken, and continued to sob and cry into the white shoulder of her friend. Many minutes later, Twilight’s gulping sobs had finally quieted to sniffles, and Valiente leaned back a bit to look her friend in her tear reddened eyes.

“Are you ready to talk now, or do you need a few more minutes?” Valiente asked.

“How, how did you know?” Twilight asked between sniffles, not moving away an inch.

“Oh, dear Twilight,” said Valiente. “Rarity and I have been through something similar. She and I have been expecting something like this from you for weeks now.”

“Both of...Oh!” gasped Twilight as an ornately-engraved and fur-tight silver collar materialized around the throat of the alabaster unicorn who held her close. “Your collar...because of me?”

Valiente knew what Twilight meant. The silver collar that had appeared around Valiente’s neck only came into being when both she and Rarity were both fully focused on the same thing. When the two acted as one, their abilities increased exponentially. That synergy had given them the power to kill Sombra, and to put Chrysalis at their mercy. Now that terrible power was centered on the goal of helping their friend begin her own healing.

“Yes, Twilight,” said Valiente, touching a hoof to the collar. “Both of us. You know we both love you as a sister, and we were there when you pulled Luna out of the way of Sombra’s weapon. I was there when your mind finally broke to that weapon’s power. I took care of the broken mare you became, in the aftermath. I was there, in your mind, when we brought you back from being Tabula Rasa, the blank slate. So, believe me when I say, Rarity and I have been waiting for you to finally break down and admit how badly you were hurt.”

“It’s just,” Twilight sniffled and continued, “It’s just everyone sees me as a princess, they see me as a hero but...but.”

“But they don’t see how badly you’re still hurting,” finished Valiente. To which Twilight nodded.

“There are...holes in me,” said Twilight in a small voice. “Places where there should be memories, things I’ve done and seen with my friends. And they are just, just gone. Every time I run across one, it hurts. Every time Pinkie or AJ or Rainbow, or even Celestia has to remind me of something I knew, it just reminds me of how broken I am. Like I’m this useless thing, a shell, a husk of a...” Twilight broke off as she descended into sobs again. Valiente wordlessly gathered her friend back into a hug and let Twilight cry herself out.

“Any ideas how we can help her?” Valiente asked Rarity. “Thinking and planning are your areas of expertise, after all.”

“We do what we do best,” said Rarity, firmly. “We give of ourselves to help our friends.” With that, she showed Valiente her thoughts.

“Of course,” said Valiente aloud, even as she ignited their horn and her azure power enveloped both ponies. Twilight had a moment to utter a startled “What?” before Valiente’s communion spell pulled Twilight from her own mind and into the shared mindscape of Valiente and Rarity.

“Oh,” said Twilight in a breathy voice. “I’m here. You pulled me in.” The soft undulations of Rarity’s mindscape laid out before her.

“Yes, darling,” came Rarity’s voice from behind Twilight. “We did. Welcome to our mental realm.” Twilight turned in place to see both Rarity and Valiente behind her. For the first time Twilight saw both mares simultaneously, and now that she could, the differences in stance, carriage and gait between the two were obvious.

“Thank you for bringing me in,” said Twilight with gratitude, as the gesture the two alabaster mares had made warmed her heart. To willingly let somepony into your mind was one of the greatest gestures of trust a pony could make to another. Then Twilight actually looked at the two mares and thought perhaps they weren’t so trusting.

“Um, Rarity, Valiente, what is that?” Twilight asked. Rarity and Valiente were both manifesting the silver collars that symbolized their bond, and their power. What was surprising was the fact that there was a length of light silver chain, about six feet long, connecting the two mares, leashing them to each other. Halfway along the chain leash a third collar lay open. As the two mares approached Twilight, they did so in a manner that would put them on either side of Twilight. It was blatantly obvious to Twilight that the third collar was meant for her.

“I’ve always wanted to see you in a collar, dear Twilight,” said Valiente, her voice purring in the mindscape. “Go ahead, put it on.”

“It will keep you safe between us as we travel the mindscape, among other things,” said Rarity. “Go ahead, Twilight, put the collar on.” Twilight lifted the anodized blue-black collar. It was functional steel, with rounded edges that would allow it to be worn for a long time - if need be. Delicately engraved scrollwork ran along the top and bottom edge.

“Okay,” said Twilight, as she positioned herself between Valiente and Rarity. “I trust you both, completely.” As she said the words Twilight closed the collar around her throat, which fit perfectly. It locked with an authoritative click, and Twilight felt her knees go weak for a moment as she realized she had just yoked herself in inescapable steel. Then Twilight realized that what she was feeling wasn’t desire but fear. A sudden image of a mountainside rushing at her filled her mind. Twilight shuddered and fell to her knees, overcome by the moment of vivid memory.

“What was that?” asked Rarity, looking with concern at the unexpectedly kneeling pony beside her.

“A flash of memory and feeling,” said Twilight, pushing herself back onto her hooves. “It’s what makes them so hard to deal with. I get these brief flashes of memory and emotion. Maybe a second or two’s worth – and then nothing. No context, nothing to put the memory in its proper place.”

“No wonder it’s been so hard for you to deal with, you poor dear” said Valiente. “Feelings without knowing where they are from or why they are there.” She shuddered dramatically and gave Twilight a quick nuzzle.

“Why didn’t you tell anyone sooner?” asked Rarity. “You know any of us would be more than willing to help you.” She also gave Twilight a comforting nuzzle from the other side.

“It’s just that most of those flashes,” said Twilight, as she leaned into the comforting touch of her friends. “They almost always involve you or the rest of our friends in some way. So, it sort of has been making me not want to – VALIENTE!” Valiente had turned the chaste nuzzle into a swift but erotic lick and nibble on Twilight’s ear.

“Darling mine,” said Rarity. “I thought you always had considered Twilight something of a little sister? At least that is the impression I’ve always gotten from you.”

“What makes you think I still don’t? She might be the most adorable little sister ever, but she is also the sexiest alicorn alive.” Valiente leaned back into a stunned Twilight and nuzzling the nibbled ear said, “Don’t tell Cadance that, please?”

“Cadance? What was that about Cadance?” Rarity asked.

Valiente tossed her mane sending the connecting leash jangling and with a sigh, went off on a tangent with a dreamy look, saying, “I bet Shining is the top between them. The way he moves in that armor, that strength and control. Oh drat, now we’re horny.”

“VALIENTE!” Rarity yelled, her voice echoing across the mindscape. “Focus, please.”

“Sorry, but Twilight is such a natural submissive, I couldn’t help but think of doing things with her,” purred Valiente.

“I am not a natural submissive,” Twilight protested. “I may have gaps in my memory but I’m pretty sure I would have remembered that.”

“Says the mare wearing a collar, and in the chains that she willingly locked onto herself without protest,” said Valiente. Twilight blushed, and tugged slightly on the chains connecting her to the two other mares. Neither collar nor chain leashes relaxed their grip as Valiente continued, “Relax, darling. You are only submissive toward authority figures, and after my taking care of you while you were Tabula, I qualify. Now, let’s get going. Rarity, if you would lead off.”

With that, the three mages headed off into the bewildering mass of colours and patterns of the mindscape. Images swirled and danced before Twilight, and the confusing mass of colour began to be too much for her to comprehend. After a few minutes of trying to deal with the sensory overload, she staggered against Rarity, no longer able to even walk in a straight line.

“Close your eyes and take a couple of deep breaths dear,” said Rarity, as she let Twilight lean against her for support. Valiente had automatically paused with them as soon as she had noticed Twilight’s distress.

“What...what is going on?” asked Twilight as she obeyed Rarity. Closing her eyes helped. Without the swirling colours throwing off her sense of perspective, her balance returned and she was able to stop leaning on Rarity.

“Our defences, Twilight,” said Rarity. “I deal in fashion, so naturally I guard the core of our mind with patterns of colour and movement. Their purpose here is to distract, confuse and mesmerize an intruder.”

“We suspected you would be affected like this, darling,” said Valiente in Twilight’s ear. “To be honest it is the main reason we offered you the collar and leashes, so we could safely guide you through the maelstrom, even though you do look amazing wearing them. Just keep your eyes closed, and let us guide you.”

The trio began to move forward again, but at a slower pace, and Twilight found the going was indeed easier. All she had to do was walk forward, keep her eyes closed and respond to the left or right tugs of the leashes as they came. Once, she accidentally opened her eyes by mistake, and the swirling colours nearly hypnotized her.

“Twilight, while we walk, could you explain where these holes in your memory came from?” asked Valiente. “From what I heard at the time, the ‘Chained Moon’ bridle wasn’t supposed to erase a mind, only reshape it.”

“You’re right, Valiente,” said Twilight, as she kept herself balanced between the two leashes. “’Chained Moon’ was meant to reshape Luna into a submissive and needy brood mare for Sombra to get an alicorn foal on. Had it managed to hit her with its magic she would have been remade instantly.” Twilight paused as she was pulled into a sweeping turn. “When I let the bridle hit me instead of her, its enchantment needed time to adapt to me. I used that time, in part, to create a contingency spell.”

“What sort of contingency spell?” asked Valiente.

“I knew what sort of mare I was going to be made into,” said Twilight, “and I know...knew too much about Equestria’s defences. So the contingency spell was created to erase any memory I had, of anything related to those defences, so Tabula couldn’t give anything away to Equestria’s enemies.”

“The spell went too far?” asked Rarity from the other side.

“Not as such, Rarity,” said Twilight. “It’s just that at the time, I hadn’t realized how much of the past five or six years we’ve spent stopping various threats. I’ve lost about half of the events of those years.”

“Well, darling,” said Valiente. “Rarity and I are going to fix that. We’ve reached our destination, open your eyes.” Twilight opened her eyes and saw a vast door of white marble in front of her. The door was set in a silver framework and Rarity’s cutie mark was engraved on it.

“What is it?” asked Twilight. Twilight could feel the quiet power radiating from the door. The steady strength of an active and able mind. Whatever was behind that door, it was at the core of Rarity and Valiente’s personalities. No wonder there were defences in place.

“This, darling,” said Valiente. “Is the entrance to our Hall of Memories. The place where every memory we have, of every thought and action since we were born, is stored.”

“Exactly,” said Rarity. “As you well know Twilight, a mare is the sum of her memories. To have lost so many of yours...well, to have borne that pain without complaint, for as long as you have, speaks highly of your character and strength of will.”

“I just didn’t know what to do,” said Twilight, hanging her head down. “Celestia and Luna are still working on helping the Diamond Dogs, and none of our friends know anything about neuromancy.”

“What about us, dear Twilight?” asked Valiente, lifting Twilight’s chin with a hoof to look into the lavender eyes of her friend.

“You and Rarity were still getting used to each other,” said Twilight. “Plus you were having those nightly meetings with Princess Luna to learn to control when the two of you are in synergy. And Luna had to break Rarity's conditioning around her name. How did she do that anyway?" Rarity's only response was a massive blush.

"Oh, look at her blush," Valiente giggled. "Do you remember what the training bridle did to Rarity, Twilight, with regards to her name?"

"Yes," said Twilight, "every time she or someone else said her name, the bridle shocked her. A fairly potent shock as I remember."

"Exactly, darling," said Valiente. "It was meant to drive her away from her identity, to make her not want to be Rarity anymore, and allow me to take over that much easier."

"And," said Rarity, joining the conversation, "It also pared off part of my mind and gave it to Valiente so that she could cage me within my own mind. But she fought back against that purpose, she worked with me, she saved me." Rarity looked at Valiente with unalloyed love and affection. "I don't think I'll ever be able to thank her enough for that."

"Well, thank you," said Valiente, a little embarrassed herself. "To get back to the topic though, the bridle used pain to push Rarity away from her name and identity. Even after the bridle was removed, the conditioning it had enforced kept Rarity feeling pain whenever she heard her name. What is the opposite of pain, Twilight?"

"Pleasure," said Twilight immediately. "Oh, you don't mean Luna..." Twilight trailed off as Rarity's blush returned, this time covering nearly half her body.

"She most certainly did, Twilight," said Valiente, with a broad smile. "She would repeatedly bring Rarity to orgasm while having me chant Rarity's name in her ear. You wouldn't believe some of the things our Mistress knows how to do...and then things got interesting."

"Interesting?" asked Twilight. "How so?"

"Mistress discovered we are multi-orgasmic," said Valiente. "What was the record for number of orgasms in a single session, dear Rarity?" Rarity's entire body had gone red as she mumbled some sort of answer.

"Speak up, Darling," insisted Valiente. "How many was it?"

"Nineteen!" yelled Rarity suddenly. "She made me come nineteen times in a row, and when it was over, hearing my name finally felt good again."

"Well, my point stands," said Twilight. "You both were too...busy, to be able to help me."

“Twilight,” Rarity gently chided. “Even before Valiente wonderfully complicated my life, I have always had time for a friend. With her, there are now two of us to handle life’s challenges.”

“You’re right,” sighed Twilight. “I should have opened up to you or the girls sooner.”

“It’s quite alright, my sweet Twilight,” said Valiente. “It only makes you more lovely in our eyes.” Twilight blushed at the compliment.

“So, what’s the plan?” Twilight asked.

“Quite simple,” said Rarity. “We are going to give you a gift.”

“What sort of gift?” asked Twilight with some apprehension in her voice as she raised an eyebrow. She noticed that Rarity and Valiente had somehow detached their ends of the leashes from their collars and, simply by touching them to the door frame, fastened them there. The leashes were still attached on Twilight’s end, effectively tethering Twilight in the center of the doorway.

The door began to open and a vast light shone forth, bathing the lavender alicorn in its light. Twilight instinctively tried to back up but was prevented by the tethers.

“The gift of Memory,” said Rarity and Valiente simultaneously. The two alabaster mares began to glow with light and power. Twilight could barely look at them. From all around her the unified voice of her friends came.

“Twilight Sparkle, we offer you this gift of ourselves,” said Rarity/Valiente as a single great voice. “Our memories of you, every moment, every word, every thought. For you, our friend. Will you accept this gift of our friendship and love?”

Twilight could scarcely believe the magnitude of the gift she was being offered. That Rarity and Valiente would even offer it, that they even could...then she shook her head, “NO! I will not accept this. Not if it diminishes you, my friends. Not at the cost of hurting you. I would rather suffer a thousand years then give you my pain for even a single day.”

“Dearest Twilight, you are indeed a true, true friend,” said the combined voice of the mares. “We will not be harmed by this. We should have been clearer. We offer you copies of our memories of you and the means to summon them again at your choosing. But this is mind magic, and we cannot force this upon you without walking the dark path. So, we ask again, will you accept our gift, freely?”

“As long as you won’t be harmed by it, I accept,” said Twilight. “What do you need me to do?”

“Simply open your mind to us,” said Rarity/Valiente. The two had almost merged now, or perhaps one was in front of the other. Twilight couldn’t tell, the light from the doorway and her friends was so bright. But she did as she was asked and lowered her mental defences to her friends, trusting them completely.

As Twilight did that, the light pouring off the alabaster mares and from the doorway suddenly became like a living thing, focusing on Twilight’s head and upper body. Images, words, thoughts all poured into Twilight’s mind in a sudden stream. Flashes of memory flowed past her and she could feel some of the gaps in her mind closing, healing, as there was finally structure to fill those terrible holes. Faster and faster poured the stream until Twilight could no longer comprehend what was happening and consciousness failed her as her mind overloaded.

Twilight woke lying on the floor of the boutique, its hard wooden surface pressing against her cheek. She decided to simply look around initially, and the first sight she saw was the quiet form of Rarity lying beside her. Rarity was a sweat matted mess, looking like she had just finished the Running of the Leaves twice in a row. Despite that, her eyes were open and looking at Twilight.

"Rarity?” asked Twilight. “Are you okay?”

“Just exhausted,” Rarity replied. “Valiente really doesn’t understand the meaning of the word ‘limitations’. Every time she and I do this sort of thing she takes us past what should be our maximum ability. I can’t complain though, we get done what has to be done. And helping you had to be done. I'm glad to see that it worked.”

“What worked?” asked Twilight, still laying on her side.

“Think about...oh, Tirek,” said Rarity as she rolled from her side up to her chest.

“Who?” asked Twilight as she rolled to match and face her friend. “Oh...Oh!” Memory flowed through her mind. A battle, a giant centaur ranged against her – and her wielding the power of four alicorns. Twilight watched the battle, as seen from Rarity’s point of view, raging back and forth across the landscape. No wonder she had erased this memory, the power she was wielding, the desperation of the battle, Twilight could feel the gap in her mind as the memory flowed across it. It wasn’t a perfect patch or even a strong one, but it was there.

Rarity smiled and reached out to tap the steel collar around her friend’s throat with a hoof. “All the memories Valiente and I gave you are stored here. Just touch your hoof to the collar and slide it along my section. The memories will play back out in your mind again.”

“H-How?” stammered Twilight. “The collar was in the mindscape, it wasn’t real.”

“Twilight,” said Rarity. “You should know better than anyone that if you pour enough power into a magical construct it can be made real. Why do you think I can’t even stand up right now?”

“Oh,” said Twilight. “I’m so sorry! Just lay still and I’ll get you into bed.” With that Twilight got up to her hooves and levitated her friend off of the ground.

“You don’t have to do this Twilight,” said Rarity. “I’m sure my strength will recover in a few minutes."

“Hush,” said Twilight as she carried Rarity into her bedroom. “Let me do this for you. Besides, after what you and Valiente did your body needs a rest.” Pulling aside the covers Twilight gently laid her friend onto the soft bedding.

“Perhaps you are right,” said Rarity tiredly, as Twilight pulled the covers back up over Rarity’s body. “Tomorrow we can go visit our other friends, and ask them to add their memories to the collar.”

“Of course,” said Twilight after a moment’s thought. “Now that you’ve laid down the basic matrix, adding to it shouldn’t be a problem at all.”

“Precisely,” said Rarity, who was visibly trying to keep from yawning. “I’m sorry, but I’m afraid you were right and I really do need to rest. I can barely keep my eyes open. Be a dear, and lock up behind yourself when you leave.”

“Of course,” said Twilight, as she laid a peck on Rarity’s cheek. “Have a good sleep, and thank you again. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Rarity just mumbled something, already mostly asleep, as her exhausted body clubbed her mind into submission. Twilight made sure the curtains were drawn to keep the sunlight out and crept out of the bedroom as quietly as she could. Easing the door shut, she made her way down the stairs to the main level of the boutique. She was ghosting her way through the boutique when a gleam of light from a mirror caught her eye.

Approaching the mirror Twilight saw that the gleam had come from the steel collar around her throat. Looking closely, Twilight could see the two bands of scrollwork from before, but now there was a third line of engraving, with room for others. Squinting at the mirror Twilight could just make out tiny, intricate etchings of various scenes in the engravings on the new line.

“I see,” Twilight said softly to herself. “The etchings are just like the windows in Canterlot, only these are showing scenes from memories.” Twilight turned the collar around her neck, looking at the various scenes. As she did, she noticed something rather disturbing. The collar had neither hinge, nor lock. It was a single seamless piece of steel that had been formed around her neck. There was no way to remove it, short of cutting it off. But to be honest, considering what it was doing for her, Twilight wasn’t sure she wanted to take it off at all, if ever.

Smiling, Twilight stepped away from the mirror and, after flipping the shop’s sign to “Closed”, locked the main door of the Carousel Boutique behind her. She had barely taken five steps for home when Spike came running up toward her.

“Easy Spike,” said Twilight, to her number-one assistant. “Rarity and Valiente wore themselves out helping me, they’re taking a nap right now.”

“Good to know, Twilight,” said Spike, breathing deeply after his run. “But I was actually looking for you.”

“What’s up, Spike?” asked Twilight.

“I just got an urgent message from the Princesses,” said Spike. “They want you in Canterlot right away. Chrysalis is coming for Celestia.”

Author's Note

So, welcome to my sequel to The Bridle Path. At the end of that story, my first ever, I had intentionally left several questions unanswered. This multi-chapter story will try to answer some of those questions. It's main focus will center around Luna's ownership of the three mares in this chapter.

As with the original story, comments and suggestions are highly welcome. I can't promise to answer any questions, but I will try if I can.