Families

Chapters

Home Sweet Home
Reflections
Morning
School Day Troubles
The Gift
Flying Lesson
Another Try
Sports and Politics
Trouble Brewing
Talking it Out
An Interlude of Sorts
Poor Communication Kills
Panic
Mama Ursa
Lullaby
Flying Lesson Redux
The Runaway
More Trouble Brewing
Sports and Politics II
Calm Before the Storm
Regrets
It Gets Worse
The Reason
The Struggle, Part 1
The Struggle, Pt. 2
Consequences
Life Goes On
Epilogue

Home Sweet Home

Ponyville was a pretty unremarkable town. Or at least, it had been before Twilight decided to call it home. Still, even with her living there it was still not much. Having the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony living there had oddly enough not made it much of a military target.

Twilight was grateful for that at the moment. Such an out of the way town meant that news of the Changeling Invasion hadn’t reached it yet, meaning they didn’t have to put up with a large crowd of ponies, eager to learn the details.

Still, Big Macintosh was there, ready to help his sister haul home the leftovers from the wedding. Applejack was all too eager to load his cart with uneaten treats and a chest full of bits.

“So, we’ll meet up at the library tomorrow for breakfast?” Twilight asked.

“First thing,” Rarity assured. “I think that lovely little restaurant near the spa would be nice.”

“Oh, bleah,” Rainbow Dash gave a fake vomiting noise. “Can’t we go to something not so...frilly? I’ve had enough of that this weekend.”

“Ah, ah, now, this is an apology meal to Twilight. It needs to be something nicer than sandwiches and hay fries.”

“You really don’t have to...” Twilight began, but Rarity put a hoof over her mouth.

“I know we don’t have to, but we want to. I insist.”

“Apology for what?” Big Macintosh couldn’t help but ask.

“I’ll tell ya when we get home,” Applejack assured, looking slightly embarrassed at the whole thing.

“Well, I guess,” Rainbow Dash grumbled. “But next time we go out to eat, we’re going to the outdoor café.”

“We’ll see,” Rarity said, in a tone that hinted that they wouldn’t see.

“Um, I better get home and make sure Derpy has taken good care of Angel and the others,” Fluttershy said. She had opened the birdcages she had brought, allowing her singing birds to stretch their wings for the first time in hours. “But, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, I better head home to. Mr. and Mrs. Cake will want a break from Pound and Pumpkin,” Pinkie said, bouncing off. “See you guys tomorrow!”

“We’ll meet up in the morning,” Twilight assured. The others muttered their goodbyes as they took off in separate directions.

Or at least, most of them did. Rarity lingered behind a bit. Her younger sister stayed by her side, getting impatient. “Rarity, why are we hanging around here? Shouldn’t we be getting back to your house?”

“Have patience, Sweetie, that’s a quality of a lady,” the elder unicorn lectured. “I still need to attend to something.” After the others had walked far enough that she was sure that they wouldn’t overhear, she trotted over to Applejack, who was just finishing loading Big Macintosh’s cart. “Applejack, might I have a word with you back at the Boutique?”

“Well gee, Rare, can it wait ‘till breakfast tomorrow? I’m awfully tired, see...”

“I’d really prefer we talk before we meet with Twilight tomorrow. And this needs to be between the two of us for now.”

Applejack blinked, but nodded. “Sure, I guess. Big Mac, you gonna be fine taking all this stuff an’ Applebloom home?”

“Eeyup,” the burly stallion nodded, beginning to pull the wagon back to Sweet Apple Acres, his little sister perched on his back.

“So what’s this about?” the cowpony asked.

“Let’s get to the Boutique first.”

Scootaloo walked through Ponyville alone, ruing not having her scooter with her. The lantern streetlights provided the only light outside of Luna’s moon. She made a steady pace for home, not dragging her hooves but not in any particular hurry.

“Hey Scoots,” Rainbow Dash called, causing the filly to halt in her tracks, turning to face her idol. “What are you doing walking all by yourself?”

“Going home?” Scootaloo half asked, half answered.

“I can see that,” Rainbow Dash said flatly. “But why are you walking home alone? Why didn’t your parents come pick you up?”

The younger pegasus shrugged. “They don’t have to. I would be walking home either way, and it’s not like there’s anything dangerous in Ponyville...usually.”

Rainbow Dash couldn’t help but smirk. Ponyville had been known as a quiet town for years before Twilight had moved in. Since then it had experienced visits from Nightmare Moon and Discord, and Spike’s rampage added to the list. Still, it was mostly safe. Dangerous creatures mostly stayed confined in the Everfree Forest, the last creature to leave had been the Ursa Minor that Snips and Snails had agitated. Even diamond dogs didn’t dare attack Ponyville, as to not incur the wrath of the Royal Guard.

“Well, I guess,” the elder mare admitted. “Still, it isn’t fair you have to walk home alone. Want a lift?”

Scootaloo instantly brightened up. “Really? You’re going to take me flying?”

“Only if you hop on,” she smirked, motioning to her back. The filly needed no second bidding. In a flash she was up on her idol’s back with her forelegs around her neck.

“Hold on tight,” Rainbow Dash instructed, though it was largely unnecessary. With a few flaps of her wings the two were in the air, just over the rooftops. “Where do you live?” she asked. Scootaloo pointed in some vague direction, and the elder pegasus followed.

“You enjoy the wedding? Did you like being a flower filly?”

“You bet I did!” the foal said happily. Then she got defensive. “I mean, I didn’t like being frilly or nothing, but it was cool to be able to lead a princess down the aisle. I still hate...”

“Easy there,” Rainbow Dash laughed. “I’m not much for frilly things either, but I liked being a bridesmaid. Doesn’t make me any less tough.”

“Yeah, well...Cadence was nice. The real one I mean, not that big bug. I didn’t like her.”

“Can’t say I blame you, kid. She did kind of rub me the wrong way, even before she revealed herself.”

Scootaloo looked at her idol incredulously. “You told me to just take it because she was under a lot of stress.”

The cyan pony sighed. “Kid, I made a mistake. I forgot there’s a difference between something that’s understandable and something that’s acceptable.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well,” Rainbow Dash began, rubbing her head in thought. “Rarity once had us all help her get ready for a big fashion photographer visiting her. She was being short with all of us, but even while she was doing it, she knew how rude it was and apologized. The fake Cadence acted like she had every right to treat us that way. That’s what made it really wrong. Do you understand?”

Scootaloo nodded. “I think so. It’s okay to make mistakes as long as you admit to them?”

“Kind of,” the elder mare said. “Everypony makes mistakes. You’re only bad if you don’t admit to the mistake. Am I getting closer?”

“Yeah. It’s a little to the left,” the filly answered, allowing her mentor to adjust her flight path. “Well, is Twilight okay? I mean, you seemed worried about it last night?”

“You don’t have to worry, pipsqueak. We’re all friends again, plus Soarin’s going to come into town in a few weeks to take me out on a date.’

“He’s coming here?” she said excitedly, stars in her eyes. “You think I could get an autograph?”

“You could have gotten one last night if you hadn’t run off like that,” Rainbow Dash joked. Instantly she regretted saying this, because the foal perched on her back got quiet.

“I’m sure he’ll still give you one,” she reassured. “Anyway, can you see your house from here?”

Scootaloo silently pointed to a two-story house. Rainbow Dash landed and allowed her number one fan to climb down off her back.

“Look, squirt, I’ve got tomorrow off. How about we hang out a bit? That offer for flying lessons is still on the table.”

The orange filly stiffened. “Um…you don’t have to…”

“I know I don’t. I just want to help a super cool filly get even cooler. Besides, all my friends have to work tomorrow, I’ll have nothing to do.”

Scootaloo kicked the dirt. “Um…”

Rainbow Dash sighed. She knew the younger pegasus was looking for an excuse to say no. “Look, think about it will you?”

“Sure thing, Rainbow Dash,” Scootaloo nodded enthusiastically, glad the questioning was over.

“Well, I’ll be seeing you, pipsqueak,” the older mare said. With that she took off, leaving her number one fan alone.

Spike entered the library first, obediently pulling the wagon of Twilight’s things behind him. Twilight followed, glancing around the room as she entered.

“Well, it looks like Owlowiscious kept this place clean while we were gone,” she noted with approval. At that point, said owl swooped down from upstairs to greet his master. On his back was Pee Wee, who hopped down into Spike’s claws when the older bird flew over him.

“Hey there, kiddo,” the baby dragon nuzzled the phoenix affectionately. “Looks like he fed you alright too.” He got a happy chirp in response.

“So, how about you unpack while I make us some tea?” Twilight suggested.

Spike shifted uncomfortably. “Um, no thanks,” he muttered, placing his charge on his shoulder. “I mean, I’m not thirsty,” he said as he began unloading the wagon.

“Well, are you hungry? Applejack gave us some of the leftovers from the wedding, and I think there are still some of your gemstones in the pantry...”

“I ate on the train,” he said, more curtly than he intended.

Twilight sighed. “Fine,” she said, going into the kitchen to heat up some tea.

Spike quickly unpacked. He placed Twilight’s Best Mare dress in her dresser, and the books she had brought on her nightstand. He brought the leftover food into the kitchen, avoiding looking at Twilight the whole time. The unicorn only watched him with a sigh.

With everything packed away, Spike headed to the bedroom and grabbed Pee Wee’s nest, placing it in his basket. Carefully, making sure Twilight was distracted making herself a meal, he carried his bed into one of the other rooms in the library. After setting it up, he placed the nest on the windowsill. Then he quietly went back into the bedroom.

While only getting books every year had grown a bit stale, Spike had cherished each and every one of Twilight’s birthday gifts. He had read each tome cover to cover more than once, and he still enjoyed thumbing through them occasionally. Opening a chest at the end of Twilight’s bed, he pulled out his favorite in the collection, an anthology of heroic tales from ancient, pre-Celestia times.

Holding the volume under his arm, he began trotting back to the room he had left his basket in. He had almost reached it when Twilight called his name again. “Spike?”

He froze, turning around to greet his caretaker. “Yeah?”

“Spike… is everything alright?”

The baby dragon froze in horror, his eyes widening. “Of course, why wouldn’t they be?” he asked, a little too fast.

Twilight shook her head. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed,” she said. “You’ve been avoiding me since the wedding. Now what’s wrong?”

“It’s… nothing,” he said weakly.

“Spike, remember when Owlowiscious moved in? I told you then, you never have to lie to me. Now what is it?”

The young dragon shifted a bit. “Really, it’s nothing. I just…”

“Is it about not believing me about Cadence?”

Spike’s blood ran cold, or it would have, if he weren’t already cold-blooded. She knew.

Twilight gave a smile. “If that’s all it is, I told the others I could understand why they didn’t believe me. I’m not mad at you, okay?”

Now his eyes were watering. He turned away from her. “I know. I-I’m sorry I didn’t believe you.” He tried to keep his voice steady. He failed.

Twilight began wrapping his forelegs around him, but he quickly stepped away, to her surprise.

“Spike, what’s wrong?” she asked again.

“N-nothing,” he answered.

“Please, what is it?”

“Nothing!” Spike yelled, running into the safety of the room and shutting the door. Before Twilight could reach it, it was locked.

“Spike, please come out and talk to me,” she pleaded. She got no answer.

Mentally, she went through her options. It would be no challenge for her to unlock the door, but would it be wise? Should she continue to try and talk to him through the door? Should she wait for him to calm down?

She gave a resigned sigh. “When you’re ready to talk, I’ll listen.” Then she trotted away, leaving him alone.

She sighed as she reached the kitchen. Despite Spike’s insistence that he wasn’t hungry, she had set out a few gemstones for him to munch on while they talked. Shaking her head at the fact that they would go uneaten, she took her dandelion sandwich and went into the main reading area. She still had a promise to keep to Rainbow Dash.

Pinkie slowly walked through the door to Sugarcube Corner. Since the twins had been born, she had learned to enter quietly at after-hours, lest she stay up all night trying to get them back to sleep.

She carried her bags up the stairs, and saw that the quiet entrance was for nothing. Cup and Carrot Cake were in the nursery, playing with the still very much awake Pound and Pumpkin.

“I’m home!” she said happily, bouncing into the room. Almost immediately the infants gave squeals of delight as they reached over to their surrogate sister.

“Pinkie, you’re back,” Mrs. Cake said delightfully as Pinkie took the twins in her forelegs and began cradling them. “How was Canterlot?”

To their surprise, Pinkie didn’t go bouncing around, talking about how pretty the wedding was, or how exciting the reception was. She just gave a small smile. “It was nice,” she said.

The two bakers gave each other a glance before turning back to their foster daughter. “Pinkie, is everything alright?”

She stopped smiling. Her eyes drifted to the side before looking back at them. “I have something I need to tell you…”

Rarity calmly poured some of her leftover cider into two mugs. She normally served tea to guests, but she knew Applejack wasn’t the tea drinking sort, and she was already inconveniencing her enough asking her to come on such short notice.

“Alright, Rare, what’s this about? You tryin’ ta get me to take some of those lessons in money management again?”

“No, though I really wish you would…never mind, I want to talk to you about Twilight.”

The cowpony tilted her head. “What d’ya mean?”

Sitting at the table at last, she sighed. “It’s her tendency to… ‘flip out’, as it were. I wanted to talk to you about something we can do about it.”

Applejack arched an eyebrow. “Uh, Rare? You’re thinkin’ Twilight needs to stop freakin’ out?”

“Yes, yes, I know,” Rarity huffed. “I’m aware of the hypocrisy. But it’s different for Twilight. She’s the one in charge. We’ve never said it out loud, but you know as well as I do that whenever Princess Celestia sends us to do anything, we follow her. She needs to learn to keep a level head. Besides, you saw Twilight breaking up about it on the train. We cannot just let that go by unacknowledged.”

“I guess you’re right. But why couldn’t this wait ‘till tomorrow at breakfast?”

“Well, first off I wanted to keep this between just us for right now. Rainbow Dash has her hooves full worrying about Scootaloo, and you just know she’s going to ask Fluttershy and Pinkie to help her. Those three would have enough on their plate without this.”

“I guess that makes sense. Still don’t get why you couldn’t have talked to me tomorrow.”

Rarity sighed. “Because we can’t put this off any longer. We’ve known about Twilight’s problem for a while, and we’ve always treated it as a harmless little quirk. We simply cannot do that anymore. It nearly cost us dearly yesterday. I want us to come up with something now, and to begin on it tomorrow if possible.”

Applejack sighed. “I see your point. I guess we have kinda been passin’ that off as harmless. But do we need to do anything special? We could just put our hooves down the next time she starts frettin’ over somethin’.”

“That was our method at the wedding, and look what happened. We need to find some way to help her calm herself down whenever she gets upset.”

“I reckon you’re right. But what can we do about it?”

Rarity shook her head. “I’m not sure. That’s why we’re here. I was hoping you and I could brainstorm something up. Anything we can do to help her stay calm in the future would do wonders.”

Applejack sighed. “I guess that makes sense. I figure talking to Twilight about this tomorrow would be the best thing.”

“I would,” the unicorn agreed. “I would have her here tonight if she didn’t have Spike to worry about. Hopefully by tomorrow that will be cleared up. Until then, I’m simply hoping to find something we can start on.”

Reflections

”Please, I didn’t do it!” Twilight sobbed as she was led onto the platform.

Celestia stood in front of her, glaring at her former student with a hatred she previously reserved only for Discord. “Twilight Sparkle, you have been found guilty of a most unforgivable crime. Congratulations are in order, I suppose. I never thought I’d be reestablishing this penalty.”

“Your highness, please...” she began, only to be roughly pushed down onto the wooden block.

She looked out into the crowd for support. She found none. Applejack and Rainbow Dash threw apples at her. Rarity glared at her with an intense hatred. Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie just looked away sadly.

She turned back to the Princess to try and plead her case again, only to find her brother standing there.

“I’m ashamed we’re blood,” he said coldly. Then his horn glowed, and a large silver axe raised above him...

Twilight bolted upright with an audible gasp. She took a few deep breaths, sweat running down her face and neck. She looked down at the book of Equestrian law she had been reading when she had dozed off.

She sighed. Of course, the nightmares had started up again. Why wouldn’t they? After Discord’s defeat she had suffered nightmares for weeks afterward, all of her friends turning their backs on her. Now that it had happened again, without the cruel draconequus’ help no less, of course they’d return.

She looked at the clock. Only fifteen minutes had passed since she had begun her research. The weekend’s events must have tired her even more than she thought. She lifted herself up, levitating her tea cup with her. It looked like no sleep for her tonight.

As she reheated her tea, she took another look at the door Spike had barricaded himself behind. Wishing the little dragon would come out, her mind began drifting to the past.

”Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!”

Celestia could only chuckle at the overexcited little filly jumping around in circles around her. With a light glow of her horn, she stopped the unicorn in her tracks.

“Easy there,” she said gently, setting Twilight on the floor. “I’m glad you’re excited, but don’t get ahead of yourself. I’d like to arrange for you to move into the castle first thing tomorrow morning, after you have the evening to celebrate with your family. I’ll have the servants prepare you a room.”

“I-in the castle?” Twilight asked, her eyes going wide for what felt like the thousandth time that day. “I’m not staying in the dormitory?”

Celestia shook her head. “You’ll be receiving private lessons from me. I want to keep you close so I can monitor your progress more effectively. You will still attend regular classes with the other foals, but...”

She trailed off, tilting her head at an interested angle. Twilight arched her eyebrow, but then gave a yell of surprise.

The dragon had just crawled across the floor to her side and grabbed at her side. Showing great strength for a newborn, he lifted himself onto the startled unicorn’s back. After which he curled himself into a ball and fell asleep.

“Huh, what?” Twilight said, a little alarmed and trying to stay upright. She was more than strong enough to carry the baby, though it was still a noticeable load.

“It seems he’s taken quite a liking to you, Twilight,” Celestia chuckled.

“Indeed,” one of the exam proctors noted, trotting over to them. “This is most fascinating. This might confirm some of our theories about dragons.”

“W-what do you mean?” the nervous filly asked.

“Well, my dear, if what we believe about dragons is true, the newborns often find safety with their mothers. Since your magic hatched his egg, you have imprinted yourself onto him as his mother.”

“And that might be a problem,” another proctor noted. “That dragon’s not going to want to be separated from her.”

“Actually, that would make things simpler,” the Princess noted, turning back to her charge. “Twilight, I’m placing you in charge of this child. It will be your responsibility to take care of him.”

“Wha? But… your highness, I don’t know how to take care of a baby.”

“You needn’t worry, my little pony. You’ll have servants helping you. The purpose of this is to teach you responsibility. A pony with your abilities must learn to use them for others. This will be a good start.”

Twilight was silent. She turned to the creature curled onto her back, and couldn’t help but smile. He looked so peaceful, so innocent.

“I think I’ll call him Spike.”

Twilight couldn’t help but chuckle at that memory as she poured her tea. Indeed, that dragon had hated being separated from her. If he woke up while she was in class, he would deafen at least three servants with his crying before she returned. When he was old enough to reason, he declared himself her assistant to spend time with her. To her relief, by that point he also understood that Twilight had to leave him alone sometimes.

Going back over to her books, she tried to push Spike out of her mind. She couldn’t do anything about him tonight, though she badly wanted to. She had to think logically here. She couldn’t help her dragon, but she could help Rainbow Dash.

“I don’t know ‘bout this, Rare,” Applejack sighed.

“Well, we haven’t come up with anything better. And besides, you love the spa.”

“I love gettin’ my back massaged, really gets the tension out, but I gotta agree with Dash on just ‘bout everythin’ else. Ain’t no point in me gettin’ a hoofacure if I’m just gonna chip it in the fields the next day.”

“I know. That’s why I don’t try to talk you into coming to the spa more often. But I think we can agree that helping a friend is worth a break in routine,” Rarity said, a bit bluntly.

“Yeah, you’re right. Still, you think Aloe and Lotus‘ll have any good ideas?”

“Darling, please, those twins’ special talent is helping ponies relax. We’ve been sitting here for nearly an hour and haven’t come up with anything, I’d say consulting those two is our best bet.”

“So, tomorrow after breakfast we talk to Twilight about all this, right? I don’t wanna be goin’ behind somepony’s back like we did with the Mare Do Well.”

“Relax, we’re going to be very upfront here. For now, you better go back home and get some rest. We have a big day tomorrow.

”And so, with the great evil slain, the brave knight won the heart of the beautiful princess. The two shared a sweet kiss as the sun set on the horizon.”

Spike gave an “Ick,” which the unicorn couldn’t help but laugh at. “Whya gotta keep all the mushy stuff in?”

“Just wait. One day you’ll fall in love, and all you’ll want to do is this ‘mushy stuff’.”

“No way,” the infant dragon shook his head. “But I’mma gonna be a knight!”

“Oh are you now?” Twilight said playfully, rubbing a hoof on his head. “Then who’s going to be my assistant then?”

“I will! I can do both!”

“Oh really? You’re just the greatest dragon ever then, aren’t ya?”

“Yep… I think.”

Twilight blinked. “What do you mean?”

“There’re no other dragons in Canterlot. Why?”

Twilight froze. “Well… dragons are very special creatures. We’re very lucky to have you here, Spike. You’re like a little miracle!”

“Cool!”

“Yes, it is,” Twilight said, trying to sound playful. She closed the book. “And now, I think it’s time for the little miracle to get in bed.” She used her magic to pull up his blankets. “Are you comfy?”

“Yes,” Spike said resigned. He had long since given up on contesting his bedtime.

“Good,” she said, leaning down and kissing him on the forehead. “Good night, Spike.”

The unicorn turned and began walking toward the door when Spike spoke up. “Twilight?”

She stopped. “Yes?”

“Why’re there pages torn from the book?”

“...They just got torn out. That happens with books sometimes. You don’t worry about it, okay?”

“Okay. G’night, Twilight.” The dragon murmured, curling up and falling asleep without any further questions.

Spike sighed at the memory. Twilight had read him the very book he now clutched in his claws. He was looking at the remains of what once were pages, little stumps of paper still left.

Of course they had been torn out. He had found another copy of the book and knew why. It had been a tale of a great and mighty knight slaying a horde of evil dragons. It was something Twilight had denied him, to hide how different he was from ponies.

He later realized that had been a day Twilight had been dreading. The day he realized he was a novelty in Canterlot, in all of Equestrian society really. A dragon who acted like a pony? How ridiculous.

His caretaker had, for better or worse, kept the truth from him for as long as she was able. Being raised in the palace by Twilight, Celestia, and servants paid enough to grit their teeth and feign politeness did a lot to help this. Still, inevitably he learned the truth. While life became much more difficult after that, he never once was angry at those that kept the truth for him.

He sighed, closing the book. Time spent with Twilight had felt the same as ever, even after the unpleasant revelation. She was a sanctuary; she was the only pony who was consistently there for him. Celestia had been kind, of course, and Cadence, ever the babysitter, spent some time with him, but they constantly had their duties to see to. Shining Armor was friendly as well, though by the time he was able to reason he was mostly busy with basic training.

No, it had been Twilight there for him every night. Sometimes difficult to get along with, he had to admit, but he loved her dearly.

Then why couldn’t I have been there for her? he asked himself silently.

Pinkie sat between her foster parents with a somber face. Mrs. Cake nuzzled her side. “I understand that was hard to tell us, Pinkie,” she said softly. “I… I always wondered why you never talked about your family.”

“Well… Princess Luna told me I shouldn’t be keeping something like this from you…”

“And you shouldn’t,” Mr. Cake assured. He paused, wondering what to say next. “Are you feeling better?”

“Yeah,” she said simply, looking at the floor. “I still have to tell my friends.”

“If you think that’s for the best,” Mr. Cake agreed.

“Pinkie, if you don’t mind me asking, what brought this up now?” Mrs. Cake asked.

Sighing, she began to tell them what had happened that weekend.

Scootaloo sat at her workbench, tinkering with her scooter. It scarcely needed any work done, but she found fiddling with her tools to be rather relaxing.

As she spun the front wheel, the door to her room opened. “Scoots?”

The tiny filly froze. It was the voice of her father, and he did not sound happy.

Speedy Delivery was a fairly big pegasus, not as bulky as the Big Macintosh, but he did have some noticeable build on him. Looking at him, it was easy to see where Scootaloo had gotten her fur color from, as his coat matched hers, though his mane was jet black. His cutie mark, an envelope with wings, stood prominent on his flank.

“Yes, dad?” she asked, somewhat nervously.

“I heard Rainbow Dash brought you home,” he said, simply and sternly.

Scootaloo thought about lying, but knew better. “Um, yeah, see...”

“I thought I made it clear you weren’t supposed to bring her around here,” he said angrily, but he never raised his voice.

“I-I’m sorry,” she said quickly. “She offered me a ride home. I couldn’t think of any way to say no.”

Hearing this, Speedy Delivery’s expression softened. “I see.” He thought for a moment, then went over and hugged his daughter. “You know I don’t like you hanging around that mare.”

“I know, but she’s so cool! I want to learn to fly like her one day, I know I can do it…”

“Have you been trying to fly again?” he asked in an accusatory tone.

The young filly quickly shook her head. “No, I remember what you said.”

“That’s good. Flying’s dangerous, especially for a clumsy little filly like you,” he said playfully, poking her on the nose. “You’re not ready for it.”

“But most pegasi are flying by my age!” Scootaloo pleaded.

“Well, most pegasi are better at it than you,” Speedy Delivery said in a casual tone. “You’re just going to have to grow up a little. I’ll teach you, I promise.”

“You always say that,” she sighed.

Her father shook his head. “That’s because my project is taking longer than expected. Come on, kiddo, you know how important it is. I just don’t have the time for you right now.”

“I know,” she said sadly. “I understand.”

“You should. You know what it will mean for us if I succeed, right? No more mail deliveries for me, and a new life for us. You know that, right?”

“Yes,” she nodded, almost robotically.

“That’s my girl,” he said, kissing her forehead. “Now, what do you say?”

Scootaloo smiled, nuzzling into her father’s chest. “I love you, daddy.”

“I know you do, kid.”

Morning

Applejack and Rarity were the first to the library the next morning. Applejack entered without knocking with a loud, “Mornin’, Twi!”

“Good morning,” Rarity said, a bit more politely.

Twilight pulled herself out of the book she was reading and looked at her two friends. “Morning, girls.”

Both of them stopped dead. Twilight had bags under her eyes, and her mane was wild and unkempt. Her shoulders slumped, giving away her exhaustion.

“Twi… have you been up all night?” Applejack asked, concerned.

“No,” she answered through a yawn. “I just… didn’t sleep well. I only got maybe an hour of it.”

“Oh, you poor dear,” Rarity fretted. She trotted over to her and felt her forehead. “Well, you don’t seem to be ill. Is this about Spike?”

“That’s part of it,” the purple unicorn admitted. “I tried to talk to him last night, but he just locked himself in one of the rooms and wouldn’t come out.”

“Well, I’m sure he’ll come around,” Applejack assured as Rarity excused herself for a moment.

“I hope so,” Twilight sighed. “I’ve never seen him like this before. He just seems so...I don’t know, angry.”

“Angry? At who?”

“Himself,” she sighed. At that point Rarity returned with a manebrush. She wordlessly began using it to undo the knots in Twilight’s mane.

“I suppose we were all feeling that way after we found out you were right,” Rarity sighed. “And I’d imagine Spike is making a greater deal of this than he should. Children have no perspective in matters such as this.”

“Rare’s right. I see Apple Bloom flippin’ out over gettin’ her cutie mark all the time. Spike’s probably just feelin’ like we feel, an’ he’s makin’ too big a deal of it.”

“I figured that was it,” Twilight nodded. “I decided to just give him some space for right now. He’ll talk to me eventually, right?”

“Well, that might work for right now,” Applejack noted slowly, “but I think you better press him more on it soon.”

“I will,” Twilight assured. “So, let’s get that breakfast, then I can get back to work.”

“Actually, dearie, we were hoping you would accompany us to the spa afterward,” Rarity explained, finishing with Twilight’s hair.

That caught Twilight off-guard. “What?” She looked at Applejack incredulously. “You set up a spa date?”

“Ain’t for me, sugar. It’s for you.”

“You were so distressed yesterday, we figured it’s for the best that we find some way to help you control your little… episodes,” Rarity explained.

“So we figured, Aloe and Lotus know how to keep ponies calm. We were figurin’ they’d have some idea as to how you can calm yourself down the next time you get worked up.”

“And at any rate, after the weekend you’ve had, I think a little pampering would be in order,” Rarity noted. “I have more than enough bits for the three of us.”

“Rarity, I told you not to try and make this up to me…” Twilight began to protest, but Rarity put a hoof to her mouth.

“And we’re not. We are helping you with a problem, like any friend would.”

“Yeah. Don’t you fret none, Twi, this is to help you,” Applejack added.

“Well… if you think it’s for the best… are the others coming?” Twilight asked.

“We hadn’t planned on it,” the cowpony explained. “This is to help you. We don’t want to pull Rainbow Dash into another problem while she’s fussin’ over Scootaloo, and we figured she’s pull Pinkie and ‘Shy in with her before too long. We’ll let them worry about that, and we’ll worry about you.”

“That makes sense,“ the lavender unicorn nodded. Appealing to her logical side always worked. “The others should be here soon. I’m going to wake Spike.”

The others nodded as she trotted to the door that her dragon had barricaded himself behind the night before. “Spike,” she called softly as she knocked the door with her hoof. “We’re going to breakfast. You want to come?”

“No, thanks,” his voice said weakly.

Twilight groaned. “Spike, please stop moping like this. I’m not mad at you for anything at the wedding. You don’t have to avoid me.”

When she got no answer, she lowered her head in disappointment. “Fine. I’ll see you when I get back. I want you to think about what I said.”

She turned back to her two friends, who had looks of concern on their faces.

Scootaloo awoke early that morning, eager to start the day. Almost in a flash she collected up her saddlebags and headed for the door.

“Scootiekins,” a cheery voice called.

Scootaloo stopped and sighed. “Yes, Mom?”

“Come here and see your mommy!”

Sighing, the filly pushed herself away from the door and toward her living room, where her mother, Quick Delivery lay sprawled across the couch.

Scootaloo had inherited her mane from her mother, but the elder mare’s coat was pure white, something she griped about often as being a chore to keep clean. Her eyes matched her daughter’s as well, though at the moment they looked a bit hazed over. Her cutie mark, a blue mailbox, was currently out of view due to her lying on her side.

“Scootie! Come give Mommy a hug!” she said, setting down the smoothie she had been drinking and opening up her forelegs. Sighing, the filly walked over and hugged her mother. “Who’s my little foal?”

“I am,” Scootaloo answered, without much enthusiasm.

“Of course, you’re not much of a filly anymore, are ya? You’re growing into a mare!”

“Yes, Mommy,” the younger pegasus answered, almost robotically.

“Of course, you’re still not one yet. Honestly, haven’t you gotten that cutie mark yet?”

Scootaloo flinched. “No. I missed all that time crusading from being a flowerfilly.”

“I suppose that’s true. It was quite an opportunity. And you got me these chocolates all the way from the palace,” she motioned to an empty box on the table. “They were wonderful, darling!”

“I thought you’d like them, Mom.”

“Scoots, you know what you’re supposed to call me,” she said sternly.

She sighed again. “I thought you’d like them, Mommy.”

“Very good,” she praised, taking a sip of her smoothie. “Truth be told, it was a harrowing weekend for me too. With Derpy taking time off to care for those animals, I got to travel out of town as well! It was quite exciting to see the big city, but unlike you I actually had to work. You don’t know what that’s like, do you?”

“No, Mommy.”

“Of course, you’re still just a silly filly. Now go out and play! Your father and I have work to do around here, and you’ll get in the way if you’re underfoot.”

“Yes, Mommy.”

As soon as Shining Armor came home from school, He dashed up to his sister’s room. “Twilight? How’d it go?”

“Great!” the little filly ran and hugged her brother. “You won’t believe it! I passed my exam, and Princess Celestia made me her personal student!”

“Really!” Shining’s eyes lit up. “Awesome! See, I told you the Princess would love you!”

“Yeah! And I got my cutie mark!” she said, showing off her newly decorated flank.

“You got your cutie mark!” he repeated happily. “And… and I missed it!” he growled angrily.

“Shiny?” Twilight asked worriedly.

“I’m just… mad at Mom and Dad. Don’t worry, kiddo, I’m not mad at you. But I’m really proud of you. I always knew you were going to make it big.”

At that point, a happy cooing came from the end of Twilight’s bed. Shining Armor’s ears perked up, searching around for the source of the foreign noise.

“Oh, and this is the best part!” she squealed happily, running over to the basket at the foot of her bed. “For my exam, I hatched a dragon egg… and they let me keep it! This is Spike!”

The teenaged colt gaped at the creature looking up at him happily. “Whoa… a live dragon.” He leaned in close, causing the creature to tilt his head in curiosity. “Hey little guy… who’s a wittle cutie!”

“Not the mama!” Spike suddenly said, hitting Shining Armor with a frying pan.

“Pinkie!”

“What?” the earth pony asked innocently.

“Honestly, could you please let Twilight finish her story?” Rarity scolded as she cut another bite of her pancakes.

“Fine,” Pinkie huffed. “But my way was funnier.”

“Shiny, don’t talk baby talk to him,” Twilight huffed.

“Aw, but he’s so cute!” the elder brother crooned, poking the dragon in the stomach, causing him to giggle.

“Yeah, but you’re just talking to him like he’s stupid! I’m going to talk to him using proper Equestrian, so he’ll learn to talk properly!”

“You know, you sound way too eloquent for an eight year old,” the elder sibling noted, leaning down to the dragon. “Doesn’t she?”

“Arrumph,” Spike grunted as he opened his jaw and bit down on the pony’s muzzle.

Shining Armor backed away, not from pain, as Spike had no teeth, but surprise.

Twilight giggled. “Yeah, he likes to put everything in his mouth,” she giggled. As if proving her point, Spike put the tip of his tail in his mouth and began sucking on it.

“Thanks for the warning,” he said flatly. “I’m going to go wipe this off. Then I’ll get some sodas and we can talk.”

“Can you get a bottle of milk for Spike? His bottles are on the counter, heat the milk to…”

“Twilight, I used to prepare your bottles. I know what to do,” he assured, walking out of the room.

He was gone for five minutes. When he came back.

“Who’s a cute dwagon?” Twilight cooed while Spike giggled and clapped his claws. “You’re a cute dwagon! A cutie-wootie! You’re Twiley’s favorite dwagon! Yes you are! Yes you…”

At that point she noticed her brother, wearing the smuggest expression she had ever seen.

“…And that’s how not to talk.” She said quickly, turning back to the infant.

It didn’t work. “Nice try, Twiley,” Shining Armor laughed.

“Don’t call me that,” Twilight muttered, now beat red as she took the bottle and put it in Spike’s mouth.

“Aw, but Twiley is such a cute name. In fact, Twiley is so cute that I could say Twiley all day long! Twiley, Twiley, Twiley...

“That’s how you got the nickname?” Applejack asked, amused.

Twilight blushed a little. “He never let me live that down,” she admitted. “Still, I eventually stopped caring.”

“I guess you did, Twiley,” Rainbow Dash egged on.

“You know, you should really stop and consider all the terrible things my magic can do to you,” she said flatly.

“Aww, we can’t use the nickname?” Pinkie pleaded.

“No,” Twilight answered bluntly, taking a bite of her pancakes.

“Ah, well,” Rainbow Dash shrugged. “So, Spike’s still not saying anything?”

She sighed. “Nothing. At all. I’m wondering if he’s even left that room. He had me worried all night… which means I didn’t get much work done for you. I’m sorry…”

“Hey, relax,” the pegasus assured. “It’s like I said, we don’t even know what Scootaloo’s problem is. Don’t sweat it.”

“Um… Twilight?” Fluttershy asked meekly. “You didn’t… I mean, you weren’t up all night trying to find something to help her, were you?”

Twilight groaned. Of course the others would notice the bags under her eyes. “No. I just didn’t sleep well. I’ve been worried about Spike, that’s all.”

Applejack arched an eyebrow at this, but didn’t press the matter.

“Aww, I’m sure Spike will come around eventually,” Pinkie assured. “Nopony can be that mopey for long.”

“What about Cranky?” Twilight pointed out.

Pinkie seemed to deflate at the point. “Well… Spike’s not one to mope around for long.”

“I hope so. Anyway, let’s talk about something else. Fluttershy, how are your animals doing?”

As it turns out, Spike had left the room he had locked himself in. After feeding Pee Wee, he had returned to his chest of items and pulled out a plain, white box. Carefully, he carried it out of the library and across the town, coming to Sweet Apple Acres. He weaved through the apple orchards until he found the Cutie Mark Crusader Clubhouse.

He entered, and was relieved to find that none of the fillies were there this early. Quickly and silently he set the box on one of the tables before quickly running for the door.

Despite himself, he looked back at the package one last time, wondering if he was making the right decision. In the end he sighed and left, ruing the Mother’s Day present that would never reach its intended receiver.

School Day Troubles

”Why can’t I go to kindeygarden?” Spike pleaded.

Twilight sighed. “Spike, kindergarten is meant especially for ponies. Magic Kindergarten teaches unicorns like me how to control magic, Flying Kindergarten teaches pegasi a few basic wing movements, and Strength Kindergarten teaches earth ponies the self-control they’ll need to handle themselves once their strength bucks in.”

“But you said I’d grow wings and become really strong!” Spike protested.

“Yes, you will, but you can’t very well learn to fly until you grow wings. And an earth pony’s strength comes from his connection with the earth. It’s different for dragons.”

“Then… how will I learn?”

“I have a few ideas, don’t you worry,” Twilight assured. “Now please, I need to finish this essay. Why don’t you go play?

That had been another lie, he realized. At a certain age he began to pick up on the fact that she never specified on exactly how she would help him. She was just as lost about his development as he was.

He eventually started going to public school. He ended going to public school the same day when, midway through lunch, the collection of ponies assembled began throwing what they weren’t going to eat at him, chanting and calling him a freak. He ran from the cafeteria, then from the school crying, covered in bits of hay fries and dandelions.

He ran to the castle, locked himself in his room, and sobbed. Twilight had been pulled out of her classes to see to him. She held him close for what felt like hours, promising him he didn’t have to go back. Princess Celestia offered to go to the school and lecture the students there, but the experience made him too afraid to ever set foot there again.

”What’s wrong with me?” Spike sobbed, his face in the crook of Twilight’s neck. “Why do they hate me?”

“Oh Spike,” Twilight said sadly. “There’s nothing wrong with you. You’re a sweet, intelligent, wonderful little dragon. You’re just… well…” She struggled to find the right word. “You’re unique. And ponies can be afraid or feel threatened when something is different from them.”

“That’s stupid!” Spike wailed, his sobs coming out anew.

“I agree, it’s ridiculous,” she said sympathetically. “But that’s their problem, not yours.”

“I… I saw a few donkeys and griffins there… they weren’t getting laughed at…”

“You’re even more special than they are,” she explained. “There are plenty of ponies in Equestria, and there are hundreds of donkeys and griffins, but there’s only one of you.”

“I don’t wanna be special!” he cried. “I wanna be a pony like ev’rypony else! Can’t you use your magic to change me?”

“Spike, shapeshifting magic is impossible, at least at the level you're talking about. A skilled unicorn might be able to change an apple to an orange or a rock to a hat, but nopony can permanently transform another living creature. Not even Princess Celestia can change you into a pony for more than an hour. And besides, you shouldn’t be ashamed of being a dragon, that’s who you are.”

“I… I don’t wanna be me,” he muttered weakly. “I don’t wanna be alone.”

“Spike, look at me,” she said gently as she slowly pushed him back. She brought a hoof under his chin and made him look her in the eyes. “You’re not alone. No matter what happens, or how bad things get, I’ll be here for you.”

“…You promise?”

Twilight grinned warmly. “With Celestia as my witness.”

Spike swept the floor with frustration and anger, nearly breaking the handle of his broom. She had kept that promise, though everything. Dwelling on the fact that he didn’t return her kindness only hurt him more, but he couldn’t help it.

There were times he regretted not facing up to pressure and returning to school, as Celestia suggested. As time went on, he found prejudice against him lessened. Soon, the ponies of Canterlot were used to him, if not friendly then at least civil enough to ignore him. Still, he never truly belonged. He received stares even from ponies who saw him daily. By the time he and Twilight left for Ponyville, he was practically a tourist attraction.

He was quite surprised, then, when the ponies of Ponyville were just the opposite. On his first day, none of them even seemed to acknowledge his species. As he later found out, many assumed that dragons were a common sight in the big city and acted like he was nothing unusual to avoid appearing ignorant. Only Fluttershy, being better versed in the creatures of Equestria, was vocal about his uniqueness, and her warmth and affection made him all too willing to accept it.

Even once the misconception wore off, however, the citizens still treated him with kindness. Mayor Mare was kind and cordial whenever Twilight sent him to her office. The Cakes treated him like any foal, with warm smiles and a free cookie every time he visited. The Cutie Mark Crusaders played with him on the rare occasions when they weren’t crusading and he wasn’t working. Only Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon ever seemed to treat him cruelly, and even that was a comfort, in a way. Not even they treated him any differently.

For a moment, Spike’s anger was forgotten. For all the bad things that had happened to him over the past two years, his life in Ponyville was much happier than it was in Canterlot. Yes, he missed Moondancer, Donut Joe, and the handful of servants that were genuinely nice to him, but they were worth the trade of a whole town of friendly ponies. He probably could have gone to school here. They didn’t break kindergarten up in small towns, so he might have been better accepted here.

He shook his head. Another could have been. Nothing he should be dwelling on.

”Well, shoot, you just love my pie, don’t’cha?” Applejack said happily as Twilight helped herself to her fourth slice.

“Actually, I had my fill two slices ago,” she admitted, already sounding sounding ready to eject her entire meal out her mouth.

The cowpony cocked her head at a curious angle. “Then why’re you eatin’ yourself sick? You love it over here that much?”

“It’s not that,” she said weakly. She pointed a hoof over to a field where the Apple family foals were playing, with Spike joining them.

“Ah, I see. Your dragon is enjoyin’ himself. I guess you figure he could use a bit of pony company instead of dragons.”

Twilight gave her an odd look. “There are no other civilized dragons in Equestria.”

Applejack blushed. “Oh...’scuze me...I just figured dragons must be a big city thing...”

“Hey, you haven’t treated him like an animal, that puts you ahead of several ponies on my list.”

Applejack blinked. “Th’ city ponies don’t like him?”

“I had to pull him out of public school because of all the bullying,” she sighed. “I think this is the first time he’s been able to play with foals his own age.”

“I’m sorry,” Applejack said awkwardly, not exactly sure what to say. For a few moments, the two mares simply watched Spike playing with the foals, looking happier than he ever was.

“…Maybe I should stay in Ponyville,” Twilight said at last, earning a look from the cowpony. “I’d miss Canterlot, and my family… but Spike’s so happy here. This is what he’s always wanted.”

Applejack couldn’t help but smile. “What are you, his mama?”

The unicorn blushed. “Well… I hatched his egg… and I’ve cared for him since then… I guess I am the closest thing to a mother he has. I just… I want what’s best for him.”

“I understand that feelin’. Me an’ Big Macintosh have been takin’ care of Apple Bloom ever since Ma an’ Pa…” she trailed off a moment. “I want what’s best for her, too. And I’d put that over what I wanted.”

Twilight looked back at her baby dragon. “…I guess I have something to think about.”

“You mean you moved to Ponyville for Spike?” Rarity asked, a little surprised. Breakfast had ended, which left the two unicorns and Applejack to head for the spa.

“He was what got me thinking about it,” Twilight nodded. “Meeting all of you was what really convinced me. Still, even if it wasn’t for that, I was already considering moving here. The entire time I was meeting the rest of you, I was thinking of a whether or not I should do it… really, it should have been no contest.”

“I always wondered why the poor dear never seemed to attend school,” Rarity noted. “Why haven’t you enrolled him here? I’m sure Miss Cheerilee would welcome him.”

“His tutor already taught him everything he could learn here. He always got good grades, I guess… I guess he felt like he wanted to upstage everypony who got to go to ‘real school’.”

Applejack blinked at this revelation. “Really? Spike don’t seem like an egghead to me.”

“Well, he’d have to be to be my assistant. But he never really enjoyed learning any of it,” Twilight looked at the ground. “In fact, I was worried about him sometimes. He seemed like he was doing something he hated that whole time.” She was quiet for a moment. “Do you two think I was right to pull Spike out of school?”

Both of her companions couldn’t help but gape at that. “After the way he came home cryin’? How could you think otherwise?” Applejack demanded.

“I didn’t want to… it would have killed me to send him back there… but I kept wondering if I was doing the right thing. I always wondered if I did the right thing. Maybe I should have told him he needed to stand tall against ponies like that. But… he just looked so heartbroken, I couldn’t bear to…” She was tearing up now as well.

Rarity put a comforting hoof on her shoulder. “Darling, it was a hard decision to make. We can’t tell you made the right choice. But Spike seems remarkably well-adjusted for a dragon that went through what he did. And besides, if you recall, Spike stood up to those three awful dragons to protect that poor phoenix egg.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Twilight said, perking up a bit. “I was very proud of him then. But… it’s a little more complicated than that.”

”So he absolutely refuses to go back?” Celestia sighed.

“Yes, your Highness,” Twilight said sadly. “I…please don’t make him. I don’t think he’ll survive going back.”

The Princess of the Sun sighed. “A shame…I was hoping Equestria was prepared for Spike. I’m disappointed in my subjects. As for whether or not I’m going to send him back…you are the one I left in charge of him, that decision will be left to you.”

“I understand, your Highness.”

“I want you to consider something, Twilight. Spike is in a unique position. He is the first dragon to be born amongst ponies in recorded history. Do you realize what that could mean?”

Most teenagers wouldn’t, but Twilight did. “Spike could change how ponies see dragons. He could lead to peace with dragons if everything goes right.”

“Indeed. I want what’s best for Spike, make no mistake, but I am keeping Equestria’s interests at heart as well.”

The young unicorn shifted uncomfortably. “I don’t like thinking of Spike that way.”

“Nor do I, my little pony, but you must remember that’s the burden that comes with power. That said, I feel torn on the matter. Should we force Spike to continue attending public school, it could speed up the public’s acceptance of him…or it could result in Spike resenting ponies, and becoming the very thing we are trying to prove he is not.”

Twilight put her hooves over her ears. “Please Princess, I don’t even want to think about that.”

“I am as terrified as you are, Twilight. I am merely telling you of the possible consequences of your actions. This is a situation that must be handled delicately.”

The unicorn kicked the ground in deep thought. “Princess…what exactly do you have in mind for Spike when he grows older? He can’t live in a pony home forever.”

Princess Celestia sighed. “Twilight…do you trust me?”

“Of course, Princess, more than anypony.”

“Then trust me when I say my plans for Spike are similar to my plans for you. The two of you are headed for greatness if I have my way. But I will not deny him a happy childhood to do so. As long as you live, he will be a child.”

“And…once I’m gone?”

Celestia sighed. “He will have it hard. It’s unavoidable, giving his upbringing, but I promise you, he will triumph…if he is raised correctly. What, for certain, will happen, I do not know. It will all depend on how our political and cultural landscape changes in your lifetime.”

Twilight was quite for a moment. “You said I was destined for greatness...that means I could change those things.”

Celestia smiled slyly. “Indeed you could.”

“Then I will. I’ll do everything I can for Spike before I go.”

“I have no doubt you will, Twilight. A unicorn of your raw abilities can do great things. You will leave Spike in good hooves, I’m sure. But don’t get ahead of yourself. The first step is to ensure Spike a proper childhood, and that includes an education.”

“Princess, what do you think is best?”

“That’s not my decision, it’s yours. He’s in your care, Twilight, you know him better than anypony. Have faith in yourself.”

“What do you mean, you’re busy?” Scootaloo demanded.

Apple Bloom paused from pushing a hay bale into the loft. “Sorry, Scoots, but Applejack heaped a buncha’ chores on me the mornin’. Say we got a lot of catchin’ up to do since it’s only been Big Mac on the farm while we was at the weddin’.”

“But...Sweetie says she’s busy today too! And weren’t we supposed to visit Spike today? You know, try and cheer him up?”

“Aw, you don’t have to worry ‘bout that. See, I told Applejack ‘bout it...didn’t tell her what’s goin’ on, just that we thought Spike was depressed and needed cheering up. She said that Twilight could tell somethin’ was botherin’ him, and she talked to him last night. I bet he’s already feelin’ better.”

“Well that’s good,” Scootaloo sighed. “But are you sure you can’t get out of chores today?”

“Positive. Applejack says these need to be done, and she’s gonna be gone all mornin’. Said somethin’ ‘bout helpin’ Twilight.”

The orange pegasus filly sighed. “Fine...I’ll see you tomorrow, I guess.”

“I promise,” Apple Bloom assured as her friend trotted away.

The Gift

Aloe and Lotus counted Rarity among their most frequent customers, and Twilight came in often enough that her presence wasn’t really noteworthy. Applejack, however, was a special occasion. The farmpony didn’t partake in pampering often, so the first thought the twins had was that it must be a special occasion.

The twins had led them to the hot tub and laid the three of them in it. They then excused themselves to see Lyra and Bon-Bon, the only other ones there.

After they left, Applejack spoke up again. “Twi, I gotta ask...Celestia made such a big deal out of Spike, did she ever tell you where that egg came from?”

Twilight shook her head. “No, never. Every time I asked, she only said that she’d tell me when the time was right. I have no idea why his egg was with ponies.”

“That’s odd,” Rarity mused. “Why would Celestia keep something like that from you? Or from him?”

“Well, she never really kept it from Spike,” she muttered. “He never really asked where he came from before the Migration. He always just kind of accepted that he ended up among ponies. I guess he didn’t really care to be more like a dragon after he found out how most of them acted.”

“Well, speaking of the Migration, how did Celestia feel about him leaving like that?” Rarity asked.

“It’s kind of strange. Celestia actually came down to Ponyville when she heard… she was quiet about it, so nopony else saw her. She was upset with me until I told her we were watching him, but she was more worried. She told Spike that she would answer all his questions when he was ready for them and told him to be patient.”

Both of her friends looked a bit surprised at this. “So… th’ Princess is hidin’ somethin’?”

Twilight shrugged. “I don’t know if hiding is the right word for it. I think wherever Spike came from, it’s a big deal politically.”

“Do you think he was kidnapped?” Rarity asked, sounding a little alarmed at that possibility.

“Rare, don’t be ridiculous, th’ Princess would never even think about doing that?”

“I really don’t think it’s that bad,” Twilight agreed. “Still, it got me worried about what’s going to happen to Spike after I’m gone… you know, even more than I already was.”

Applejack shook her head and gave a sad smile. “You’d be worried even if he was just a pony. Trust me, I worry ‘bout Apple Bloom all the time. Wonderin’ if me an’ Big Macintosh are raising her right. Still, I have ‘ta say, this whole political business is a bit… bigger than anythin’ we have to deal with.”

Twilight gave a weary sigh, leaning up against the tub. “I really don’t like talking about this, and with how little sleep I got last night, it’s wearing me out more than usual.

“Hey, you brought him up, sugarcube.”

“Indeed, you seem to want to talk about Spike.”

The lavender unicorn blushed. “I guess I’m just worried about him. I’m sorry.”

“Not at all. How about you tell us a happy story about him?”

Twilight smiled, leaning back against the tub.

Twilight looked over her books once more, taking in the relevant history. Starswirl’s early theories were a bit sketchy, and some had been disproven, but they made for some fascinating light reading.

She was jerked away from her books when she heard a light scraping sound, as if something with claws was running across the floor. She looked up and glanced across her suite, seeing nothing out of place. The noise had stopped, leaving the room in silence.

Shifting nervously, she returned to her tome. A few moments later, the scratching started up again, only closer. She whipped her head around, trying to find the source.

“Spike?” she called. She looked around again. “Spike, if that’s you, I swear…”

“Ragh!” Spike yelled, leaping onto the bed and tackling Twilight.

“Spike! What are you doing?” she demanded, though amusement was creeping in her voice.

The dragon playfully wrapped his arms around her neck. “Im’ma knight, and I’m’ma gonna take you down, you mean ol’ manticore!”

The purple unicorn gave a faux gasp. “Manticore? I happen to be a lovely young mare, you-ack!”

Spike squeezed his arms together tightly against Twilight’s neck, slightly choking her. “I caught ‘cha! What ya gonna do ‘bout it?”

Twilight answered that question by picking Spike of her back with magic. Gently setting the book aside, she plopped her charge in front of her. “Now the manticore has you. And you know what manticores do to knights they catch?”

Spike’s eyes widened. “What? No, no…”

Giving a devilish grin, the unicorn dug her hooves into the baby dragon’s ribs. Immediately the young reptile burst out laughing, squirming around in an effort to escape his caretaker’s grasp. He experienced no such luck, as Twilight’s magic kept him very much in place.

“I have you now, Sir Spike! Roar!” she said playfully before bringing her head down to blow a raspberry on his stomach.

He squeaked and giggled, trying to form words. “Cut it out! Manticores don’t tickle!”

“They do when the knight attacking them is a cute little fella!” Twilight laughed, placing an extra sloppy kiss on his forehead.

“Ew, gross!” the dragon laughed. Twilight kept assaulting his forehead and cheeks with kisses, ignoring his laughing and protests. Eventually, she let up, and Spike lay next to her, panting and catching his breath. After a few minutes he fell asleep, allowing her to return to her reading, this time with her charge nestled by her side.

Scootaloo entered the Cutie Mark Crusaders’ clubhouse with intent to fetch some oil for her scooter, and was quite surprised to find Spike’s abandoned Mother’s Day gift. Looking at the box, her desire to see what was inside waged war with her feelings that such a thing would be rude. It didn’t take long for her curiosity to win out, and she opened the package.

Inside was a picture frame made of ceramic, looking like it was made by Spike himself in Toola-Roola’s craft shop. It was painted in purple and green, the baby dragon’s colors, also applied by him, the edges were uneven and spilled into each other, but that gave it a charm she knew the grown-ups liked. Inside the frame was a picture of a newborn Spike, his eggshells still around him, with Twilight looking at him.

At that moment, Scootaloo noticed an anomaly on the frame. There was a small painted circle on the bottom portion. The frame itself came up where it was painted, it was almost like a button. On a whim, she ran her hoof across it.

In a flash, the picture changed. Now it was of a kindergarten aged Spike curled up against a teenage Twilight, resting in her purple coat.

It took a minute for the filly to realize what had happened. Magic, it must be. Obviously Twilight didn’t do it, but who? No other unicorn in Ponyville had that level of magic.

She nodded in realization. Twilight went to Canterlot often, and took Spike with her. He must have had it enchanted when he was up on a visit before the wedding.

She ran her hoof over the button again. In a flash, there was Twilight’s graduation, with Spike giving her a hug. Another flash, with a picture of the two of them after Twilight received the Element of Magic. Another flash, and it was the two of them on Nightmare Night. Another flash, and it was them after the Migration, with a newly hatched Pee Wee in his claws.

Scootaloo got something in her eye.

For a moment, the filly wondered what to do from here. It was clear from the gift being here that Twilight hadn’t gotten through to him, and part of her wanted to just take it to the Golden Oaks Library and place it right in Twilight’s hooves. Spike was being an idiot, and the whole thing needed to stop. On the other hoof, her fellow Crusaders were against the idea, at least for right now, and she didn’t feel like upsetting them.

She sighed. Sweetie Belle was at least considering her way. She’d take it to her for safekeeping.

Pinkie took a batch of fresh cupcakes out of the oven, humming a song to herself. It was unusual to see her working this late in the day, as her shift was early morning, but she found baking helped her concentrate.

Mr. Cake came down from helping his wife tuck in the twins and saw his foster daughter baking happily. “Well, you seem to be in a good mood Pinkie. Did you tell your friends?

He immediately regretted asking, as Pinkie got quiet, sagging a little. She set the tray on the counter before speaking. “No. Twilight didn’t get through to Spike last night, I don’t want to tell her as long as she’s all mopey.”

Carrot Cake nodded in understanding. “That makes sense. But are you going to be okay, Pinkie? You said yourself it was something you needed to get off your chest.”

Pinkie giggled a little. “Don’t worry. Just telling you two helped me a bunch. I really feel much better than I did this weekend.”

Mr. Cake was silent for a moment. Then he went over to Pinkie and kissed her forehead. “You let me know if you need anything okay?”

Pinkie smiled, somewhat sadly. “I will.”

“There was one colt who asked me out to our senior dance, but there was a volume on teleportation magic I wanted to finish, and…”

“What!” Rarity exclaimed, her mouth agape. “Your senior prom and you chose to stay inside and read? Honestly, Twilight, I knew you were a shut-in, but really!”

“Aw, lay off her. I really don’t get why some mares go all gaga over that. It’s not like them high school romances last most of the time.”

“Maybe so, but you could have stood to socialize more.”

“That’s why the Princess sent me here in the first place! Besides, making myself as unavailable as possible was a good coping strategy for dealing with Blueblood.”

Rarity cringed. “He flirted with you?”

The purple unicorn just nodded. “I was the Princess Celestia’s personal student, I was kind of high on the popularity charts. And that meant I was worthy of his attention,” she noted with a bit of a sneer.

“Why ever didn’t you warn me about him?” Rarity demanded, sounding a bit irritated.

“Everypony I ever tried to warn accused me of ‘not getting royal love,’ so I eventually stopped trying,” she shrugged. “I guess I still should have tried to tell you though.”

“We all make mistakes,” Rarity shrugged. “Whatever became of this colt?”

“He’s in the Royal Guard now. We actually saw him when we came into Canterlot. I guess I should have said something to him, but with everything going on…”

“Aw, let’s not dig that up again,” Applejack said quickly. “I’m gettin’ tired of everypony mopin’ ‘bout it. I’m perfectly happy to just put it all behind us.”

At that last sentence, Aloe and Lotus entered the room. Following them, much to the trio’s surprise, was the chief of the Ponyville Police.

“Chief Book ‘Em?” Twilight asked, surprised. “What’s going…”

The blue unicorn ignored Twilight and looked at Applejack. “What position did you finish in at the last Running of the Leaves?”

The cowpony was flabbergasted. “What?”

“Answer the question,” Book ‘Em said sternly.

Face scrunched in confusion, she answered. “I tied with Rainbow Dash… for last,” she grumbled, a faint blush on her cheeks.”

Nodding, he turned to Twilight. “What’s your position during the Winter Wrap-Up?”

“Team Organizer,” she answered unhesitatingly. She wanted to figure out what was going on, but figured she’d play along until Rarity was asked her question.

It was Aloe who spoke to Rarity. “Who did you make your last big sale to?”

“Hoity Toity. He ordered a new set for his spring line.”

At this, the three interrogating ponies seemed relieved. Seeing this, Twilight asked again. “Chief, what’s going on?”

“I’m sorry for that, Twilight,” Book ‘Em said, shifting a bit. “It’s just that the Changeling Invasion has us all a little jumpy.” To prove his point, he levitated a newspaper off a nearby table and over to them. Unsurprisingly, the attack on Canterlot was front page news.

“Whenever Rarity comes here, it’s usually with Fluttershy and Twilight,” Aloe explained. “When we saw Applejack instead, we got worried.”

Indeed, the trio could see a warning to keep an eye out for suspicious behavior from known acquaintances. Instructions to summon the police before any questionings were also present.

Twilight sighed. “The Princess knew this would happen. Equestria’s going to turn into a paranoid nuthouse.”

Rarity took the paper and continued scanning it. “‘Canterlot Officials considering tax increase to pay for damages,’ ‘Task force being assembled to hunt down changelings while the army is still scattered.’” Rarity actually was quiet for a moment before reading aloud her next statement with an incredulous tone. “Anti-Celestia groups are up in arms’?”

Applejack slapped her hoof onto her face. “Don’t tell me then idjiots are gettin’ some support for all this?”

Book ‘Em sighed. “Afraid so. Those groups have been shouting that Celestia was incompetent for letting the changelings go right under her nose.”

“Oh, how dare they?” Rarity scoffed, sounding like she herself had been personally offended.

“Don’t get worked up,” Twilight said dryly, easing back into the hot tub.

This caused the others to look at her oddly. “I figured you’d be most upset ‘bout these fellas.”

“I was the first fifty times,” Twilight said, sounding rather bored. “It’s always ‘Celestia is secretly ruining high-class social gatherings for her own amusement,’ ‘Celestia is secretly keeping the non-pony races in Equestria as second class citizens,’ ‘Celestia is training a dragon to be her ultimate warrior’.”

None of the ponies missed the anger that crept into her voice at that last sentence. “I take it you had to put up with that a lot,” Book ‘Em said slowly.

In response to Twilight’s curt nod, Aloe spoke. “Why would anypony see Spike as dangerous? He’s so sweet!”

“The same reason everypony thought Zecora was dangerous, he’s different.”

The statement was so blunt that the others got quiet for a moment. Twilight sighed. “Sorry if I’m being short...Spike’s just been acting strange lately. I’m worried about him.”

“There’s no need to apologize,” Lotus assured. “I suppose that’s why you’re here.”

“Well, I’m sorry for the trouble, Miss Sparkle,” Book ‘Em said again, tipping his hat.

Twilight dismissed him with a wave, as did her compatriots. The burly unicorn took his leave, the twins began better attending to their guests, adding more bath salts to the tub and making conversation.

“We must ask, why is Applejack here with you? It’s so unusual when you’re not all coming as a group. Is there some special occasion?”

“It ain’t nuthin’ special,” the farmpony dismissed. “Not really. We actually came to ask you two somethin’.”

“Well what do you want me to do with it?” Sweetie Belle asked.

“Keep it in your room,” her friend responded, rolling her eyes. “If we leave it in the Clubhouse, something could happen to it. We all know Spike’s being dumb about this, and Apple Bloom still wants to keep it a secret. I still say we should just tell Twilight.”

“Let’s wait and see if Twilight can get him to talk. Until then, I’ll keep it in my room,” Sweetie countered, taking the box.

Scootaloo shook her head in annoyance. “Fine! Have fun with your little dresses, I’m going to go practice my flying,” she huffed. She trotted out of the Boutique and hopped on her scooter. Muttering something about how sewing was for sissies, she scooted off towards a secluded part of Ponyville to try and teach herself what her parents were too busy to.

What she didn’t know was that, sitting on a cloud above, Rainbow Dash was watching the little filly leave. After a moment, she flapped her wings and followed.

Flying Lesson

By noon Ponyville was usually busy, but there were some areas which remained free of traffic. Scootaloo had chosen one of the areas to practice flying.

While not yet adept at flying, she was an excellent climber, so it wasn’t hard to reach one of the upper branches. She looked to the ground and told herself that the grass was soft enough to provide a decent landing before spreading her wings and leaping off.

She flapped with all her might, but she hardly moved forward at all. She actually fell, quite quickly in fact. She let out a yelp as she realized what was happening, and began to brace herself for impact.

As it turned out, the impact came from a cyan-colored blur that caught her just before she hit the ground.

“Geez, kid, what were you thinking?” Rainbow Dash snapped. She looked angry, though not deeply so.

“I… I was just trying to fly,” the filly answered sadly, looking away from her idol.

“Without an adult around? Without anypony to teach you?”

“I-I’m sorry! It’s just that my parents are so busy, and…”

“And I offered to teach you,” she reminded, putting her back on the branch. “You should have come and gotten me. Now, you’ll never fly like that.”

“But I’m flapping my wings as fast as I can…”

“And that’s the problem, first off,” Rainbow Dash said sternly. “Now spread your wings out.”

Scootaloo obeyed, still looking a little nervous.

“Now, listen to my voice. I want you to move your wings to the rhythm. Up, down, up, down…”

Once again, the instructions were obeyed, and soon Scootaloo was moving her wings at the speed one would have during normal flight.

“Up, down, up, down…”

“How much longer do I have to keep doing this?” she asked. Her voice had some of its usual spunk again, but she was still more timid than usual.

“You have to crawl before you can run, squirt. Getting that rhythm down is part of it. Now listen, in addition to flapping, you also have to remember tilting. You need to tilt your wings in relation to airflow. Too low, there’s not enough lift. Too high, there’s drag.”

“How will I know the airflow?”

“You learn to feel it, and that comes with practice. Okay, I think you’re ready for a quick try.” With that, Rainbow Dash flew about five feet away, and then lowered herself another foot. “Alright, fly to me.”

Scootaloo looked at the ground again, then gulped.

The elder mare gave a sympathetic smile. “I’ll catch you, don’t worry. Come on, it’s even safer than before I got here. You weren’t afraid then.”

Feeling reassured, the filly leapt of the branch. She kept the flaps in a better rhythm, and tried to tilt her wings where she felt air. She moved erratically, but managed to make it to Rainbow Dash.

“That was very good,” she said, giving her student a smile.

“But… I barely stayed up! And I was falling before the end…”

“Scoots, rule number one on anything: you have to be bad before you can be good,” she said gently, setting her back on the ground. “Now, let’s go again. This time, don’t tense up so much. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

“Well, Twilight, the solution to your problem is simple,” Aloe assured.

By this point the three guests had been lifted out of the tub and onto three massage tables. Lotus had begun kneading Applejack’s back, getting moans of pleasure from the earth pony, while Roxie began working on Twilight.

“What do you have in mind?”

“Well, dearie, you’re a very logical pony, aren’t you? We have a very simple solution to your problem. Tell me, what frightens you the most? What do you worry about most?”

It didn’t take long for her to answer. “Disappointing Princess Celestia, letting my friends down, something happening to Spike…”

“Very good. Now tell me, when was the last time you were worried about upsetting the Princess, what happened?”

Twilight paused. The citizens of Ponyville were very vague on what happened during the Smartypants incident. They only knew of the riot that broke out in the park, and not what caused it.

“Well, I ended up making things worse trying to fix something that the Princess turned out not to really care about in the first place.”

“So, the next time you start worrying about what’s going to happen, try thinking about…”

“I’ve tried that,” Twilight said bluntly.

Aloe blinked. “You what?”

“I already do that. I still end up worrying about it. She’s the ruler of Equestria, after all. I have high standards to work up to.”

“Well, what do you think would happen if you let her down?”

“A lecture at worst,” she admitted. “It’s easy to see that now, but when I’m panicking, I don’t exactly think straight.”

“Well, try taking deep breaths…”

“I took a hundred of them last time.”

“…You’re going to be a tough nut to crack.”

“Alright, that’s enough,” Rainbow Dash said. She carried the now visibly tired Scootaloo up to a cloud to rest. “We can take a break now.”

“Finally!” the filly panted. “We must have done that a hundred times.”

“Repetition is the mother of learning, kid,” the elder mare explained. “I do all my flight tricks a million times, Twilight reads all her books a million times, Rarity studies every sewing technique a million times, it’s why we’re the best at what we do.”

“I guess,” she said, rubbing her wings.

“Scoots, I’ve got to ask, why didn’t you take me up on my offer for lessons back at the wedding?”

Scootaloo blushed, rubbing the back of her head. “I… I was embarrassed. I mean, I’m so clumsy...”

“Clumsy?” Rainbow Dash asked incredulously. “Kid, I’ve seen you do tricks on that scooter of yours that would make some ponies jealous. Where’d you get the idea you were clumsy?”

The filly blushed, suddenly finding the cloud they were resting on interesting. “…Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara,” she said at last, looking up at her teacher. Her face was scrunched in confusion. “Two fillies in my class,” Scootaloo clarified.

Rainbow Dash nodded in understanding. “Don’t let ponies like that get you down. There were these three idiots in my school who used to call me ‘Rainbow Crash’. Look at me now.”

Scootaloo gave a weak smile. “Thanks, I feel better,” she said.

There was silence for a moment as the two pegasi enjoyed the view. Finally, the younger one spoke. “Why did they call you ‘Rainbow Crash’ anyway? You’re the greatest flyer I’ve ever seen!”

The cyan pegasus’s expression was half smile at the compliment, half scowl at the question. “In one of the obstacle course runs, I choked and made a crash landing. They never let me forget it.”

“Did you ever fight back? I always want to give Diamond Tiara a good smack, but Miss Cheerilee says that’s wrong.”

“I did, but only once.”

”Nice landing, Rainbow Crash,” Hoops laughed at the young filly on the cafeteria floor.

Rainbow Dash stood up, hay fries and cupcake frosting in her mane, and glared at the colt that had caused her to trip. “Hey, that’s no fair!”

“Life’s not fair when you’re a loser, Crash!” he laughed again before trotting off. Grumbling, Rainbow Dash stood, trying to block out the snickers coming from around the room. Grudgingly, she sat at the end of a table, looking at her tray of now ruined food.

“Um, excuse me,” a quiet voice said. The filly looked up and saw a butter-yellow pegasus sitting down next to her.

“What do you want?” she snapped.

“Um, I saw you don’t have anything to eat now,” she said slowly. “You can have mine, if you like.”

Rainbow Dash blinked, caught off guard that a pony was actually treating her kindly. “Kid, that’s your food. I couldn’t take it…”

“Oh, I’m not really hungry anyway. You can have as much as you want.”

The cyan filly thought for a moment, then smiled. “Why don’t we share it?” She picked up the fork on her tray and used it to get a few hay fries from her new friend’s meal. For a few minutes the pair ate, introduced herself, and made small conversation. This however, promptly ended when Hoops came up to them again.

“Well, lookie here. Rainbow Crash and Klutzershy. It’s a match made in Celestia's Paradise!”

“Get lost, Hoops!”

“Um, please go away…”

“Oh yeah? Who’s going to make me!” he sneered, pushing Fluttershy off her seat. She landed with a pained squeak, then began whimpering.

“Hey, leave her alone!” Rainbow Dash demanded, hopping out of her seat. “Don’t pick on her like that!”

“Oh, and what are you going to do about it, Rainbow Crash?”

At that point, Rainbow Dash showed Hoops exactly what she was going to do about it. Namely, putting a hoof to his face. The colt staggered back, and just as he was registering his bloody nose, she leapt onto him, punching every part of him.

“It took three teachers to pull me off of him. I got detention for a month,” she finished, a smile of fond remembrance on her face.

“What? But Hoops was picking on Fluttershy! Shouldn’t he have got in trouble?”

“He did, but it was only a week’s detention. Besides, I don’t regret that day one bit. That’s when I met Fluttershy, and the next time she was picked on, I couldn’t fight, so I raced. I discovered my cutie mark, and I knew a good way to keep Hoops quiet. Now look, I’m a contender for the Wonderbolts, and he’s still working an entry-level position at the weather factory.”

“How?”

“I let my actions speak for themselves. Every time that blowhard made fun of me, I did the flying drills better than him, I did the obstacle course better than him, I did everything better than him. He could call me names all he wanted, but I still knew I was better than him.”

Scootaloo was confused. “But… I see you threatening to beat up anyone that makes you mad!”

Rainbow Dash shook her head. “No, I threaten to beat up anypony that’s putting Equestria in danger. That’s something else entirely. School bullies? Not worth the effort. They never are.”

Scootaloo nodded. She looked away a bit before speaking again. “How long did it take you to fly?”

“Only a few days, I was a natural,” the elder mare bragged. She immediately regretted it when she was Scootaloo’s head drop a bit. “But don’t think that means there’s anything wrong with being a late bloomer. You know Spitfire was about your age before she got off the ground.”

“Really?” the filly asked, tilting her head.

“Yeah, she had a slow start. Now she’s the best of the best. Don’t let setbacks discourage you, kid. They’re temporary.”

“Did you have any setbacks?”

“I had to drop out of Flight School with only six months left to go. My…” she paused for a minute. “My mother died that year. I had to quit and get a job to support myself. I’d probably be in the Wonderbolts now if that hadn’t happened.”

Now Scootaloo felt uncomfortable. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you bring that up…”

Rainbow Dash ruffled her mane affectionately. “Don’t worry about it, kid,” she assured. “The point is, I’m still getting in the Wonderbolts because I didn’t let something like that get me down.”

The filly nodded, now smiling once again. She was forgetting her nervousness that Rainbow Dash would think less of her for bad flying. She was forgetting her parents being too busy to spend time with her. For a while, everything seemed peaceful.

“Hey, kid, have you ever read Daring Do?”

“Take several deep breaths…”

“Tried it.”

“Count backwards from ten…”

“Tried it.”

“Breath into a paper bag…”

“Tried it three times.”

The Spa Ponies had a rare look of exasperation on their faces. Twilight had tried nearly every technique they could suggest already, and it was beginning to seem that the trip was a waste of time.

“Look, I appreciate you trying,” Twilight assured. “I was really hoping you would have something that I haven’t tried. But ever since… ever since a certain incident, I’ve been trying them all. Don’t feel bad.”

By now, Twilight, Rarity, and Applejack were ready to leave. Rarity left the bits on the counter as her friends tried to assure them.

Aloe shook her head. “I’m still sorry we couldn’t help you, Twilight. If I come up with anything else, I’ll let you know.”

The lavender unicorn nodded. “I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks anyway.”

With that, the three friends walked out, feeling slightly dejected.

“Sorry, Twi,” Applejack sighed. “I guess we just wasted your time.”

Twilight shook her head. “Believe me, you didn’t. I actually feel better than I have in days. Ever since I found out my brother was getting married, I’ve been kind of tense, and with everything that happened afterward… well, I just feel better.”

“But you’re still worried about Spike, I take it?” Rarity asked.

“Yeah… I’m sorry, but I think I better head home and try to talk to him again.”

“Yes, I need to get started on that order for Fancypants anyway,” Rarity said dismissively. “We can try again some other time. Good-bye, darlings!”

The remaining two waved her goodbye as she trotted off.

“Hey, Twi? You remember that apple pie Spike liked so much? Maybe a few slices of that will get him talking.”

“That’s a great idea!” Twilight said. “Do you have any made?”

“Granny should be pullin’ some out’a the oven right now. Why don’t ‘cha pop on by and get one?”

Picking up her pith helmet, Daring Do dusted it off and placed it on her head before giving the cliff one final look. Grinning that a good deal of Ahuizotl’s cats had just tumbled over it, she couldn’t help but mutter one final line.

“Next time, try taking the stairs.”

“This is so cool!” Scootaloo squealed, squirming with excitement. Something told Rainbow Dash it was only the fact that the filly was in her embrace that she didn’t start jumping around in excitement.

“I know, isn’t it? Twilight got me hooked on those books while I was in the hospital. I can’t get enough of them.”

“Are these all in Twilight’s library? Do you think she’d let me borrow them?”

“That’s what libraries are for, squirt!” Rainbow Dash answered, sitting up. The day had worn on into afternoon, and the heat was beginning to cool a little. “Why don’t we get back to flying? Your wings should be rested enough to get back to work.”

“Can we just read one more chapter?” Scootaloo begged.

“I’ve already read you six chapters, kid. You can read anytime, but learning to fly is something special. We need to get back to it. You were doing great, don’t stop now.”

“I guess you’re right…”

Applejack and Twilight walked up the dirt path towards the Apple Family home. The lavender mare stifled another yawn, earning a look from her companion.

“Uh, Twi… are you sure you’re okay?”

“Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Twi… is there anythin’ you’re not tellin’ us? About why you didn’t sleep last night?”

“There isn’t,” Twilight answered, a little too quickly.

“I’m not buyin’ that,” she answered flatly. “I think your keepin’ somethin’ from us. You never told us you’ve been tryin’ all them remedies.”

“I didn’t want you to worry,” Twilight snapped. She immediately regretted it and sighed. “Look, this whole thing with Spike is stressing me out. Let’s handle one crisis at a time, okay?”

By this point, they were nearly at the front door, so the cowpony merely nodded. “Just… just don’t be afraid to let me know if somethin’s botherin’ you, alright?”

“Don’t worry, I won’t,” she assured, though to Applejack it sounded hollow.

Before the earth pony could dwell on it anymore, a large explosion caused both of them to jump three feet in the air. They managed to land on their hooves, but were so stunned they couldn’t react for a few seconds.

“What in tarnation?” Applejack uttered. In a flash, she opened the farmhouse door and charged inside, Twilight close behind her.

They both ran to the kitchen. They immediately stopped dead, their eyes widening and irises shrinking.

The entire kitchen was covered with apple and baker’s dough. And in the center were two ponies covered in the same: Granny Smith, who looked like she was having a heart attack, and Apple Bloom, giving a sheepish smile.

“Uh… hey sis…”

“Apple Bloom, what happened?”

“I… we were just makin’ some pie… Granny said I could help. I’m sorry.”

“You kiddin’?” Granny Smith lit up. “My ticker hasn’t beat so fast since the cider makin’ competition! I feel great!”

Every other mare present breathed a sigh of relief. “Well, I’ll get a mop and we can start cleaning up,” Twilight offered.

“No, Twi,” Applejack interrupted. “You’ve got Spike to worry about. You go on home, we can handle it.”

“Well, if you’re sure…”

“Positive. I’m sure between us and Big Mac we can handle this.”

“He was out workin’ the fields,” Granny Smith explained. “He should be in soon.”

“Heck, he probably heard the explosion from way out there,” Applejack laughed.

“Um, do you mind if I used your bathroom before I left?” Twilight asked.

“Sure Twi, it’s right upstairs.”

“Thanks,” the unicorn answered, hurrying to the stairs at a noticeably quick pace.

Applejack turned back to her family, who were scraping the dough off of themselves, making at least some progress at getting themselves clean. “You two go on out the back and we’ll hose you off. Then we’ll start worryin’ ‘bout the kitchen.”

At that point, Big Macintosh burst into the house, making it to the kitchen in record time. “What the hay happened?”

“Just a little mess. Go get the mop and stuff while I hose these two off.”

As the eldest child obeyed, the youngest fumed. “Can’t we get Twilight to use her magic to clean us off?”

“Now Apple Bloom, Twi’s got things to do…”

“Twilight’s here?” Big Macintosh yelled, stopping in place and widening his eyes.

Applejack arched an eyebrow. “Uh, yeah… she’s upstairs, usin’ the…”

“You let her upstairs?” he cried in alarm.

His sister’s eyes widened in realization. “Oh my… sorry, I forgot.”

“No!” he cried, barreling out of the kitchen and to the stairs. In a flash he had climbed the entire flight, and in another he was in front of his bedroom door. With great strength he knocked it in. He was just quick enough to see a purple tail with a pink stripe exit through the window.

“No!” he cried again, running to the window. Looking out, he saw Twilight recover from the fall and race out of Sweet Apple Acres, clutching a familiar prize in her teeth.

“SMARTYPANTS!”

Another Try

“You’re such a good study buddy,” Twilight cooed to Miss Smartypants, nuzzling her foalhood friend. “I’m never going to let you go again.”

Outside, Big Macintosh was pounding on the shield she had summoned around the library. “No! Give her back!”

“Forget it!” she called to the outside. “There’s no getting in…”

At that point, the wall to the library was burst open. Big Macintosh stood in the opening, having somehow gotten past her shield.

“What? How did you…”

“BIG MAC WANT!” the earth pony yelled. Suddenly his coat turned green, his mane turned a darker green, and he grew to twice his old size, the purple pants he was suddenly wearing tearing. “GIVE BIG MAC, OR BIG MAC SMASH!”

”Pinkie!”

“What?” the pink earth pony asked, giving a hurt look.

“That didn’t even make any sense!” Twilight gave an exasperated sigh. “Big Mac can’t just turn into a monster! Who would believe that?”

“Well still, how can you be sure he won’t chase after you?”

“I don’t know, which is why I’m in a hurry. Can you just give me my cupcakes?”

“Fine,” the earth pony answered with a pout, placing Twilight’s order on the counter. She levitated it up, giving her a small thank you.

“Well, it’s not as good as pie, but maybe these will get Spike to loosen his lips.”

“No.”

“But…”

“I said no. You shouldn’t have taken that doll anyhow. It ain’t yours.”

The eldest child pouted. “But it’s adorable!”

Applejack growled angrily. “Don’t matter. When you told me you wanted the upstairs to be family only, I thought ya wanted it as a matter of privacy, not cause you were holdin’ that thing hostage. I ain’t stealin’ it back for ya!”

“But…”

“No buts! Now get ta moppin’! And don’t try makin’ Apple Bloom help ya, this is your punishment.”

Sighing, the stallion took the mop and began cleaning up the mess his little sister had made. He was interrupted by his sister’s voice. “And what did you threaten Twi with?”

Big Macintosh turned suddenly, his eyes wide at the accusation. “What are you talking about?”

“Twilight didn’t speak to me a lick about that doll. What’d you say to her to keep her from tellin’ me?”

“Nothing! I didn’t even know she knew until today!”

“Don’t ‘cha lie to me!”

“I’m not lying, really!”

Applejack’s expression softened as she looked at her brother’s face. He looked shocked, and even a little hurt at his sister’s accusation. She could tell he wasn’t lying.

“Then…why didn’t Twi tell me about it?”

”Hey, Twilight!” Moondancer called, running up to her classmate. Twilight muttered a brief “Hello,” but kept trotting forward. “Me and some of the girls are getting together tonight and head to the Stable. You want to come?”

“I can’t. I have Spike back at the castle, remember?”

The other unicorn groaned. “Using him again, huh? You know, there are other foalsitters besides me in Canterlot.”

“Not ones that would be willing to sit for a dragon,” Twilight noted a bit bitterly.

“You live in a castle. Filled with ponies who are loyal to the Princess. Can’t you get any of them to watch him for the night?”

“They don’t care about Spike,” Twilight answered bitterly. “I’m not leaving him alone with them.”

“So? He’s what, eleven now? Isn’t it about time you let him stay home alone?”

“That’s still a baby by dragon standards. Besides, he’s still at that age where he can’t stand not being around me. You should see him when I walk in the door from school.” By this point, Twilight’s voice had lost some of its edge. In fact, she seemed to be rather fond of what she was discussing.

“I know, remember?” Moondancer reminded, grinning now as well. “I can get any foal asleep, but that dragon won’t go to bed until you’re home. And he always runs right up to you and gives you a hug.”

“He’d use to yell ‘Twilight’s back! Twilight’s back!’ when he was younger.” Twilight noted with nostalgia.

“But I think it’s time he grew past that. He’s getting to an age where he can be alone.”

“Well, I appreciate your input,” the lavender unicorn sneered, “but I’m in charge of Spike, not you.”

“Well you need to think of something,” Moondancer pressed, ignoring her classmate’s eye roll. “All you ever do is study. You need to get out more.”

“I don’t have the time for friends,” she muttered. “I’ve got studies to do and a dragon to raise. I don’t get to be a teenager like everypony else”

“My parents had three foals and full time jobs, and they got out more than you. That’s really no excuse.”

“Were any of you the lynchpin in a major political change?” Twilight asked.

Moondancer sighed. She had been expecting that answer. It was a bit like going through the motions at this point. “I still think you need to get out more.”

“We’ve been over this. Besides, you know the moment I stick my head out Blueblood or some other social climber will be all over me.”

“And you need to learn to deal with that,” Moondancer said, exasperated. She placed her hoof on her face. She was silent for a moment, wondering if she should say something she had thought of saying for a long time. “You do care about Spike, right?”

Twilight stopped dead, turning and glaring at her acquaintance. “What kind of question is that? Of course I do.”

“And… you want him to change everypony’s view on dragons, right?”

“Yes. What’s your point?”

“Well… he’s going to need to get out and socialize for that to happen, isn’t he?”

“Yes… ” the lavender unicorn answered, not liking where this was going.

“Well… isn’t he learning how to act from you? I mean, shouldn’t you be setting a better example in that department?”

Twilight’s face contorted in anger, but she knew she was right.

“Just… think about it, okay?” she said defensively. Giving a sigh, she walked off, leaving Twilight alone. Angrily, she stomped off, thinking about what Moondancer said.

Unbeknownst to them, from behind a corner to another hallway, a small baby dragon who was there for a checkup by one of the university doctors poked his head out from around the corner. He was crying, because he had heard every word.

That night, when Twilight got back to her dorm, she had found everything cleaned, all her usual chores done. Spike had done them all, saying he had wanted help her with anything she needed. He also said he felt like he didn’t need a foalsitter anymore.

Twilight immediately sensed something was wrong. He refused to leave her alone for another three months. Finally, she relented and allowed him to stay by himself. After she came home and found he hadn’t burnt down the castle, she agreed to make him staying by himself the norm.

Spike sighed as he finished the last of the dusting. The library shined from top to bottom. As good of a secondary assistant as Owlowiscious was, he often missed the fine points of cleaning. After a full week of only him in charge, the library needed a quick clean.

Satisfied with his work, he prepared to sulk back to his room before Twilight returned home, hoping to avoid her. This thought was interrupted by said unicorn bursting through the door.

“Spike!” she cried.

“Huh, what?” the baby dragon said worriedly.

“Spike, quick, close and lock every window shutter!”

“…Is that Miss Smarty Pants?”

“Yes, and Big Mac could be right behind me, so come on, windows, close, now!”

Spike obliged, glad that the focus was off him. For the next three minutes he ran throughout the library, shutting and bolting all the window shutters around the home. Once the last one was secure, he sought out Twilight again, and found her in the kitchen, brewing up some tea.

“I’m finished, now what?”

Spike suddenly felt Smarty Pants being pushed into his claws. “Put her away in my keepsake trunk. No need to make it easier for him. Then come back here.”

The dragon nodded and obey. A minute later he returned to the kitchen and saw the table now had two seats ready at the table. At each seat was a cupcake on a small plate and a cup of tea.

“I figured I’d get us a treat. The tea is cinnamon, your favorite!”

Spike perked up. He licked his lips, his desire for the treats overriding anything else. Happily, he took his seat and snatched up the cupcake. He ate it with marginal neatness, enough not to cause a mess but not exactly the full extent of his etiquette training.

Twilight giggled, levitating a handkerchief towards her. “You’ve got frosting on your cheek,” she noted, licking the cloth and using it to rub his face.

“Ew, gross,” he groaned, trying to swat the offending item away, but Twilight managed to keep it in place until its job was done.

“Aw, you didn’t always think it was gross.”

“I was five and stupid,” Spike mumbled, taking a sip of his tea.

“No, you were just my special little guy back then,” Twilight cooed, causing Spike to fake gag. “And you’re still my little dragon now,” she continued, suddenly serious. “That’s why I want to know what’s wrong.”

Spike froze. “N-nothing. I told you, I’m fine.” He attempted to get up, only for Twilight’s magic to force him back into his seat.

“Spike, you can’t lie to save your life,” she said sternly. “You’re not leaving this table until you tell me what’s wrong.”

Spike looked at the wooden surface, knowing he was trapped. “I… I…”

Twilight sighed. “Spike, I know this is about the wedding. I told everypony else that I understand why you didn’t believe me at the rehearsal. Me not being believed was as much my fault as it was everypony else’s, maybe even more so.”

“But I abandoned you and…” He caught himself. He was so close to spilling.

“Spike… I’m not going to lie. It hurt to have you walk out on me. But like I said, that’s my fault, not yours. I love you just as much as ever. You understand that, right?”

Spike looked at her in silence. He wanted to tell her how he felt so badly. “…Yes,” he said at last.

“So do you feel better? Are you going to stop moping?”

“Yes,” he nodded, smiling an empty smile.

Twilight was silent for a moment. Then she rose to her hooves, walked over to Spike and hugged him tightly. “I love you, Spike.”

“I love you too, Twilight,” he said weakly, trying to keep himself from crying.

“Then tell me what’s wrong.”

His eyes widened. “Wh-what? I told you…”

“And you lied to me. There’s something more, isn’t there?”

Spike held back the tears. He couldn’t tell her. Not after how badly he had let her down. He tried to push away, but the unicorn tightened her grip.

“I’m not letting go until you tell me.”

“I’m stronger than you,” he tried to sound intimidating, but failed.

“Not by enough. You’d have to hurt me, and you’d never do that.”

“…Please let go.”

“Tell me what’s wrong fir-ack!” she squealed.

As it turns out, Spike had a way of getting out of Twilight’s grip without hurting her. He simply brushed her side with the tips of his fingers. Caught off guard, she laughed and loosened her grip, allowing him to escape. He managed to get three feet away before she fully recovered.

“Oh no you don’t!” she said, lighting up her horn. In a flash, Spike was back in front of her.

But he just kept running, too quickly to get a hold onto him with her magic. She tried again.

Flash! “Spike please listen.”

Flash! “Seriously, we need to talk.”

Flash! “Spike, as your caretaker, I’m telling you to…”

Flash!

Spike suddenly turned to Twilight and flicked her horn.

Touching a unicorn’s horn when they’re casting magic caused disorientation. For something simple like levitation, it was only for a split second. Something as major as teleportation, however, left them dizzy much longer. Part of Twilight’s extensive training was how to minimize this period, and as a result she was recovered five seconds later.

By that time, Spike was out of sight.

“Spike!” Twilight called, chasing her charge in the direction she had seen him run towards. She was in the next room before she heard a door shut and lock. She sighed, but didn’t slow her pace until she got to the door.

She knocked her hoof on it. “Spike. Come out here, now,” she demanded.

She received no answer.

“Spike, if you don’t come out, you’re ground…” she trailed off. Spike was moping around the house anyway, not doing much of anything. Grounding him wouldn’t do much good.

“Well, I’ll give you a whip…” Again she trailed off. She had threatened to spank Spike once, but when the time came to act on the threat she couldn’t bring herself to do so.

“Spike, listen…” she said slowly. “This is ridiculous. You can’t just avoid me forever.”

She tried to remain firm and commanding, but a lump formed in her throat. Her voice wavered. “I don’t like seeing you like this. Please come out.”

There was no answer.

Twilight didn’t continue. She turned and walked a brisk pace away from the door. If Spike heard her cry, it could make things worse.

After she was back in the kitchen, she let her tears go. It was painful to see Spike like this. Her thought drifted back to his most inconsolable time.

Twilight walked into her dorm room to a most unusual sound, that of crying. Confused and a bit frightened, she called out “Spike?”

No answer, the crying continued. Using caution, she moved around her bed, looking around to the side away from the door. She found Spike sitting in his basket, curled into a ball, head buried in his knees, sobbing. Next to him sat a book, though Twilight didn’t care to see which one.

“Spike, what’s…”

“Ponies… ponies only live about seventy years, right?”

That caught Twilight off guard. It seemed so random. “Yes… one hundred if we take good care of ourselves, why…”

She trailed off. She looked at the book. Dragons: Everything Known About the World’s Most Mysterious Creature.

No…

He looked up, tears still falling. “You’re… you’re going to…”

No… No, it was too soon. She wasn’t supposed to have to give him this talk for another decade. This was ruining the timetable. “No, no…”

“I’m gonna… gonna…”

Twilight gulped, then nodded slowly. “I’m afraid so, Spike… dragons live to about a thousand years old. I’m only going to be around for…”

“No!” he wailed leaping up. In a blur he tackled Twilight, wrapping his arms around her neck. “Please don’t go!”

“Spike,” she said sadly, returning the hug. “Please…”

“Don’t leave me, Twilight! Please! I don’t want to be alone!”

“Spike, I can’t do anything…”

“But you promised!” He wailed heartbreakingly. “You said you’d always be there, ‘with Celestia as your witness’! You lied!! You…” he dissolved into a purple bundle of misery.

Twilight just held him close, stroking his scales in an attempt to soothe him. For the next several moments, Spike gave his heartbroken wails, holding his caretaker so close that she began to suspect he was trying to permanently merge with her.

“Spike… Spike, look at me,” she commanded. She pulled away slowly, then placed a hoof under his chin and made him look up in her eyes. “One day, I’m going to leave the world and enter Celestia’s Paradise. Nopony, not even Celestia herself, can prevent that. But even though my body might be gone, my spirit will still watch over you.”

Spike was silent. She continued.

“I’ll be looking down on you from there, watching you. And when your time comes, you’ll join me there.”

“But… I don’t know what I’m going to do when you’re gone! Who’s going to take care of me and read me bedtime stories and fix my gemstone soup or…”

“Spike, listen to me. My life is shorter than yours, but it’s not ending for a long time. And I know you’re going to grow up to be a smart, sweet dragon. You’re not going to need me anymore…”

“Yes I will!” he cried. “I… I don’t wanna be… alone.”

There was a silence as Twilight tried to think of what to say. Finally an idea came to her. Lighting up her horn, she gently grabbed hold of one of his claws and brought it down onto his chest. “Do you feel that?” she asked softly.

Spike’s face contorted with confusion. “Yeah. That’s my heart.”

“That’s where every living thing stores the love they have for everypony. That’s where your love for me lives. I want you to know that as long as you keep that, I’ll never really die. I’ll live on in your heart. So will my mom and dad, and Shining Armor, and Princess Celestia, and Cadance, and Moondancer, and everypony else you love. We’ll be here long after our great-grandchildren die, as long as you keep us here.”

“It… it won’t be the same, will it?”

Twilight sighed. “It won’t be easy. But you’ll make it. I know you will. You’re going to change everything. Equestria will be a better place because of you. There will be a time when little dragons and little ponies will be attending the same schools, all thanks to you.”

For the first time since Twilight saw him, Spike smiled. “Y… you really think so?”

“Think? I know so!” she replied, giving a cocky grin and a poke to the nose. Spike giggled a little bit. “Why don’t you eat something? It will make you feel better.”

“…Can I have some gemstone soup?”

“My own special recipe.”

After that, Spike became a full-time assistant. He never said it, but she knew it was because he wanted as much time as possible with her before the inevitable. She was torn on how to handle it. She loved that Spike was being so diligent, it was preparing him for the long, hard life he had ahead of him. But it pained him that he ignored opportunities to play in favor of work… not that she was one to talk in that regard, she supposed. But she legitimately enjoyed her studies, while Spike seemed to work with a feeling of obligation.

She soon realized that Spike had overheard the conversation with Moondancer. When she realized that, it dawned on her that the only time he spent around her was to work. All other times, he would insist, subtly, he thought, that Twilight should go out. She had to explain that she considered time spent with him a joy, and that she sincerely had no desire to socialize beyond chatting with a few of her classmates between studying.

She gave a pained groan. Even in that state, all she had to do was present the facts and Spike would begin the recovery. She wouldn’t lie to him in situations like that. After the school incident, she promised no more hiding the truth, despite how painful it was. She only ever regretted that promise once, during a very uncomfortable discussion in which Spike asked where foals came from.

But here, it wasn’t working. The problem seemed to be that Spike was feeling guilty that he didn’t believe her, yet when presented with the facts he rejected them. There had to be a part of the equation she was missing. But what?

She sighed. Maybe tomorrow.

“Well that was a waste of time,” Garble groaned, watching a traveling pony run away screaming in fear.

“This whole thing’s a waste of time,” Mumble whined, even as he was tossing their latest victim’s bits up and down in one of his purple claws. “I say we forget this and get out of here.”

Garble responded by whipping around and grabbing him by the throat, choking him and causing him to drop his precious gold.

“We. Are. Not. Leaving! Not until we find that shrimp and grind him into dragon meat!”

“Aw, come on, we’ve been at this for a month!” Thrash objected. “I say we get out of here before we attract attention.”

“From what, a namby-pamby pony princess?” Garble laughed, tossing Mumble to the ground. “Bring her on! I can beat any pony into the ground!”

“Oh bravo,” a new voice interjected. Surprised, the three dragons glanced behind them. They were surprised to see ponies approaching them, unafraid.

“I guess popular perception of all dragons being savages isn’t too far off after all.” Their leader chuckled. He was a unicorn, with a coat as red as Garble's scales, and a mane that seemed greyed and aged. His look gave a sense of importance, like everything around him was beneath his notice. His cutie mark was, of all things, an olive branch, and the three dragons were somewhat nonplussed at this, given how out of place it looked on him.

The two ponies flanking him were a pegasus and an earth pony, with coats of white and grey respectively. Both of their cutie marks were hidden due to them wearing armor that seemed stolen right from the royal guards, though they were painted sinister shades of black and grey. The both carried saddle bags, presumably filled with supplies.

“Who the heck are you?” Garble demanded.

“The pony who is going to lead you right to the dragon you are seeking.”

All three of them were caught off guard by this blunt answer. Not waiting for a reply, the unicorn continued, using his magic to open the earth pony’s bag. He withdrew a scrap of paper, floating it to Garble. “This map marks Ponyville, where the dragon you speak of lives. The trek will take about two days. I trust you know how to use it?”

Garble looked at the map, then back at the mysterious benefactor. “Why are you helping us?”

“Do you care?”

“…No, I guess I don’t,” Garble laughed. “Congratulations, you’re the first pony I actually like.”

The unicorn didn’t respond to the compliment. “If possible, try and take out the purple unicorn with him.” With that, his horn glowed. There was a flash of light, and he and his cohorts were gone.

The three dragons stood in silence over what happened. It had been so abrupt that it left them more confused than anything.

Finally, Thrash spoke. “I don’t think we should do this. That pony could be trying to trick us.”

“Well it’s a good thing you’re not the brains around here,” Garble snapped, clutching the map like it was a winning lottery ticket. “I’ve got Spike’s location, and when I find him I’m going to run that twerp into the ground.”

Sports and Politics

“Come on, Scootaloo,” Rainbow Dash encouraged.

The young filly grunted as she lifted her wings again, which now had three pound weights on each of them. “I’ve already done a hundred of these.”

“So, you can do a hundred and one. Come on, just one more.”

“No,” Scootaloo cried. “I can’t!”

Suddenly Rainbow’s expression turned icy cold. “Get in push-up position.”

Scootaloo blinked. “What?”

“Push-up position. Now.”

Scared, Scootaloo did as she was told, straightening out her back legs and supporting all her weight on her front.

“Ten push-ups. Come on, go! Go! Go!”

Confused and a little scared, Scootaloo obeyed. By the time she finished, her forelegs were feeling heavy, though it was nothing too bad. Rainbow Dash got down to her level and looked her in the eye. “Every time I hear the word ‘can’t’ out of you, it’s ten push-ups. Period. That is the dirtiest word in the Equestrian language, squirt.”

Scootaloo was stunned. She opened her mouth to speak, but wasn’t sure what to say.

The elder mare continued. “It wasn’t that you couldn’t lift your wings again, all that happened was that you hit a limit. Limits only exist to be surpassed. When you hit one, you need to keep going. That’s what separates the champs from the chumps.”

“But… my wings felt like they were going to fall off!”

“So you just do one more. I’ll admit, pushing yourself too far can be just as bad as not pushing yourself enough. Go at it, just don’t kill yourself doing it.”

“How will I know when too far is?”

“You’ll grow to learn it. Until then, promise you won’t do any serious exercise without me or another adult around, okay?”

“I promise,” she mumbled obediently.

“Good. Now, since you had a chance to rest your wings, I think you can do five more now. Come on, let’s see it.”

“But,” the filly started to protest, but her mentor gave her a powerful stare. “Yes, ma’am.”

Luna marched firmly down the halls of Canterlot Castle, not stopping until she came to her sister’s chambers. As she approached the door, however, the two pegasus guards blocked her path.

“Let me through, I must see my sister,” she demanded.

“I’m sorry, Your Highness, but Princess Celestia requested not to be disturbed, even by you.”

Luna’s horn glowed, and she waited expectantly.

“I’m sorry, Your Highness, but your sister has made us resistant to that trick.”

“I see,” Luna said plainly.

A few seconds later the doors opened, and Luna trotted in. The door closed after her, and a few seconds later the guards dropped from the ceiling where the Princess of the Night had levitated them to.

“That’s it, I’m putting in that transfer to Manehattan.”

Inside the chambers Celestia looked up from her novel to see her sister marching in angrily. “Luna? How…”

The younger sister just arched an eyebrow, causing Celestia to shake her head in realization. “Honestly, Luna, can’t you respect my alone time? It’s just like when we were fillies…”

“Sister, how can you be reading with what the papers are saying about you?” the purple princess gritted, bring the newspaper she was carrying to attention.

CHANGELING QUEEN STILL AT LARGE. CELESTIA’S LEADERSHIP TO BLAME?

“Honestly, Luna, you pulled me away from Daring Do for this? I've told you, those tabloids aren't real news. You shouldn't worry...”

“Sister, please be serious!” Luna demanded. “Honestly, ponies are trying to stir up trouble, calling for your removal! They are suggesting that ponies should leave the country if you’re still on the throne by the end of the year.”

Celestia scoffed. “Those threats come up every time a noble gets appointed. You always have a dozen or so ponies thinking they know how politics works…”

“Yes, but do you hear what they’re saying about Twilight Sparkle?”

That got Celestia’s attention. “What…”

The Princess of the Sun took the paper and skimmed it over. It wasn’t long until she found the article her sister was referring to.

CELESTIA BRAINWASHING?

Eyewitness reports confirm that, indeed, the Changeling Queen was exposed by Twilight Sparkle, personal protégé to Princess Celestia and sister of Captain Shining Armor. This, of course, raises questions as to why she was not attending her own brother’s wedding during the first ceremony, considering her prominent position as Best Mare in the second.

Now, we have discussed the foalish action of continuing with a high-budget ceremony when there was destruction in the streets, especially when the nobles are proposing a tax increase to cover the damage, but one must wonder the circumstances behind Sparkle’s disappearance, as well as her continued support of Celestia.

It is this reporter’s opinion that Sparkle has undergone a sort of conditioning to make her loyal to…

The paper burst into flames as Celestia’s magic flared up. “What?”

“As I told you sister, ponies have noticed Twilight Sparkle’s absence from the first ceremony. They’ve concluded you forced her to miss it, or didn’t care enough about her absence to postpone the wedding. And her continued loyalty despite this leads the foalish to assume you must have some control over her, or that she is simply a naïve soul you are manipulating.”

Celestia rarely got angry, but these claims were enough to put her in a rage. “How… could they…”

“Twilight Sparkle is being portrayed as your loyal little attack dog. I believe that’s how you put it that night.”

Tears were in Celestia’s eyes. Attacks against herself she could bear. Attacks against her sister she had prepared for… she was a politician, after all. But when her beloved student was dragged into the limelight like this… “And if we tell them the truth… that will make things worse.”

Luna nodded. As bad as things were politically thanks to the changeling invasion, they would undoubtedly get worse if it was discovered that Celestia was warned of it beforehand and ignored it, regardless of how justified the disbelief was.

“It would do little to curb these allegations anyway,” Luna admitted. She shook her head. “Are you sure authorizing the second ceremony was the right thing to do?”

“Positive. By letting things go on as planned, I sent a message that things were back to normal in Canterlot. To cancel it would be acknowledging that the changelings were a true threat. There will be much paranoia spread about the changelings either way; by this method we may curtail a bit of it.”

Luna nodded, sitting in front of her sister. "That still didn't stop these frivolous accusations."

"I've told you before, Luna, those tabloids are nothing but ridiculous claims. They just like to stir up trouble. Yes, there have been ponies calling for me to step down and labeling me a tyrant, but they are always in the minority. The vast majority of my subjects still support me, though they will be antsy for me to do something."

“Still, we best make some progress on finding the Changeling Queen soon. I know you’d be reluctant, but perhaps we should call Captain Armor back in…”

“No,” Celestia said bluntly. “Cadence deserves a honeymoon. That time in those caves is bound to have damaged her, and she cannot return to work like that. Some time away will heal her a bit, then once she’s back some care will be easier.”

Luna huffed. “Well, perhaps we should call in the Bearers…”

“No!” this one was nearly a yell. “I’ve already made Twilight clean up after too many of my mistakes. I will not force this on her beyond a last resort.”

Luna shook her head. “Dear sister, I hope you are not allowing your emotions to judge. This is a delicate situation. Especially considering where the changelings came from.”

Celestia actually groaned at that, massaging her temple with her hoof. “I thought for sure…” she began, the sighed. “I told Twilight that Discord’s not as clever as he likes to think he is, but apparently I’m not so clever either. I thought for sure if he was going to revive them, he would have had them around already. I should have expected he have a plan ready in case he didn’t succeed in breaking the Bearers.”

“Did you tell Twilight Sparkle the truth about them?”

“I did not. I saw no need to make her worry.”

The younger sister gaped. “Surely you jest. The changelings could very well be trying to free their creator.”

“I doubt it,” the elder sister noted. “We had the statue sitting right out in the gardens and it was never touched. No, I believe the Queen acted in her own self-interests, something I’m sure Discord will not appreciate if he is ever freed again.”

“It will not,” Luna said firmly. “We now know how the seal weakens, and can take steps to prevent it.”

Celestia couldn’t help but grin. “There’s that, I suppose. And perhaps the donations to the cleanup effort will help a deal.”

“Contributions?” the dark mare arched an eyebrow.

“Fancypants agreed to cover about a third of the damages, and Jet Set is setting up another charity auction of his own. Hoity Toity pledged ten percent of his commissions for the next month as well. The tax increase may be unnecessary.”

“I suppose that will be progress,” Luna nodded. “Still, is there anything we can do to stop these articles? Such disrespect undermines our crown.”

“I told you before, times have changed. At any rate, blocking such stories will only give them credibility. Now, is there anything else you came in here for?”

Luna kicked a hoof, looking somewhat embarrassed. “I suppose I simply wanted to talk out my frustrations. The things they say about you, about Twilight Sparkle…”

“Best get used to it,” Celestia sighed. “And don’t worry. There’s always some stories in the paper, and they inevitably fade away. We simply most continue on, and hopefully without any further hiccups.”

Scootaloo gulped down her milkshake, eager to cool off after a hard day of training. Unfortunately, she ended up trading heat for brain freeze, and had to rub her forehead a bit.

Rainbow Dash just grinned. “Drink up, squirt, you earned it.”

She grinned as her headache subsided and took another sip. “Can we train again tomorrow?” she asked eagerly.

Rainbow Dash leaned back a bit, looking out at Celestia’s sun setting on the horizon. The outdoor café looked good at dusk. “No can do, squirt. I’ve got to get back to work. We have a big storm we need to set up, and I’m going to be busy all day.”

“Oh,” Scootaloo said sadly.

“Besides, you should probably rest a day anyway. It was your first real workout, I wouldn’t want you straining anything.”

“Yeah, I guess,” the filly grumbled.

Rainbow Dash took a sip of her own milkshake before speaking. “Hey, kid? Listen, is… everything okay with you?”

Scootaloo used all her willpower to keep from tensing up. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, is there anything else bothering you? Anything at all?”

“No, nothing. I’m fine, really.” Scootaloo smiled. It looked a little forced.

“Alright,” Rainbow Dash answered, though she didn’t sound entirely convinced. “But if something does happen, you’d tell me, right?”

“Of course!” Scootaloo nodded.

Rainbow Dash gave a smile, then looked away from her. She stared into the distance for a few moments. “How did you get so good on that scooter anyway?” she asked, making conversation.

Scootaloo gave a shrug. “I figured if I couldn’t go fast in the air, going fast on the ground was the next best thing.”

“What about all those tricks?” the elder mare asked.

“I just started wondering if I could do certain things, and I kept trying them until I did it.”

“Good answer,” Rainbow Dash said, and she meant it. “You need to have that attitude. It’ll get you places.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that you keep going until you get it. As long as you’re not hurting anypony, you can do anything.”

“…That sounds so corny,” Scootaloo giggled.

Rainbow Dash shook her head sadly. “I know, and it’s a shame, because it’s true. The only difference between a loser and a champion is that the loser quits.”

“Does everything you say sound so cliché?”

Rainbow Dash shot her student a glare, but it quickly turned to a playful grin. She wrapped a foreleg around her neck and gave her a playful noogie. “You’re already getting sarcastic, kid. I’m rubbing off on ya.”

Scootaloo giggled at her idol’s playfulness and tried to push her off. No such luck. “Aw, come on…”

“To answer your question, yeah, a lot of what I’m going to teach you sounds cliché,” she released her hold. “But they got cliché because they’re true. Come on, kid, you should know better than to doubt me.”

“Alright,” Scootaloo grinned.

Rainbow Dash gulped down the last of her shake. “Well, kiddo, it’s getting late. Hate to leave ya like this, but I’ve got to get home. You want me to give you a lift?”

“No, thanks,” the filly answered, a little too quickly. “I have my scooter, remember?”

“Well, alright. I’ll see you around, pipsqueak.” Rainbow Dash took one last look at her student, and then took off to the sky, leaving her alone at the table.

Scootaloo took her last gulp. “Anything, huh?”

After thinking for a moment, she rose from the table, It would be night soon, and she still had one final stop to make that night.

Twilight’s quill scribbled furiously to jot down the information she had found. She had finally managed to find the procedures she needed, and could actually have something to show Rainbow Dash tomorrow. She considered going over to her home and hoof delivering it to her that very night, but decided against it. There was still no way of knowing if this was a legitimate emergency or a false alarm, and if the cyan mare had discovered something urgent she would have already dropped by.

She gave a small and tired smile at her find, patting Smartypants on the head. Even with Spike in his current state and potential problems with Scootaloo, this day at least had a silver lining. Her study buddy was back, and as juvenile as it was to think so, she couldn’t help but feel her research skills had improved by it sitting on the desk.

Dipping the quill back into ink, she continued writing. Constantly. The words kept coming. She focused on them. Anything to stop her from thinking of…

…Oh hay.

She sighed. Spike entered her mind again, much to her sadness and frustration. She tried to think logically. There was nothing she could do about that now, she had to push that out of her mind, had to focus on the matter in front of her, had to…

“Twilight?”

The purple unicorn jumped in surprise. She turned quickly, lighting up her horn in panic, only to stop when she saw who it was. “Scootaloo?”

The orange filly winced. “Sorry, Twilight. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“That’s alright,” the older mare grinned sheepishly, “I’ve just… been on edge since the wedding.”

Scootaloo bit her lip as if she had something she wanted to say, but was hesitant to do so. Twilight decided she was moving into uncomfortable areas and tried changing the subject. “So, what brings you to the library this late at night?”

“Well, I know it’s closing time and everything, but I was wondering… do you have a copy of the first Daring Do book?

A half an hour later Scootaloo was laying on her bed with the library’s copy of Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Stone. Not Twilight’s personal copy, which she was reluctant to lend to a filly, but the copy belonging to the city.

As she turned the page, she heard movement outside her bedroom door. Frightened, she hid the book under her pillow just as Speedy Delivery came through the door.

He looked at her daughter sternly for a moment before speaking. “What did you do today?”

The same question every night. She had a prepared answer. “I mostly just rode my scooter around. Apple Bloom and Sweetie were busy today, so…”

He nodded. “And you still didn’t come back home. Good girl, glad to see you can follow instructions.”

“Yes Daddy,” Scootaloo answered routinely.

“I know it’s hard,” he said in a reassuring manner, walking over to his daughter and placing a hoof on her shoulder. “But our work is important, and we can’t have you goofing around here while we do our special work.”

“I understand.”

“I know you do. Don’t worry, soon it’ll be all over, and things are going to get good for us. I’m going to succeed where so many ponies have failed. You want me to succeed, don’t you?”

“Yes, Daddy.”

“Good. Now, what do you say?”

“I love you, Daddy.”

Speedy Delivery grinned. “I know you do.”

Trouble Brewing

The six ponies laughed and giggled at the latest attempt at Twenty Questions, which had ended with Rainbow Dash and Applejack somehow guessing that Twilight was thinking of hoofball when the answer had been Starswirl the Bearded.

“Okay,” Rainbow Dash said. “I’m thinking of a pony…”

“Spitfire?” Rarity deadpanned.

“How - er, no,” the cyan mare stuttered, causing the group to laugh.

“Hey, Twilight, I’m starving, you got any more s’mores?” Pinkie asked.

“No problem,” she assured, rising to her hooves. She trotted over to her refrigerator and opened it.

Inside she found Gummy.

“What the?”

In a flash Gummy’s jaws opened wide, about three times wider than it should have, revealing a set of razor sharp teeth. He jumped up and bit at Twilight. Thankfully, she managed to back away in time, slamming the door shut.

“Twilight?” Applejack called. “Is everythin’ alright?”

“I think Gummy just ate all my food.”

“Well that’s alright, you’ll do.”

Before Twilight could be asked what that meant, she was tackled to the ground. She looked up to see Applejack and her friends standing over her with hungry looks on their faces. “What are you?”

At that instant the forms of her friends twisted and contorted, turning into the forms of Changelings, all of whom looked ready to devour her.

Letting out a yell, she summoned her magic and swatted the offending creatures away. They were stunned for only a moment, then continued coming after her. In terror she leapt up and raced out of her front door, and into the darkened streets of Ponyville. She called for help, but received no answer.

She ran, ran, ran, not even looking back to see if they were still following her. Finally, she came to her friends… her real ones, hopefully.

“Oh, I’m so glad to see you guys. There are Changelings after me!”

“Uh huh, sure,” Rainbow Dash snorted as she returned to the Daring Do book she was reading in mid-flight.

”Darling, really,” Rarity sneered, smoothing out a wrinkle in her Gala dress. “We haven’t the time for your delusions.”

Twilight was baffled. “Wh-what?”

Pinkie hopped up and down, babbling frantically. “Ooh, ooh, is this a pretend game? Let me get Rocky and we can…”

“Don’t waste yer time, Pinkie,” Applejack groaned. “We ain’t got time for your shenanigans. I got applebuckin’ ta do.”

“But…” Twilight began, only to find herself receiving a hard buck from the cowpony’s hind legs. She shook her head, trying to ease the pain, and was shocked to see that her friends had walked into the distance after such a short time.

“Wait!” she cried, only to find herself being pulled down by the five Changelings. Had she not been scared for her life, she would have found the sight of them suddenly wearing dinner napkins and carrying silverware almost comical.

Suddenly, Twilight was on a giant dinner plate, hogtied. One Changeling stuffed an apple in her mouth. Struggling against her bonds, she let out a muffled scream as one of the Changelings brought down its knife.

Twilight let out a piercing scream, bolting upright. She took several deep breaths, trying to get air back into their lungs. She was in her bed, completely safe. At least, she hoped that was the case.

She glanced to the side to see if she had woken Spike, only to remember that Spike wasn’t sleeping in the same room anymore.

She sighed, flopping back down on her pillow. Using her magic, she levitated Smartypants off her bedside table and into her waiting forearms. When she was a foal, it helped soothe her after such dreams. Here, however, it was not having the same effect.

She knew the reason. This wasn’t a dream about the Headless Horse chasing her or Slender Mane hiding in her closet. These threats were very real, not stories started by unqualified parents to get their foals to behave. It was never something she could truly wake up from.

And, of course, it was because Smartypants was a poor substitute for Spike. The doll had found itself being used less and less once the baby dragon came into her life. Even as an infant, he seemed to instinctively know when his caretaker was upset and would crawl up next to her in an attempt to comfort her. Now her foalhood comfort seemed a bit… weaker in comparison.

She closed her eyes again, letting out a low moan. There was so much on her mind sleep seemed like an impossibility. Still, she had already lost one night to bad dreams, she was determined not to lose another.

Celestia’s Sun shone into the library as a weary Twilight poured herself a glass of orange juice. Spike was in trouble, Scootaloo might be in trouble, the political situation was getting worse. She didn’t think she could handle any more surprises.

At that moment, the door to the library burst open, and Big Macintosh stormed in. “I want that doll back!”

“You can’t have it!” Twilight said defensively. “She’s my study buddy!”

“You threw her out!” he exclaimed.

“I… used her for an experiment,” she defended, glaring at him.

“Same thing,” he said, his face getting closer to hers.

“Is not!” she shot back, leaning in.

“Give her back!”

“Make me!”

The two stared at each other intently for a few seconds.

Then, suddenly, their forelegs were around each other as their lips touched, doing a dance…

Pinkie!

“Why doesn’t anypony let me finish a story?”

“’Cause they’re ridiculous!” Applejack snapped with a blush. “I really don’t wanna hear about Twilight makin’ out with my brother!”

“Oh, I see! I know what I did wrong.”

”I-I’m sorry I got a little crazy taking my doll back,” Twilight sulked. “I’ve just been so stressed out lately…”

Applejack put a hoof under her chin and forced her to look into her eyes. “I know just the kind of relief you need, sugarcube.” Slowly, she brought them together, until their lips…

“PINKIE!”

“What? I fixed the story! See, now you could be with Twilight…”

“I don’t like Twilight that way,” the cowpony said through gritted teeth, her face now bright red.

“Oh, Applejack, denial isn’t healthy. I mean, you got so upset when Twilight was with somepony else, and you came over here to talk about Twilight…”

“I came here to buy some more supplies,” she groaned, gesturing at the cart filled with flour and other supplies. “I told you, Apple Bloom’s cooking didn’t go so well. I was just worried, is all. Twi looked a mess yesterday, and she’s been wantin’ her doll back but didn’t tell me ‘bout it. Why not?”

“Maybe she’s embarrassed about still wanting her doll?” Pinkie suggested.

“I don’t think so. If she was embarrassed ‘bout wantin’ it back, I don’t think she’d ‘a made quite a scene when she left yesterday.”

“Well, maybe you should talk to her. You’ve got to look out for your mare…”

“Pink… you…” Applejack sighed. “Ya know what? I really wish I could live in your world for a day. I really do.”

“I get that a lot,” the pink pony said obliviously.

The orange pony sighed, lifting up the cart. “I’m going ta go see Twi tonight. I’m way behind on the applebuckin’, so it can’t be put off anymore, and Apple Bloom’s not workin’ today, since I kept her busy yesterday.”

“So it’s one of those nose to the grindstone days, huh?”

“’xactly,” Applejack muttered, without her usual enthusiasm. Normally she loved the long days, but not while things to worry about lingered in the back of her mind. “Just keep out of trouble, okay?”

“Yes sir, ma’am sir!” Pinkie saluted.

Applejack rolled her eyes, then pulled the cart away from Sugarcube Corner. As Pinkie waved her friend goodbye, Mrs. Cake walked up to her.

“Applejack seems down. Do you know what’s wrong?”

Pinkie gave a sad sigh. “Unrequited love.”

Several feet away, Applejack had the sudden urge to run back and buck Pinkie, but fought it.

Mrs. Cake opened her mouth, but decided it was better if she didn’t ask. “Derpy just got here with the mail. There’s a letter for you.”

Pinkie perked up, but her foster mother put a hoof up. “I don’t care how little mail you get, we’re not throwing an ‘I Got a Letter’ party.”

Pinkie drooped. “Can I at least have a special cupcake?”

Mrs. Cake ruffled her hair affectionately. “Always.”

Back at the Golden Oaks Library, the real Twilight was at her bathroom sink, splashing water in her face. It had been a second restless night, and she was almost glad all her friends would be busy today. She didn’t have the energy to deal with Rarity’s dramatics, or Rainbow Dash’s theatrics, or Pinkie Pie’s enthusiasm.

She brushed her mane into form. At least, a form that she considered good enough for staying inside all day. She then mentally made a checklist on what she had to research today. Look through some old court cases of foal abuse and intervention for Rainbow Dash, research on offensive spells for whatever next encounter the Bearers had to face. Maybe now she could convince the others to practice combat a little more often.

She was stirred out of her thoughts by her front door opening, its bell reaching her even upstairs. She quickly composed herself and broke into a half-run, getting to the library’s foyer in time to see the Cutie Mark Crusaders enter.

“Oh, girls, what brings you here? Want to look up something for your latest endeavor?”

Scootaloo looked enthusiastic at the suggestion, but Sweetie Belle spoke first. “Actually, we’re here to see Spike.”

Twilight was silent for a moment. She tilted her head in curiosity. “What brought this on?”

“We figured, since we hadn’t seen him in awhile, we could just hang out,” Apple Bloom answered immediately. It sounded rehearsed, or at least planned.

The lavender unicorn was silent for a moment as the three foals squirmed, seeming uncomfortable by her scrutiny. “He’s upstairs,” she said at last.

“Thanks, Twilight,” they said quickly. Before the older mare could process this, the three were already halfway up the stairs, anxious to get away from her curiosity.

Twilight thought about following them up to see if she could overhear anything that could help her. But she decided against it. She had raised Spike to be attentive and alert, and he would undoubtedly have his defenses up. She would leave them alone, let them talk, and hopefully something would come of it.

Upstairs, the three foals stopped running, catching their breaths.

“Man, I thought for sure Twilight was going to figure us out,” Sweetie said with relief.

“She has,” Scootaloo said bluntly. “Your sisters told you she figured out something. I still say we should…”

She was cut off by Apple Bloom’s hoof in her mouth. “Don’t say it, especially where Spike can hear you,” she scolded.

Sweetie ignored her friend’s antics. She walked to the door Spike was hiding behind and gave it a knock.

No answer.

“Spike, it’s us,” she pleaded.

“…Sweetie?” Spike’s voice said hoarsely.

“Yeah, it’s us, Spike. Let us in.”

“Is Twilight there with you?” he asked cautiously.

The three fillies all gave annoyed looks, but hid it well. “No.”

After a pause, the door unlocked and opened, with Spike motioning them to come in.

Pinkie had bounded up to Sugarcube Corner’s main counter where Mr. Cake had laid the mail, as he did every morning before the shop opened. Then again, she bounded just about everywhere, except on certain occasions. She picked up the letter and examined it.

At that point, something that only happened once in a blue moon occurred. Pinkie Pie froze. She recognized the return address.

Carefully, and very reluctantly, she opened the letter with her teeth, allowing the simple parchment to fall on the counter. She moved it into place, and scanned it quickly.

Her stomach lurched.

“Pinkie?” Mrs. Cake called cheerfully, oblivious to her child’s uneasiness. “Who’s it from?”

In a very quiet, very un-Pinkie whisper, she answered. “My parents.”

Spike looked at the three fillies as if they were up to something, which wasn’t an unfair assumption where the three were concerned. “I guess you’re over here to tell me to talk to Twilight, to quit moping, blah, blah.”

“Well duh,” Scootaloo answered, only to get an annoyed nudge from Apple Bloom.

Sweetie placed a hoof on his shoulder. “Spike, it’s like we told you, this whole thing is ridiculous. You should just…”

“Look, if you just came by to tell me what you told me at the wedding, then just leave. I’m not in the mood.”

The three gave another disappointed look. “Well,” Sweetie said at last, “we wanted to hang out with you today. We figured it would help you feel better.”

Spike kept his arms folded, drumming his fingers on his upper arm. Finally, he sighed. “I guess it’s better than reading up on obscure unicorn history all day.”

His three guests raised eyebrows in fascination. “Why would you even be reading…”

“A gift from Twilight,” Spike said suddenly. “Not that I was grateful for it until now.” He added the last sentence with a bitterness that he made sure the Crusaders heard.

“Yeah, we get it, you’re sad,” Scootaloo rolled her eyes. She had the breath knocked out of her by Apple Bloom with another nudge.

“Come on, let’s play a game. Twilight keeps board games around, doesn’t she? She has to have something good.”

“They’re in the next room. One of you can go and get them.”

There was silence. “Why don’t you go get them?” Apple Bloom asked at last.

“Because that would require leaving this room, and Twilight might corner me.”

Scootaloo’s hoof hit her face. Her fellow Crusaders were more restrained, but they still looked visibly annoyed. “Oh, this is so… fine,” Scootaloo rolled her eyes, marching out of the room. “But we’re playing what I want.”

Pinkie quickly and nervously munched her cupcake. An extra special one, the Cakes had assured. After all, this was no little thing. Her foster parents waited patiently for her to finish her meal, occasionally glancing back at the letter.

“Well,” Mr. Cake said at last. “What are you going to do, Pinkie?”

“I… I don’t know,” Pinkie stammered, sounding like a child begging her mother to make it all better. “What do you guys think?”

They both looked at each other solemnly. They had been expecting this. “Pinkie, this is your decision to make, not ours,” Mrs. Cake began. “But if you must know, they’re just asking for a talk. I think you can manage that.”

“After…” Pinkie began, but the words died in her throat. She placed a hoof on her stomach. “My tummy hurts.”

Mrs. Cake rubbed her back. “Do you need the day off?”

“No, no,” Pinkie said quickly. “I always think best when I’m baking. And I have a doozy to think about.”

They nodded. Seeing Pinkie baking was almost surreal. Pinkie went about her actions with pep and vigor, though she could almost pass for normal.

“If you’re sure…”

She nodded. “I’m sure. I need to think about this.” She ate the last bite of her cupcake, throwing the wrapper in a small garbage pail.

Time passed in the library with silence. Spike and the Crusaders played their games, starting with Battlecloud, which Scootaloo picked from the logic that it was Rainbow Dash’s favorite, to checkers, to a game of Twenty Questions. Spike even talked them into a round of chess, which he showed surprising skill at.

Twilight kept herself busy, first with her studies, then on looking up more information for Rainbow Dash, and all throughout she had to fight the urge to go upstairs and eavesdrop on Spike. At lunchtime she brought them up some hay sandwiches and gemstones, as well as four mugs of apple juice. When Spike refused to open the door she simply left the tray on the floor and left. She came back an hour later to see it empty, so at least they had eaten.

Noon wore into afternoon, then early evening. Looking at the clock on the wall, Apple Bloom sighed. “We better git goin’ Spike, it’s getting’ late.”

“Alright then. Just make sure Twilight doesn’t…”

“Spike, this whole thing is stupid!” Scootaloo finally snapped, stomping a hoof on the floor.

“Scootaloo,” Sweetie tried to chastise, but it came out halfhearted, if even that. She was thinking the same thing, and was grateful her more aggressive friend was speaking.

“Look, I told you, I can’t tell Twilight…”

“You don’t have to tell Twilight, she already knows something is wrong,” the pegasus pointed out. “She’s not going to just forget that something’s bothering you.”

“So, I can just avoid her…”

“No you can’t!” she growled in frustration. “Spike, you both live in the same house, you can’t just keep avoiding her forever!”

“Scoots…” Apple Bloom began, but her friend cut her off.

“No, I’m sick of this! Spike, Twilight can teleport, can’t she? She could get in here at any time! You can’t just hide in here forever!”

Spike’s eyes widened as he realized her point. “I… I…”

“And even if she couldn’t, she’d find some way of talking to you. She’s a genius, remember? You’re an idiot if you think you can just run from her.” With that, she turned around and walked out of the room in a huff.

Spike was visibly shaking.

Sweetie sighed. “Spike… Scootaloo’s right. You can’t hide in here forever. I think you should go talk to Twilight about how you feel. Your gift is at Carousel Boutique when you want it back.” She followed her friend out, casting a last worried look at Spike.

Apple Bloom shuffled awkwardly. “Just… think about it, okay?” she said at last, leaving the room in a fast walk to avoid any more awkwardness.

With her shift over, Pinkie trotted out of Sugarcube Corner. She had thought over her decision and decided to tell at least one of her friends, it was only a question of who.

Twilight and Rainbow Dash were worried about Spike and Scootaloo, respectively. Rarity was busy catching up on her order from Fancypants, and Applejack was grappling with her unrequited love for Twilight.

That left Fluttershy.

Talking it Out

Unlike her friends, Fluttershy had enjoyed the last two days with in relative peace. After breakfast the previous day she had stayed around her cottage, feeding her animal friends and catching up on her light reading. Her mind constantly drifted back to the others, wondering if they were alright with their various troubles.

Her silent questions were soon answered by Pinkie walking up to her cottage. Seeing her, the pegasus was about to greet her friend, but paused.

Pinkie was walking, not bouncing, or skipping, or whatever cheerful word for walking you could use. She actually looked worried.

“Um, Pinkie, hello,” she said on instinct. “What can I do for you today?”

“Hey Fluttershy. Can I talk to you about something? It’s really, really important, and you’re the only one who isn’t too busy with something else.”

“Of course. Come inside. Would you like some tea?”

“No thanks, I’m not really thirsty,” the earth pony explained as her friend led her to an outside table. Fluttershy hadn’t let her into her cottage for months, knowing how she would rile up her animals.

“What’s wrong, Pinkie?”

The pink pony shifted the grass underneath her with a hoof. “Fluttershy... you remember that time we told the fillies how we all got out cutie marks?”

“Um, yeah. Why?”

She looked down, as if she were being scolded. “I... I wasn’t telling them everything,” she confessed, as if she had just committed a major breach of her friend’s trust.

Fluttershy tilted her head in curiosity. “Why was that?”

“Well... I didn’t want to talk about it... it wasn’t important to how I got my cutie mark anyway... I hadn’t even told the Cakes about it until the night we got back from the wedding.”

Fluttershy could sense this was important. “Um, what happened? Um, if you don’t mind me asking.”

Pinkie took a deep breath. “Well...”

”Surprise! You like it? It’s called a party!”

Clyde and Sue Pie just gaped at the spectacle, while their two elder daughters shifted nervously, their eyes darting back and forth between the spectacle Pinkie had laid out. For a few, long moments, none of them moved.

Then, there was finally a reaction. Clyde grimaced. He marched over to the table where his youngest had placed a cake. With a quick flick of his nose, he overturned the spread, sending cake and punch crashing to the floor.

“Wh-what?” Pinkie said, hurt. Anything further was interrupted by a yell of pain as Sue clamped her teeth down on her ear. With great force she dragged her daughter out of the silo as her husband continued to destroy the set-up, while Inkie and Blinkie looked on with fear at their younger sister’s fate.

Twilight knocked on the door Spike had barricaded himself behind. “Spike... Come, I have ice cream.”

No answer.

“I’ll sprinkle some sapphires over it,” she offered.

Still no answer.

She sighed. She pressed against the door. “Spike, I know you can hear me... listen, remember when Owlowiscious moved in? You got all jealous and mopey, and it turned out the reason you were so upset was a misunderstanding? That’s what’s going on now. You haven’t done anything that could make me stop loving you. I doubt anything could.

“Even since the day I hatched you, and you crawled up onto my back, I’ve taken care of you, and I haven’t regretted it once. I love you, and I hate seeing you unhappy. Please... for me, come out and talk.”

No answer yet again.

“Spike!” Twilight croaked. It was somewhere between a sobbing plea and a forceful command. “Please, just...please...”

No answer.

She gritted her teeth as she held back tears. She took a deep breath, trying to get some composure in her voice. "Do you really want to keep hiding in that room?" she asked.

She didn't get an answer.

She held back an angry grunt. She wanted, so bad, to just teleport inside and confront him. She knew the time for giving him a chance to talk was passing. This needed to end.

One more chance. That's all he would get. Tomorrow morning, she would get the story out of him, whether he was willing or not.

Trotting away from the door, she sighed and walked downstairs, ready to continue her work. She was surprised, then, to see Applejack sitting in her living room, glancing over a book she had left open.

"Oh, I didn't hear you come in," Twilight said, a bit alarmed. "Did Big Mac send you?"

"No he didn't. Mah brother's getting his dues for stealing that doll from yah, don't worry. But I still wanted to talk to you about it."

The unicorn shifted uncomfortably. "What's there to talk about? Your brother took my doll, and I took it back."

"Did you ever just ask him for it back?"

"Yeah, after the Crusaders published that article about him, I found out he had it. I asked him for it back, but he just told me that I threw it out, and it was his now. I've been waiting for a chance to steal it back ever since."

"Uh-huh. And why did you never just ask me to get it back for ya?"

Twilight suddenly looked ashamed of herself. She kicked at the floor like a child being interrogated by her teacher. "Well... I mean, he is your brother. I... I guess I thought you'd take his side on the whole thing."

"What?" Applejack asked incredulously. "How... you know I don't let bein' part of mah family stop me from doin' the right thing. Twi, how could you think that?"

"I'm sorry, I just... I wanted to be careful about getting her back."

Applejack looked at her friend a moment, then she sighed. "I know what the problem is."

Twilight blinked. "What?"

"Why yer so wound up all the time. It took me awhile, but thinkin' 'bout it ever since you ran off with that doll made everythin' come together."

"...Well, what is it?"

"Twi, yer always tryin' to be a good friend. Now that's a good thing, and it's one of the things I like about you. But you do it by tryin' to solve everypony's problems all at once, and by yerself."

"Well, yeah. Isn't that was a good friend does?"

"Not the way you do it. You seem to think you need to be able to do everythin', and act a certain way, or we're not going to like you anymore."

"That's not true!" Twilight snapped.

"Oh really?" Applejack arched an eyebrow. "What about that incident with the tickets? You were all so worried we wouldn't like you if we didn't get to go."

"That was barely a week after we met! I hadn't exactly made a lot of friends by then, how was I supposed to know?"

"Well, what about when Trixie rolled into town? You thought just casting a few spells would get us to hate you. That's one of the most absurd things I ever heard. After we fought and beat NightMare Moon together, how could you think that?"

"It wasn't my proudest moment, alright?" Twilight snapped.

“And whenever th’ Princess comes to visit, you drive everypony crazy because you micromanage ‘em on getting everything ready. She’s not gonna...”

“Please,” Twilight said a bit forcefully, but there was just enough of a pleading tone to get the earth pony to stop. “The Princess and I... we talked the morning after the wedding. I... I told her I forgave her, and... I apologized to her too. I’m the only pony she has, and it hurt her every time I thought she was going to hurt me.”

Applejack smiled, putting a comforting hoof around her shoulder. “It’s the same with us. You always worry about not bein’ a good friend, but ya already are. Listen, your real problem is you’re so obsessed with helpin’ us that you end up hurtin’ yourself.”

“What do you mean?”

The cowpony pointed to the open book lying on the table. “You got a lot a’ books out for Rainbow Dash. Nearly everythin’ on the table is about them fancy laws she asked ya to look up.”

“Well, yeah. I’m doing what a friend asked me to do.”

“Somethin’ she told ya you could take your time on,” Applejack reminded sternly. “And I’m not seein’ any books out here on how young’uns think. Shouldn’t you be lookin’ up a way to deal with Spike?”

Twilight paused for a moment, looking at her friend. Then she sighed. “Look... I know Spike better than a book could ever hope to. When I first got him, I tried reading every child psychology book I could get my hooves on, but Princess Celestia advised against it. She told me that books could give an overall impression, but I should be raising Spike out of love. That’s what I do.”

“Well, can’t argue with ya there. I never look into them fancy things when raisin’ Apple Bloom. But still, what have you done about Spike?”

“I’ve been trying to get through to him,” the unicorn protested. She immediately quieted herself, glancing back to the stairs. Seeing her charge wasn’t listening, she leaned in and whispered, “Tomorrow morning is going to be the last straw. Either he tells me willingly, or I’m going to sit him down and make him tell me.”

“Good answer,” Applejack approved with a nod. “Well, I gotta admit, I was wrong on my first point, but there’s somethin’ else.”

“Oh? And what’s that?”

“You’re not sleepin’ at night. Don’t think I don’t notice. You looked a mess last mornin’, and you look even worse now. How much shut-eye have you gotten since we got back?”

“...Two, maybe three hours,” Twilight admitted with a nod. “But I’m just so worried about Spike...”

“Twi, don’t give me those horseapples. Yeah, yer worried about Spike, but that shouldn’t mean yer losin’ so much sleep.” The earth pony took a deep breath. “Twi... are you havin’ nightmares?”

There was a silence. Then Twilight put on a smile that actually impressed Applejack with how incredibly unconvincing it was. “What makes you say that?”

Applejack just arched an eyebrow. “Well, we all had nightmares after Discord, and when we walked out on you we were pretty much doin’ the same thing to ya again.”

“...No, I forgave you all, remember? It’s not still bothering me.”

“Twi.” It wasn’t shouted, but there was still force in it.

“...Please don’t be mad, Applejack. You were all so upset after the wedding, I didn’t want to make you all upset again.”

“And that’s your problem,” Applejack said finally, hanging her head solemnly. “Look, I ain’t gonna lie. Yes, I hate that you’re still in pain ‘cause I messed up, but I wanna know ‘bout it so I can fix it. You’re so worried about us you’re lettin’ yourself get hurt. You’ve always been a great friend, but you’ve never given’ us much of a chance to return the favor.”

“Sure I have...”

“Twi, please listen. You’re gettin’ more an’ more open, I see it ev’ry day. But you still don’t open up enough. Trixie, Fluttershy bein’ a model, a lot a’ things could have been avoided if you had just been more open with us. We didn’t even know you had a brother until about half a month ago. You’re tryin’ to be perfect for us ‘cause you think that’s how ta be a good friend, but you’re wrong. Part of it is lettin’ us see the real you, so we can help ya get better.”

Twilight kicked at the floor as if she were a filly again, being lightly scolded by her parents. Applejack put a foreleg around her shoulders. “You can be open with us... but I guess we didn’t help our case much when you had that breakdown... or at the weddin’. But I want to make it right. Come on, Twi, you’re always there for us... let me be there for you.”

Twilight broke down, crying. Almost immediately she flung herself at Applejack, her forelegs locking around the cowpony’s neck. Having expected this, the blonde held her back, allowing her friend to weep into her mane.

“There, there... just let it out,” she soothed, patting her head.

“I... I don’t think I’d be having them,” Twilight choked out. “But... the wedding just... it... made me think of... of Discord. I’m not mad at any of you, I swear, I just...”

Applejack squeezed her harder. “I know, sugarcube. It’s just somethin’ ya need to work through. That’s what I’m here for.”

“In... in all of them, I’m in trouble. And you all ignore me. You’re even cheering on for my death in one. I...”

She sobbed again. Applejack nuzzled her. “I’d never hate you, Twi... none of us would.”

“I know...it’s stupid to worry about...”

“No, it’s somethin’ natural to worry about after everythin’ you’ve been through. Needin’ to lean on us is nothin’ to be ashamed of. I’m just... I’m sorry we haven’t always been there...”

“Don’t start that again,” Twilight said, a little strength returning to her voice. “There’s enough drama around here lately.”

Applejack smiled. “Come on, keep talkin’. And when you’re done, let’s set you down, you need to get some rest.”

Pinkie lay on her bed, crying harder than she had ever remembered doing. Her flanks felt like they were on fire, a testament to her mother’s strength with a paddle. But the constant stinging was nothing compared to her father’s cruel words.

“This is what you get a cutie mark for? Dancing around and pursuing frivolous celebrations? I did not raise you to be so petty.”

“I... I was only trying to make you smile...” Pinkie blubbered.

“By wasting time? Bah, you’re a disgrace! No daughter of mine is going to throw her life away! Tomorrow, you’re doing double your chores! I’ll work this nonsense out of you!”

Fluttershy cupped her mouth with her hooves. “Pinkie...” she said slowly.

The earth pony was crying a bit. “I... I know. I didn’t tell the fillies because it wasn’t really important to what they wanted to know.”

Fluttershy was tearing up. “Pinkie... when I was ‘New Fluttershy’... the things I said...”

Pinkie felt a lump in her throat. “Y... yeah. It felt like he was...”

“I’msorryI’msorryI’msorry,” the pegasus wept.

“No, no, please don’t cry, Fluttershy, please. I forgave you for that.”

The yellow pony wiped her eyes. “I...I..."

"Fluttershy, I need you now. Please don't get sad."

"I...okay, Pinkie. Please, what else happened?”

An Interlude of Sorts

Pinkie walked out of Fluttershy's front door, her head hanging down somewhat. "Thanks for listening," she said again.

"It was no problem," Fluttershy assured. "If you can't tell the others in time, I'll go with you to see your parents."

For once, Pinkie wasn't jumping for joy at the good news. "You think I should tell them anyway? You know, even if everything with Spike and Scootaloo doesn't get better?"

"Well, um, I wouldn't want to trouble them. But, you can tell them, if you think you should..."

In a rare occurrence, Pinkie actually looked annoyed at the non-answer. "Well, maybe everything will be okay by then. Who knows, Twilight's probably gotten through to Spike already.

Twilight looked around. No matter where she looked, there was nothingness. Just a white abyss as far as the eye could see. It was rather disorienting. Fearing for her mental stability, she turned quickly, hoping to see something.

She did, though she did not realize it immediately. It was a door, and it was as white a the abyss, so much so that even looking right at it, Twilight wasn’t completely sure it was there. Carefully, as if something was going to jump out at her, she moved a hoof forward. It hit the door, confirming its solidity. She then moved her hoof to the side and pressed forward. It passed through nothingness.

Carefully, she moved forward, making a circle around the doorframe. She saw the same door on the backside. Completing the three hundred and sixty degree trek, she paused for a moment of contemplating.

Finally, carefully, she used her magic to turn the doorknob and open it.

To her surprise, there was a room inside. Her mind nearly broke trying to process this. She circled the door again and found the other side open to what appeared to be the same room.

Completing another circle, she peeked through the door. It seemed to be a library of some kind. All she could see was two rows of shelves filled from top to bottom with big thick books, going so tall she could hardly see the top.

Tentatively, she stepped inside, and found almost immediately that there were more shelves. Rows and rows of them fanned out to either side of her, going on farther than she could see.

“I’m in Paradise,” Twilight thought. “...I think.”

Carefully, she levitated a book off the shelf and brought it to her face. It displayed a headshot of a pony, a brown stallion, who was smiling at nothing in particular. She cracked open the book to a random page.

”He bit into the toast and chewed, then he went back to reading his newspaper. Then he bit into his toast again...”

Twilight skimmed down and found it all a detailed description of him eating breakfast. She flipped through a few more pages, only seeing small, idle chit chat with friends, long days working on the field, and some rather embarrassing parts of what he and his wife had done. She finally hit the last page, where he died peacefully in his sleep at the age of 74.

She put the book up and pulled out another one. It, too, had a picture of a pony on the cover, a blue pegasus mare. She flipped through the book and found it equally dull, as if the writer had deemed this ordinary pony worthy of documenting everything about her.

She put the book up and looked at the shelves again. What was this place?

She trotted to the end of the aisle. At first, she could hardly see it. But as she got closer, she saw something. At the end of the aisle was a room that appeared round, and she could scarcely make out a figure there.

She moved closer, seeing it was a white pony, barely standing out against the white wall. What did stand out, however, was the movement above her. Several objects circled the air, creating a funnel around the stationary figure. As she moved closer, she saw it had a horn. A unicorn, then. With a red mane, messy and tied in a ponytail.

Then she saw movement at her sides, and froze. Wings... an alicorn.

“You might as well show yourself,” the pony said. “I know you’re there.”

Twilight tensed up, every muscle locking in place. Her eyes darted around. What to do, what to do...

“If I was going to hurt you, I would have done it already.”

Twilight loosened a little. She stepped forward, never taking her eyes off the mare. She was big, as big as Celestia and Luna, though she held none of their royal grace. Quite the reverse, this alicorn looked overworked. Her fur had no sheen, her mane was a tangled mess, and her blue eyes had bags under them, as if she had never slept. Her cutie mark was a simple quill in an ink well. It took her a moment to realize why she would be marked so. The funnel above her was composed entirely of books, each with a different pony’s face on it. At each tome was a quill, writing furiously.

“Who are you?”

“I was hoping you could tell me,” the alicorn said with a yawn. “My name seems to have slipped my mind some few thousand years ago.”

“That’s not what I meant,” Twilight said, slightly annoyed. “What are you?”

“Just call me ‘The Keeper’. I keep stories.”

“I’ve read your stories. No offense, they were boring.”

“They can be,” Keeper sighed, bringing a book to her. Twilight gaped. It was her picture on the cover. “Not everypony has a story as exciting as yours.”

Twilight stuttered to speak. “You’ve recorded... everything about me?”

“Yes I have. Your birth, hatching Spike, NightMare Moon, Discord, the Changeling Queen, the time you wet your bed and hid the sheets because you were embarrassed...”

“I... I did not!” Twilight shrieked, her face reddening.

The Keeper only smirked. "If you say so."

Still reeling from embarrassment, she looked up into the funnel of books. Seeing this, the Keeper pulled six more from their paths and brought them to Twilight’s attention. Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Spike all decorated their covers.

Twilight looked at them for a moment, then gazed back into the funnel. She saw, in the middle, were three incredibly thick books, displaying Celestia, Luna, and Discord.

“Wait... why are you writing for Discord? He’s trapped in stone!”

“He still thinks, schemes, fantasizes. If I told you half the things he wants to do to you once he’s free, you’d have nightmares. I mean, even worse than you’ve been having.”

Twilight felt a chill go down her back. She looked up at the funnel again and saw another book, this one thick as well. Unlike the others, there were several pictures on this one, and one of them she recognized.

“Dr. Whooves?”

“Yeah...now that story's interesting,” the Keeper chuckled. “Hard to keep track of, too.”

Twilight shook her head. "So... how did I get here? The last I remember, I was in my house with Applejack."

"You still are," the alicorn informed, lighting up her horn. A screen appeared in front of Twilight, showing what appeared to be her in her bed. Her earth pony friend was laying there with her, still holding her in a comforting hug. She was asleep as well.

"So... I'm dreaming?"

"In a way," the Keeper said.

"I'm really just in my bed with Applejack?"

"Your body is."

"So, if I'm dreaming, this isn't real, right?" Twilight said confidently.

"Oh, it's real, I assure you," the Keeper noted, closing the window. "Your body is in the library, but your consciousness is here with me."

"So... it's not a dream?"

"No, it's a dream."

"But you said it was real!"

"Correct."

"Look, is this a dream, or is it real?"

"Yes."

"...Is there some sort of rule that says nothing in my life can be straightforward?"

"All I have to do is sit here and write about ponies doing things. I have to get my fun somewhere," the alicorn winked.

Twilight groaned, rubbing her temple. "Okay, I'll play along for now and assume this is real. Why did you bring me here?"

"I didn't. You came of your own will."

Twilight's head felt like it was going to split in two. "Okaaaay... I have no clue how I got here. Could you please explain?"

"A pony with a destiny such as yours should be able to travel here at any point, but you had certain... roadblocks preventing you from getting here. Your inability to accept anything that isn't backed by magical theory, your unwillingness to let others in, all prevented you from traveling here before now. That changed last night when you let Applejack talk to you. You still have a way to go in conquering your own problems, but it's a start. Of course, that is only half of what it takes. There has to be something you want badly enough to come here and get it."

"Something I want?"

"Indeed. You want something so badly you brought yourself here.”

“And where, exactly, is here?”

“That’s a complicated question,” the alicorn mused.

“Of course it is,” Twilight sighed. She thought for a moment. Her eyes widened slightly. “Am I... in the Source?”

“A good guess,” the Keeper commended. “You might hate me for this, but the answer is both yes and no. The Source is what gives me my power, and what gave me my job. However, you are not in the Source proper. The only way a pony can enter that place is to take the Trials.”

“So, was that it? You were an ordinary pony once who took the Trials?”

“I don’t remember, honestly,” the alicorn sighed. “I’ve been recording the lives of every creature since time began, but I can't remember anything about my own story. For all I know, I’m being punished with this duty.”

“I can imagine,” the unicorn said sympathetically. She kicked the white tile with her hoof, unsure of what to say.

“Don’t cry for me, I don't mind it. Now, you came here because you want something badly. Tell me, what is it?"

Twilight racked her brain. "...I'm not sure. I guess I want ponies to accept Spike, I want my friends to be happy, I want to make Celestia proud of me..."

"Living for others, how noble," the Keeper nodded sagely, though there was a hint of sarcasm in her voice that made the unicorn scowl.

"Yeah, well, unless you can magically change the political climate of Equestria, I don't see how this can help me."

"I cannot. It's forbidden of me to directly interfere with the lives of mortals. I'm a mere record keeper. But you can."

“So, how can I do that?”

“Oh, I think you know,” the Keeper replied cryptically.

Twilight’s hoof hit her forehead. “Of course, I don’t get a straight answer.”

“You have one, it’s been staring you in the face since you were a filly.”

“And what is it?”

“Something very close to you.”

“What is it?”

“An answer in plain sight.”

“What. Is. It.”

“What you’ve been seeking.”

“...You just like annoying ponies, don’t you?”

“Well, yes,” the Keeper noted smugly. “But like I said, I can't directly interfere with the lives of mortals. I can only point you in the right direction.”

Twilight moaned. “And I’m guessing even if I knew the answer, it would still be a long road.”

“That’s right. You still have a lot of growing to do before you’re ready. You’re powerful, but not quite powerful enough. You’re wise for your years, but not as wise as you need to be.”

“So... I came here to find out I need to keep doing what I’ve been doing?”

“For right now, it seems so. You are not yet ready to utilize me.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means the ultimate purpose of this meeting is not yet clear, to either of us. I cannot tell you just how far you will accomplish your goals."

Twilight sighed. "Can you tell me anything at all that can help me right now? Like why Spike keeps avoiding me? Or if anything is wrong with Scootaloo?"

"For Scootaloo, I can only say that Rainbow Dash is on the right track. As for Spike, before you sleep tomorrow night, you will know the answer, and it will be another step toward becoming who you were meant to be."

"Who I was meant to be? What does that..."

"Twilight, I'm going to tell you now, were I to explain what I meant, you would refuse to believe me. At any rate, I am forbidden to. Telling you the full truth would be too great an interference to allow."

Another shiver ran down her spine. She gulped. "You know...back when I was a filly, I would have jumped for joy to hear I was so important...actually, not would have, did... Celestia told me I would do so many great things, and I was so excited. Then we fought NightMare Moon, where I could have been killed. That was an eye opener. Then Discord, where everything didn't go back to normal once the bad guy was defeated. And then, with the Changeling Queen, I learned that not even my friendship with the others was completely safe...or is it? I want to think something like this won't happen again, but...."

"That is the nature of life," the Keeper nodded. "Just like a diamond is made from pressure, great ones are made through trials."

"Great. I enter an unknown realm to get fortune cookie logic," Twilight couldn't help but mutter.

"Well, I'm afraid to tell you this, but there are more problems brewing. You know already the Changeling Queen is still out there, and already the wheels are turning for another crisis."

Twilight's blood ran cold. "Worse than Discord?"

"...No. I assure you, he is the foulest creature out of any I can predict. But there are still problems coming."

"How can I stop them?"

"You can't. It's no fault of yours. Great creatures are no more to blame for the actions of fools than fools are to blame for the actions of great creatures. It's coming either way, Twilight Sparkle, you must be ready to deal with it."

Twilight rubbed her forehead, which was aching. "I miss the days when this was all fun and games."

"A common complaint of adulthood. At any rate, this is not the last time we'll meet, I think. You have a lot to accomplish in the next few years."

Twilight finished rubbing her head, then looked down at her hoof. "Is there anything else you can tell me?"

The Keeper nodded. "Wake up."

"...What?"

Twilight bolted upright in her bed, breathing heavily. She looked around. She was back in her library. What had happened?

"Twi?" Applejack asked, sleepily but concerned. "What's wrong? Didja have another nightmare?"

"No. Well...maybe. It was so real...I'm confused."

The cowpony brought herself upright and put a hoof on her friend's shoulder. "Tell me about it, Twi...I'm..."

She was cut off by a loud banging sound downstairs. The two mares jump, and the sound banged up the stairs until it burst into the bedroom.

"Twilight!" Pinkie exclaimed "I need to know, have you figured out what's wrong with Spike? 'Cause if you have, I..."

She trailed off. Twilight took no notice.. "Pinkie! Oh man, I just had the weirdest dream about..." And then she noticed her friend's stunned expression.

Applejack looked at Twilight, then quickly back to Pinkie, horrified realization crossing her features. "Pinkie, this is not what it looks..."

"I knew it!" Pinkie exclaimed cheerfully. "You two are such a cute couple!"

Both mares blushed furiously.

"What?"

"Pinkie!"

"Oh, I've gotta go tell the others!" the earth pony squealed, darting back down the stairs.

"No! Applejack cried, leaping out of bed and falling on her face. She was back up in moments, undeterred, as she chased the baker down the stairs, while Twilight buried her head in her hooves.

"Pinkie!"

Poor Communication Kills

Twilight was used to such strange things happening to her, but she still preferred them not happening quite this early in the morning. First a dream where some omnipotent being spent more time messing with her head than telling her anything, and now one of her best friends was apparently about to tell the town she was dating another one of her best friends.

She realized the problems that would cause. She quickly leaped out of bed, levitating a mane brush and working the knots out of her hair. She tossed it aside to race to her bedroom door, using her magic to open it.

She nearly tripped over Spike as she raced out.

Catching herself, she stared at her charge, who was wringing his tail. He looked at the floor before looking up at her nervously.

“Spike? What are...”

Then the baby dragon came forward and wrapped his arms around her barrel, hugging her tightly.

Twilight froze solid at the act of affection. Slowly, she put a foreleg around him. She smiled. Tears escaped her eyes.

Finally, he let go and backed up, looking at her like he was expecting punishment.

“Spike...are you ready to tell me what’s been troubling you?”

“...Yes,” he said weakly. “But I heard Pinkie barging through here. I think you should go stop her first.”

“Oh no, I’ve waited days to get this out of you, I’m not waiting any mo...”

“I want to,” he said quickly, before trailing off a bit. “...to, to make us a special meal. Something for lunch that we can talk about this over.”

“Spike, you don’t have to...”

“I want to,” he said quickly. “I...I’m sorry I put you through all this these last few days. I want to make it up to you.”

Twilight was silent for a moment. Then, she came forward and kissed him on the forehead. “Apology accepted,” she said sweetly. Spike smiled a sad smile, wringing his tail again. “...And you’ll tell me everything then?” she asked hesitantly.

“I will tell you everything at lunch.”

Twilight was silent for a moment. On one hoof, she wanted to beg Spike to tell her now, to just finally put an end to all this worry. On the other, this was the first time in days Spike had been acting cooperative, and she didn't want to jeopardize it.

"...Okay," she said at last. "I'm going to go make sure Pinkie doesn't end up gossiping around that me and Applejack are a thing, and I'll come back here. Then we'll talk, okay?"

"Okay," Spike nodded in agreement.

Twilight kissed his forehead again. "I'm glad you decided to come clean. I love you."

Spike smiled sadly again. "I love you too."

"Repeat after me: Applejack don't have no crush on Twilight."

"Applejack don't have no crush on Twilight," Pinkie repeated, perfectly imitating her friend's accent.

The cowpony rolled her eyes, but kept Pinkie pinned to the ground behind Carousel Boutique. "There is nothin' romantic goin' on between Applejack and Twilight."

"There is nothin' romantic goin' on between Applejack and Twilight."

"Pinkie is seein' things that aren't there."

Nodding, Applejack finally got off of her. "Good, glad that's settled."

"Good, glad that's..."

Applejack pinned Pinkie again. "If you repeat me one more time, I'm gonna buck you."

"Sorry," Pinkie meaped.

Twilight arrived on the scene just in time to see her earth pony friend get off of her other earth pony friend. "Applejack! Good, Pinkie didn't..."

"Relax, Twi, Pinkie here understands everythin’ now. Right, Pinkie?"

"Yes," the pink pony sighed.

"That's good," Twilight nodded. She turned to Pinkie. "And you should really knock before you come into my house. I mean, really, it's that kind of attitude that got you in trouble with Cranky and..."

Pinkie was spared the lecture by Carousel Boutique's back door swinging open to reveal its proprietor standing there, looking at them quizzically.

"Well, I thought I heard something out here. Is something wrong?"

"Not anymore, Rare," Applejack explained. "Pinkie was just givin' us a bit of a headache."

"I see. Well, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and I are having some mid-morning tea. Why don't you join us?"

"Ooh! That sounds great!" Pinkie said.

"Thank you, that sounds nice," Twilight agreed.

"Sure, why not?" Applejack sighed.

Twilight had been surprised when she had first learned that Rainbow Dash had been friends with Fluttershy and Rarity even before the incident with NightMare Moon. The cyan mare had known her fellow pegasus since flight school, and once the yellow pegasus had made friends with Rarity it meant that Rainbow Dash spent time with her for the sake of their mutual friend.

Part of that was a weekly tea party of sorts for the three to talk. They still carried it out, despite the fact that the three of them were spending more time with the rest of their group. It seemed the rest ended up interrupting this meeting in their efforts to keep Pinkie quiet, and as such ended up getting invitations.

"By the way, I think I'll pass on that Daring Do fanzine from now on," Rainbow Dash commented.

"You didn't like it?"

"Well, those fanstories were lame. I mean, one of them is just every character whining that they didn't believe Daring that Derring's boyfriend was Ahuizotl in disguise. I mean, seriously, who would think that was entertaining?"

"To each her own, I guess," Twilight muttered, taking a sip of tea. As she did, the bell at Carousel Boutique's front door sounded, signaling another customer.

Rarity uncharacteristically rolled her eyes. "They never pay attention to the 'Closed' sign. Excuse me a mom..."

At that point Scootaloo and Apple Bloom entered the kitchen. "Hey, Rarity. Is Sweetie up yet?"

"Oh, it's you two. Yes, Sweetie is in her room. You know where it is. Would you like some tea or toast?"

"No, thank you," the two fillies declined politely.

"Applejack?" Apple Bloom asked when she saw her big sister. "Where were you last night? You didn't come home."

"Oh. Uh... I was helpin' Twi with somethin', and she let me stay at her place," the farmer answered, hoping Pinkie wouldn't speak up with anything that could renew the previous problem.

"Oh, okay. Big Mac says nothin' needs ta be done today," the youngest Apple explained as she and Scootaloo began heading toward the upstairs.

"Well, onto more important things," Rarity said, turning back to her friends. "Twilight, have you gotten Spike to come out of his shell, so to speak?"

Hearing this, the lavender pony smiled. "Actually, yes. Spike told me this morning that he he was willing to tell me."

All of the ponies gaped at this. Pinkie spat out her tea, much to Rarity's displeasure. What the adults didn't notice was that Scootaloo and Apple Bloom had stopped on the stairs as well, their ears perking up.

"What? Then what are you doing here?" Rainbow Dash demanded.

Applejack turned to Pinkie angrily. "It's because we had 'ta chase this one down 'fore she went an' told the town... somethin' that wasn't true."

"Will you all relax?" Twilight assured. "Spike was making a big deal about making us a special meal to talk about it over. I guess he feels he needs to make it up to me. So I let him wait a little longer."

"He's finally telling you?"

The adults stopped. They turned to the two fillies at the staircase, for it had been Scootaloo that had spoken.

"Squirt," Rainbow Dash said through her surprise. "Do you know something about this?"

Twilight stood up. "You three came by the library yesterday to talk to him... did he tell you anything?"

"No," Apple Bloom said quickly.

"Yes," Said Scootaloo, just as quickly.

"Apple Bloom? Scootaloo?" Sweetie called from upstairs..

"Sweetie, bring down Spike's gift," Scootaloo shouted.

"What? But..."

"Just do it, trust me."

There was a pregnant silence for a few seconds, then movement from upstair, obviously the unicorn filly obeying.

"You three have known something about this!" Twilight said angrily. "Why didn't you say anything to me before?"

"We promised not to!" Apple Bloom protested. “And an Apple always keeps her promise! You told me so yerself, AJ!”

Applejack sighed, rubbing her forehead with her hoof. She rose up, walking over to her youngest sibling. “Apple Bloom, listen to me. There’s a big difference between keepin’ a promise when it’s between you and yer friend, and keepin’ a promise when it hurts somepony. Now I know you meant well, but Twilight and Spike have been hurtin’ bad because of all this. Did you know that?”

“...Yeah,” Apple Bloom admitted silently. “But...”

Whatever the red-maned pony was going to say, it was interrupted by Sweetie coming back down the stairs, carrying a box in her teeth. The unicorn filly sat the gift down on the floor and looked at Twilight nervously. “This is from Spike... he wanted to give it to you... until the wedding.”

Twilight took the box with her magic.Slowly, almost as if she was expecting something to jump out at her, she opened the package. She lifted the frame out and examined it. She recognized the picture, that of a newly hatched Spike and a filly Twilight. She had it on her bedside table, she had seen it a million times.

“If you touch the circle on the bottom, it’ll change the picture,” Sweetie Belle explained nervously.

Twilight looked up at the young unicorn for a moment before following the instruction. She gave a small gasp. She looked at it for a moment before looking back at the Cutie Mark Crusaders. “What is this?”

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle looked to each other for help, but Scootaloo stepped forward immediately. “It’s supposed to be a Mother’s Day present. Spike wants you to be his mother.”

Twilight’s breath inhaled sharply. Her eyes widened. The other ponies mirrored her expression.

“...That’s it?” Rainbow Dash asked, sounding annoyed. “That’s why Spike’s been acting all mopey? He wants Twilight to be what she’s already been?”

“That’s pretty much what I said,” Scootaloo chimed in.

The cyan pony grinned, flying over to her number one fan. “Heh heh, I knew you had the most brains out of your friends. After all, you picked me as a role model,” she chuckled, rubbing her mane.

“Hey! Don’t laugh at Apple family tradition!” Apple Bloom yelled.

“She ain’t,” Applejack said bluntly, looking at her sister. “We don’t keep promises when they hurt somepony.”

“I’m afraid Rainbow Dash is right,” Rarity said to her sister. “You three could have prevented a lot of trouble if you had told us about this.”

“We were going to,” Sweetie protested. “We just wanted to give Spike a chance to do it himself.”

“That was... noble of you, Sweetie,” Rarity said, picking her words carefully. “But Spike wasn’t thinking clearly. You really should have come to us and...”

“Is that what this is all about?”

The words were barely above a whisper, but they caught the attention of every pony in the room. They turned to Twilight. Her expression hadn’t changed. She hadn’t taken her eyes off the picture.

“That’s what’s been bothering him?”

“...Yeah,” Sweetie said sadly. “He thinks... he thinks you wouldn’t love him as a son anymore.”

Tears.

“That...that...”

A smile.

“...silly...little...”

A short, breathless laugh.

“...I have to go.”

Before her friends could say anything, she was out the door, the frame floating behind her.

There was a silence for a few moments.

“Well, I hope the three of ya learned something from all this,” Applejack scolded.

“Yeah,” Apple Bloom said sadly.

“Yes,” Sweetie Belle agreed.

“Nope! I was right all along!” Scootaloo cheered.

Laughing, Rainbow Dash put a foreleg around her number one fan, pulling her close. “You’re one awesome filly, you know that, squirt?”

Scootaloo threw her forelegs around her and buried her head into her. She didn’t want her hero to see her happy tears.

Twilight ran home. Well, ran wouldn’t quite be the word. She went fast, faster than she ever remembered herself going, but it was like a skip. She was happy, excited. Her heart tightened at the mere thought.

Mother... he wants me to be a mother... no, he wants me to acknowledge that I already am a mother.

Memories flooded her. Those of an infant Spike crying and thrashing until he broke out of his crib and crawled into Twilight’s bed, nestling into her. He followed dragon instinct and refused to be apart from his mother, no matter how much she tried to convince him otherwise. At age three, he finally agreed to sleep alone like a big boy, but never in a different room than her.

She remembered the pride she felt when she saw him leave for his first day of school, so happy and excited, but scared at how the others were going to treat him. She remember the heartbreak as she let him cry in her forelegs from being bullied out of what he had been looking forward to. The heartbreak resurfaced every time she saw him studying late hours to do better than those that had shunned him, and pride whenever he brought home a perfect score.

She remembered feeling helpless at seeing him transform after his birthday and not knowing what to do. She remembered cold reality crashing in when she realized a pony doctor couldn’t help him. It was a reminder that Spike was different from her, a fact she often forgot.

She remembered feeling for him when he begged to know about who he was and wishing she could help him. She remembered how terrified she had been when he wanted to go on the Migration, of the worries of what could happen to him. She remembered the feeling of rejection when he announced he was staying among dragons forever. She remembered how pride surged through her when he refused to smash Peewee’s egg, standing up to three very big dragons for the sake of an innocent.

She remembered reading him bedtime stories, and challenging him to tickle fights, and fighting with him, then kissing his forehead and assuring him he was a good boy.

She remembered being a mother for years and never even realizing it.

Her heart beat with joy as she neared the library. She could hardly contain her glee. Spike was in there. Her son was in there!

She opened the door, running in. “Spike? Spike?”

No answer.

She ran into the kitchen. There was nothing cooking.

Calm down, Twilight. He just realized he didn’t have an ingredient he needed and went to the market.

She dashed over to the mantle where all her pictures were kept. She placed the frame right in the center, positioning it carefully. She giggled with excitement. When Spike got back, she’d lead him into the room. He’d see the picture, then while he was surprised she’d tell him how much she loved him. It was going to be so perfect!

She giggled, clapping her hooves with excitement...and then she thought back.

"I'll tell you everything at breakfast."

She smiled at the promise...

Wait...he said lunch...where did breakfast come from?

Then she thought even farther back.

"I said I'd tell you everythin' at breakfast!”

She froze. No, no...he didn't...He wouldn't...

She ran up the stairs and into the room Spike had been sleeping in. She pushed the door open. There was Spike’s basket.

She stopped dead. The blanket and pillow were gone, and there was only a scroll in their place.

No...Spike, please tell me you didn't...

She looked up on the windowsill were Peewee’s nest should be. It was gone too.

Terror gripped her. She walked up to the bed. She unrolled the scroll and read... and her blood ran cold. Her fears were realized.

Twilight,

I told you I’d tell you everything at lunch. But I’m not coming to lunch. I can’t tell you why I’m upset, but you won’t let up. So I have to leave.

I’m sorry I put you through all this. You’re mad at me now, but it’ll be better this way.

Thanks for everything, Spike.

Panic

Pinkie nervously tapped her hoof against the tablecloth as she watched her friends discuss what Twilight had ran off about. Rainbow Dash was gagging about the overt sappiness of it, though it was clear that she had thought it was sweet, Rarity was giggling excitedly to Fluttershy about how they could be aunts now, while Applejack seemed congratulatory in a general sense.

They didn’t notice Pinkie’s uncharacteristic silence. Now was the time. Twilight’s problems with Spike were done. She could talk to them about it now, and fill in Twilight later.

“Um... guys?”

The others quieted and looked at her, a bit off guard by the fact that Pinkie was showing a subtle emotion.

“Pinkie... is something wrong?”

The pink earth pony pawed the tablecloth with her hoof. “Well...”

A loud bang cut her off. Seconds later, a hysterical Twilight Sparkle burst into the room.

“You have to help me find Spike!”

Tears were in her eyes. She was breathing heavily.

“Twi...” Applejack said, stunned. “I thought you said he was going to tell you everything...”

“Remember when you promised to tell us everything ‘at breakfast’?”

Confusion. Then, realization crossed all their features.

“Oh... that idiot,” Rainbow Dash muttered, burying her face in her hooves.

Twilight was all business almost immediately. “Fluttershy, get all your animal friends together, see if they saw anything. Rainbow Dash, I need you to fly up and survey the area. Everypony else, split up and check the roads leading out of Ponyville. See if anypony saw him leaving. I’ll signal you if I see anything.”

Fluttershy only nodded, flying out at an extreme speed.

“On it,” the cyan mare saluted, flying out of the room.

Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie nodded, jumping into action with surprising precision. Twilight led them out of Carousel Boutique, telling them what specific routes each of them should take. She did it on autopilot, her mind was elsewhere.

Spike’s crying and thrashing filled the room as Twilight pulled her pillow over her head. “Spike, please, be a big boy and go to sleep. You need to learn to sleep...”

The cracking of wood was heard. Twilight’s eyes widened, then she sighed.

“5, 4, 3, 2, 1...”

She felt her bed jostle and move. Moments later, something warm and scaley curled up next to her.

“...Still can’t sleep apart from me, huh?” the filly said.

“Mah,” Spike cooed in reply, nuzzling into her.

“Okay, but this is the last night, okay? Tomorrow you sleep in a crib.”

“Mah,” which Twilight understood to mean, “No.”

Sighing, the purple unicorn draped a foreleg around him. Spike let out a small yawn, finally ready to sleep.

Smiling, Twilight couldn’t help but nuzzle back.

Spike sighed, walking along the train tracks leading out of Ponyville. His blanket was currently acting as a bindle, carrying a pillow, some food, and a book on wilderness survival that Twilight wouldn’t be getting back. Peewee sat on his shoulder, chirping happily.

“It’s just going to be you and me for awhile, kiddo,” he said to the phoenix, who nibbled his ear affectionately.

It made him smile, but only for a second. He’d never see Twilight again. She’d be sad at first, but she’d be happier without him. She wouldn’t have to worry about taking care of him. She’d place a request for a better assistant, one she’d only have to pay a salary for out of her stipend, and not room and board, and toys and books and whatever else. She’d have the free time back he had been robbing from her. He wouldn’t be around to let her down.

He sighed, kicking a stone.

”And with that, Scorpan suddenly transformed back into the rightful king of Dream Valley. Peace was restored, and everypony lived happily ever after.”

“Wow,” Spike said in awe, laying in the lavender pony’s forelegs. “Is that story true?”

“Of course not, Spike,” Twilight said dismissively, floating the book over to the nightstand. “All this talk of humans is pure fantasy. But I told you this story for a very specific reason.”

“Why?”

Twilight held the little dragon closer. “Well, when you hatched, I named you Spike because I loved this fairy tale. Celestia didn’t object, and I know why. The Spike in this story was a dragon, but he was still a kind, sweet dragon who stood by his king and helped defeat Tirac. Everypony was telling him to be bad, but he was a good soul, just like you.

“I’ve been keeping the truth a secret from you before today. If I made a mistake, I’m sorry. I promise I’ll never lie to you again. But now that you know the truth, I read you this to let you know, that no matter what anypony tells you, you’re not a monster. You’re a sweet little boy who’s going to grow up to do great things just like the first Spike.”

“You think so?”

“I know so.”

Spike was silent for a moment. “Do you think I could still be a knight?”

“Yes,” she said unhesitantly. “It’ll be hard, but I know you can do it. Never let anypony tell you you can’t do something... not even me. Promise?”

“Promise.”

“Okay, good. Now, you’ve been mopey all day,” she grinned. “You know what happens to mopey dragons?”

Spike’s eyes widened. “No, no...”

He couldn’t escape. Twilight pushed him on the bed and dug her hooves into his side. “Tickle manticore! Roar!”

Spike laughed and squirmed.

Twilight had sprinted across town, asking nearly every pony she saw if they had seen Spike. Unfortunately, Spike had left before many ponies were out of their houses, and couldn’t help her.

”Of course he’d be smart enough to leave at that time... I just had to raise him to be smart, didn’t I?”

“Twilight!” Rarity called, running over to her, for once not caring about looking dignified.

“Do you have a lead?” she asked desperately.

“Yes! Doctor Whooves says he saw Spike walking down the train tracks holding a bindle stick. He was heading toward Ghastly Gorge!”

The lavender unicorn nearly exploded with joy. “Good!” She lit up her horn. Seconds later, fireworks decorated the sky above her. “That will signal Rainbow Dash and the others. Let’s hurry!”

”Spike, pick up your junk!” Twilight said, exasperated.

“It’s not junk!” the dragon said in protest.

“Please, these comic books are so lowbrow. I really wish you’d read more sophisticated stuff.”

“It’s not lowbrow! How would you even know? You’ve never read one.”

“I don’t need to read one. I know they’re all juvenile.”

Spike opened his mouth to protest, but a thought entered his head. He grinned evilly. “Hold on, didn’t you tell me once I wouldn’t know I liked anything until I tried it.”

Twilight froze. “Um... yes.”

“Does... this mean you were wrong?” Spike asked with fake surprise. “Maybe I don’t have to try anything I don’t want to do...”

The purple unicorn was silent for a moment. “Well, I’m torn. I’m both mad at you and strangely proud of how cunning you are, all at the same time.” She sighed. “Okay, look, I’ll try one comic, and that’ll prove I don’t like it.”

Spike grinned. “Fine by me.”

Several hours later, Spike spoke to her again. “Uh... Twilight? Have you been up all night?”

“Not now, Spike! Bat-Mare just escaped from The Kidder’s latest deathtrap.”

Spike lay in his basket, feeling like he was going to melt. He was so hot. Yet he was shivering too. His head hurt, he felt dizzy.

Twilight set a washcloth on his forehead. “This will help cool you off,” she whispered gently.

“I wanna die,” he moaned.

“Don’t say that,” she scolded, levitating a glass of orange juice up to his lips. “Here, drink up.”

Spike drank without complaint. When he was finished, he moaned weakly. “Was that medicine?”

“No, Spike. I’m sorry, but there’s no medicine for dragons. They’re so... special that ponies don’t know how it will affect them.”

“But... does that mean... I’m going to...”

“No, no,” Twilight assured. “You’ll be fine.”

“But... I feel so bad!”

“Shhh,” Twilight soothed, kissing his forehead. “You’ll get better. You’re strong, I know you.” She wrapped the covers around him. “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine...”

Spike was crying at this point. Peewee nipped his master’s ear, trying to cheer him up. But to no avail. He had lost the one pony who had always been there for him.

He looked around. He was near Ghastly Gorge, he saw the small forest that surrounded it. From there he could turn off, maybe head for the Badlands...

Three loud thumps interrupted his thought, and a shadow loomed over him. He looked up... and his heart stopped.

“Well, well, well...” Garble mocked. “What have we here?”

Spike’s irises shrunk to the size of pencil points. He turned to run, but Garble was too fast, grabbing him by the tail. In one motion he picked him up and slammed him against the ground. Mumble and Thrash laughed like he had just done something incredible. Peewee gave a frightened squawk, landing at Spike’s side.

“Aw, the egg hatched... but we can still smash it,” the crimson dragon laughed, reaching for the chick.

In a flash Spike grabbed his charge and pulled him into his arms, using his body to shield him. “Leave him alone,” he said, trying to sound intimidating, but as sore as he was it wasn’t impressive.

Indeed, he wasn’t. Garble slammed down a foot on his head. “Alright, see, you didn’t get it the first time. I always get what I want, and I want that bird. And I’m going to get it if I have to break every bone in your body.”

”I don’t think they’re coming back,” Rainbow Dash said.

“And we simply can’t stay here,” Rarity added. “Those awful dragons are still running around.”

“But...” Spike said sadly, looking at the egg. “He’ll be...”

Twilight sighed, draping a foreleg around him. “Spike... it’s not your fault. They would have come to this nest either way. If anything, you saved it.”

The baby dragon rubbed the egg a bit. “Do you think it will hatch without its mother?”

“It should,” Twilight said. “We can give it to Princess Celestia. She knows how...”

“No,” Spike said simply. “...I want to take care of it.”

There was silence for a moment. “Spike,” Rarity said at last. “Taking care of a pet, much less a phoenix, is a big responsibility...”

“I know,” Spike said simply. “But Twilight told me I needed to take responsibility... and I was in this situation once. I can’t just let it be raised by anyone.”

Twilight felt a tightness in her chest. Pride...

“That’s very good of you, Spike,” the lavender unicorn praised, levitating him on his back. “I’ll write to Princess Celestia and get you some advice...”

The sextet of ponies traveled down the tracks, moving at top speeds. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash traveled just above, keeping an eye out. Every hoofstep made Twilight look harder, hoping to see Spike on the horizon.

She smiled. “I think I see something!” There were figures moving. Was Spike with them...?

“Yeah, I...” Rainbow Dash started, but she stopped dead. She screeched to a halt, gasping. Fluttershy wasn’t too far behind, looking absolutely terrified.

The grounded ponies skid to a halt, noticing the stop. “What is it? Do you see Spike?” Twilight said hopefully.

“Uh-huh,” Rainbow Dash confirmed grimly, “...but that’s not all!”

Now scared, Twilight charged forward again, but stopped when she saw what had made her friends so frightened.

Mumble gave Spike a kick to his front, sending him tumbling like a ball over to Thrash, who kicked him back. When he rolled to a stop Spike tried to run, only for Garble to bring his foot down on him. All the while, Spike remained curled, shielding a panicking Peewee the best he could.

“It’s those three brutes!” Rarity cried.

“Y’all know them?” Applejack asked, incredulous.

“Spike met them on the Dragon Migration,” Rainbow Dash explained.

Pinkie gasped. “What’ll we...”

“Fluttershy,” Twilight said coldly, getting all of their attentions. “As soon as you have an opening, grab Spike and fly back to Ponyville. If you’re followed, lose them first.”

That was her only instruction. She began walking toward them. As she did, she looked toward the forest lining the Gorge, lighting up her horn.

Garble lifted up his victim, now covered in bruises and cuts. “Well? You ready to give me the bird?”

Spike responded by lashing out and scratching the older dragon on the nose. He snarled and flinched, more out of surprise than pain. Then he glared and pulled back a fist.

It collided with Spike’s head, sending him to the ground. He rolled along before coming to a stop.

As soon as he had his bearing, he pulled Peewee back into him, just as Garble reached him.

“I have to admit, you are one tough little dragon. But you’re still just a pony punk, and I’m going to break you.” He reached for him...

*KREEE-UNK*

Every dragon’s ears perked up. The three teenagers looked up. In an instant their eyes went wide.

“What the?”

By the time Garble came to that conclusion, it had hit him. His inability to respond had been understandable, as anybody would have at least been a bit confused at seeing an uprooted tree flying sideways at them.

The trunk struck Garble and kept going, hitting Mumble and Thrash as well. The three went flying back, landing on their rumps ten feet away. They recovered from being struck, but not from the sight before them.

There were ponies before them, but most were equally stunned at what their friend had just done.

Twilight stood there with an icy glare. Her horn was lit up, levitating the tree she had uprooted above herself. She spoke five words.

“Get. Away. From. My. Son!”

Mama Ursa

Garble, Mumble, and Thrash had never seen a pony looking quite so angry. Ponies ran from them, they didn't stand their ground and fight, so it was a bit disorienting.

Spike, still sore and weak, looked at the unicorn slowly, trying to see her through his blurred vision. "...Twilight?"

Garble, regaining his bravado, stood back up. "Aww, how cute. What are you, his mommy?" he mocked.

"You better believe I'm his mother," she said bluntly. Spike's eyes went wide, his heart tightened. Was he just delirious? Was she really saying...

"And if you take one more step toward him, I'm going to..."

“What?" Garble said mockingly. He took a step forward, extra mockingly stomping it down. "There, I took a step. What are you going to do about it?"

"...What are you waiting for? Grab him!"

Suddenly remembering her job, Fluttershy made a dive for Spike. Seeing this, Garble lunged forward. This was exactly what Twilight was counting on, it left him wide open for another strike from the tree, sending him back. His friends, caught him keeping him upright.

Fluttershy reached the injured child, collecting him up gently in her forelegs. The dragon moaned, keeping Peewee in a protective hug. The bird was visibly shaking, nuzzling into his master. "It's going to be okay," Fluttershy soothed, lifting Spike up. With great speed, she started back to Ponyville.

"Get her!" Garble yelled, starting forward again. Twilight swung the tree again, but the crimson dragon let loose a blast of fire that lit the tree ablaze. Then, with one swipe of his claws, he split the tree apart, turning it into several burning splinters.

Now free of their obstacle, Mumble and Thrash flew up and after Fluttershy. Twilight tried to block them, but was interrupted by Garble flying forward and swinging his fist down on her. She put up a shield quickly, causing his punch to bounce off. He continued his barrage, banging on her shield relentlessly. Under other circumstances she might have flinched, but now she was a mother protecting her child.

Mumble and Thrash flew over the ponies, chasing after the pegasus that had taken their target. Seeing this, Applejack, Pinkie, and Rainbow Dash chased after them, shouting protests.

Garble kept pounding away, but was stopped by Rarity, who leapt over Twilight's shield and bucked him in the face. The crimson dragon was caught off guard, both by the attack itself and just how painful it was. Rarity was much tougher than she looked. He staggered back, allowing Twilight to strike him in the ribs with a full blast of her magic.

It would have killed a pony, or at least broken its bones. It knocked Garble back, not doing any noticeable damage but clearly hurting him.

"If you know what's good for you, you'll stay down," Twilight said coldly.

The threat didn't take. Garble rolled to the side and stood up, having just enough time to fly away from the following blast. Twilight kept firing, every blast dodged, while Rarity stood at her side, wishing she knew more combat magic.

Fluttershy could be quite fast when she needed to, even fast enough to keep up with Rainbow Dash. But this depended on it being in certain situations: her friends being in trouble, an animal being in trouble, or her being in trouble. Right now, all three were happening. She doubled her speed when she realized she was being followed, much to the amusement of the two dragons.

"Aw, come on, we just want to play!" Mumble jeered, speeding up as well.

"Heh, heh, yeah," Thrash needlessly added. "Just slow down and..."

At that point, Rainbow Dash rammed into his side. Thrash let out a yell, more surprised than hurt. He turned and swung at her, but like a particularly bothersome fly she flew around him. Thrash turned his head, trying to follow her, and was rewarded by a mocking bop on the nose. Enraged, he swung again, only for the cyan mare to fly around him, wrapping her hind legs around his head and rapping his head with her forehooves as if she was playing a set of drums.

Enraged, Thrash began living up to his name, which Rainbow Dash took as a sign to get off of him. As he turned to face her, she blew a raspberry, then turned and darted off. In a rage, the brown dragon forgot his original target and chased after her.

Applejack and Pinkie, who were right behind them, saw the scene. Applejack began to change directions, but the cyan pegasus motioned for her not to. Thrash, being too focused on catching her, didn't notice.

The cowpony quickly understood why. Rainbow Dash and the dragon were both flying so fast that neither earth pony would be able to keep up. Hopefully the brash pegasus had some plan of action other than a direct conflict.

Instead, Applejack turned back to Mumble and redoubled her speed. She found herself gaining slowly, but surely on the dragon. Finally, when he was close enough, she gave a mighty leap and landed straight on the dragon's back.

This sent him crashing to the ground. Unfortunately, by this time Mumble had reached Fluttershy and had managed to get a grip on one of her hind legs, sending her to the ground as well. She gave off a whimper as she landed, and Spike left her arms, rolling along the ground a bit before stopping.

As Mumble tried to buck Applejack off, Fluttershy called "Spike! Run!"

Spike didn't listen, at least not immediately. He checked on Peewee first, who was still shaking but otherwise seemed uninjured. Spike turned and began running.

Mumble rolled over, causing Applejack to fall off. He rolled back on his stomach and turned to his side, striking the cowpony with a mighty blow, sending her to the ground. With a satisfied smile, he began rising...

"Hey, Mr. Meanie Pants!"

...and found himself looking down the barrel of a cannon.

"It's party time!" Pinkie fired.

Mumble was hit with a fifteen pound ball of confetti and glitter. He was on his back moaning in pain, looking more like an overdone craft project than an injured dragon.

"Ooh... where did you get that from?" he demanded.

"I made it myself! I took several months of fine tuning, and building, and the Cakes saying 'Pinkie, stop that racket, it's two in the morning!', but all my hard work paid off! I used it at Twilight's birthday, and it decorated the whole ballroom in seconds, and they were all impressed, and we had cake, and..."

As it turned out, dragons had a quick recovery time. Mumble was back on his feet in moments. He grabbed Pinkie by the tail and swung her around like he was competing in a hammer throw. After a few rotations he let go, sending the pink earth pony flying.

For a moment, Mumble looked at the horizon, smiling at his accomplishment. He turned around.

"That wasn't very nice. I mean, that could have really hurt! Not as much as it did for Mrs. Cake when the twins were born! I mean, ouch, seven hours in labor was hard, and she kept saying these funny words to Mr. Cake that I'm not allowed to repeat, and when she somehow got a hold of that scalpel... fortunately, Mr. Cake's scars have healed, and Nurse Redheart sees almost perfectly out of that eye now..."

Throughout the entire tirade, Mumble had been looking from Pinkie to where he had thrown her seconds earlier, complete disbelief on his features. "Wha... how... look, how'd you do that anyway?"

"...Now let's not get nosy," the earth pony scolded.

Mumble was bucked by Applejack seconds later. It was preferable to the headache he was currently getting.

Rainbow Dash blew out her cheeks and stuck out her tongue, agitating Thrash. Even flying backwards, she was more than fast enough to outfly the dragon.

By now the two had flown over Ghastly Gorge, and the cyan mare led her opponent into the canyon, continuing the merry chase.

Thrash flew forward at full speeds, only to get a nasty surprise when Rainbow Dash did a full ninety-degree turn upward, causing him to go flying forward after nothing. After managing to stop, he turned and saw her lowering back to his level. She wiggled her rump in his directions, slapping her flanks in a mocking manner.

Thrash roared in frustration, lunging after her. She flew up again, once again causing him to chase after nothing.

"Too slow!" she laughed.

This time, the brown dragon flew after her at top speed. It didn't matter, Rainbow Dash flew faster. She led him on a merry chase, hundreds of feet, before Rainbow Dash suddenly made another ninety-degree turn.

Once again, Thrash kept going, right into the side of the Gorge.

Rainbow Dash put her forelegs over her stomach and laughed uproariously, but she was cut off by a boulder falling, just barely missing her. She looked up to the rim of the Gorge, and immediately became terrified. She flew out of the way just in time to avoid the avalanche of rocks.

Thrash, however, wasn't as lucky. The boulders struck him, sending the already dazed dragon falling to the ground, pinned underneath a mountain of debris.

For a moment, the cyan mare held her breath, torn with how to feel. Half of her hoped the avalanche had done the dragon in, half hoped he would be okay.

When the dust cleared, Thrash was among the rocks, pinned underneath the stone. Carefully, Rainbow Dash moved in. He was still breathing, she could tell. She saw his chest move up and down.

She briefly pondered helping him, but decided against it. Spike was more worthy of her time, and if Thrash died as a result of his injuries, it was on him. Without another thought, she turned a flew back to her friends.

Applejack moved in to try and stomp down on Mumble, and immediately regretted it when his tail whipped out and hit her. The purple dragon rose to his feet in time to be greeted with a view of the party cannon. This time, however, he was quick enough to dodge, and the projectile flew off until it decorated a tree for its five hundredth birthday. He quickly moved past the cannon and to Pinkie, giving her a swipe with his claws.

Forgotten in all the chaos was Fluttershy, who silently crept to the bushes that Spike had run to and began rifling through them, hoping to find the child in her care.

After a few minutes of combing the foliage, she found him, gently stroking Peewee in an effort to calm him down. He looked up and saw her.

"Flutter-" he began, but the pegasus shushed him so Mumble wouldn't overhear. She picked him up gently and gave him a reassuring nuzzle. She turned to continue flying to Ponyville.

She found Mumble blocking her path, grinning.

"Well, well," he laughed. And then he punched Fluttershy.

She fell to the ground with a painful cry, tears in her eyes. Spike tried to scramble out of reach, but the older dragon grabbed him by the back of the neck. Raising him up, he slammed him roughly into the ground.

Spike's body went limp. Peewee warbled in panic.

"Aww, you broke too easy," Mumble whined. "That's no..."

"How dare you!"

Mumble jumped at the sudden forceful words. Fluttershy had gotten up, apparently not in pain anymore, and was staring at the purple dragon with a look that sucked all the bravado.

"Just who do you think you are? You think just because you're big and strong, that gives you the right to hurt innocent ponies and dragons?"

"I... I..."

Fluttershy grabbed his ear in her teeth and pulled him along, the teenage dragon moaning from the pain the whole way. They came to a large rock, and the pegasus let go.

"Now sit on this rock! You're in a time-out!"

"But..." he began, but a reaffirmed stare got him to obey.

"Now you sit here until the sun goes down, young drake, and think about what you did! Then fly home and don't harass Spike or Twilight again! You hear me?"

"Y-yes, ma'am!" Mumble said in tears, looking very much like a scolded filly.

Fluttershy nodded curtly, then flew back to Spike. He was awake, it turned out, and crying heavily, the days events finally gotten to him. A recovered Pinkie and Applejack were heading to him, but the yellow pegasus reached him first.

“Shh, it’s okay,” she soothed, gathering up the dragon in her forelegs. “It’s okay, it’s all over now.”

The dragon just wept. He was awfully mature for his age, yes, but underneath it all he was still a kid, and the pain, shame, and distress of the last few days was finally getting to him. Even as Fluttershy nuzzled him and Peewee nibbled his ear, he couldn’t calm down.

Garble dodged blast after blast of Twilight’s magic, blowing raspberries at the enraged unicorn. “Aw, what’s wrong? Is the prissy pony getting tired?”

That question was answered when an aura of lavender magic encased him, stopping him. The crimson dragon struggled, but he was pulled down to the ground, his feet actually sinking into the soil a bit.

"I can lift an Ursa Minor," Twilight noted with strained words. "I can hold you."

Unimpressed, Garble kept thrashing, but he was still helpless when Rarity charged him and bucked him in the stomach as hard as she could. The wind knocked out of him, he stopped moving, and Twilight took advantage of this by releasing him and shooting him with a well-aimed blast of magic. It struck him in the chest, sending him tumbling on his back.

Rarity confidently strode up to the fallen dragon, though she was sure to keep enough distance away to remain out of his reach. "Now then, are you going to leave Spikey alone?"

As it turned out, Rarity hadn't been as careful as she had thought. Garble's tail lashed out, wrapping itself around Rarity's neck. Twilight readied a blast, but the dragon's words stopped her. "Shoot me and I'll snap her neck."

The threat worked, but only for a moment. The aura circled his tail, prying it open and allowing the white unicorn to fall to the ground.

As it turns out, Garble was smarter than either unicorn gave him credit for, as that was exactly what he was counting on. Distracted by freeing her friend, Twilight didn't react fast enough when he darted forward. She began to summon a shield, but his strike caught her on the side of the head. Thankfully, he went so quick he didn't uncurl his hand, so she wasn't cut to ribbons, but simply knocked back. She skidded along the grass, coming to a stop just short of the still burning tree splinters.

"How dare you!" Rarity shrieked, attempting to buck him, but her kick was caught, and she was lifted up in a most undignified manner.

"Put me down right now, you hoodlum! I might be a lady, but for everything you've done to Spikey-Wikey, I'm going to..."

Garble turned and swung Rarity in an arc, slamming her into the ground, effectively ending her demands. He lifted her up again by her hind leg as she moaned in pain. She was now looking in his eyes, weakly.

"You know what I'm going to do to Spikey-Wikey? I'm going to kill him. But first, I'm going to skin you all alive and make him see. And I'm going to keep stomping that bird until it runs out of lives. Then, I'm going to break both of his arms, and his legs. Then, I'm going to kick him around a bit. Then...”

Garble was more intelligent than the ponies gave him credit for... but he was still pretty stupid. He went on a long tirade about what he was going to do to Spike while his mother was in earshot. She didn't take it well.

In pure rage, she rose to her hooves and levitated one of the burning splinters into the air. Charging forward, she leapt onto the dragon's back.

"What the-"

And then the red hot stick came down.

The Keeper flinched, inhaling sharply. "Ooooh," she moaned as she read the dragon's book. "Well, look on the bright side, Garble, girl dragons think eyepatches are cool."

Garble's pained, primal howl filed the ears of the two unicorns. Rarity flinched in horror, even feeling some pity as he dropped her, clutching his face in agony. Twilight, however, gave no quarter. As he stumbled blindly, turning around, Twilight struck him in the chest, sending him to the ground.

Before he could sit up, Garble felt something jump onto him, pinning him to the ground. Slowly, nervously, he moved one of his hands, allowing his right eye... his only eye, now... to see.

Twilight had turned white, her eyes red, her mane and tail now flames so intense that even Garble felt them.

"Listen to me," she said through gritted teeth, "I love Spike. He is my son. And I will do anything... anything... to protect him. I've defeated NightMare Moon and Discord, I've fought armies of changelings, I've been taught by Princess Celestia herself. You, you're nothing. You're a pathetic punk who traveled a continent because some baby dragon stood up to you. How petty. You have no chance against me.

"So leave. Go home. Don't come back. Because if you do, I'll take more than an eye. Do you understand?"

Garble was silent, shaking in sheer terror.

"Do you understand?"

"Y-yes," the dragon whimpered.

"Good," she spat. She turned around, whipping him in the face with her tail. She jumped off of him, planting her feet back on the grass. She lit her horn and doused the burning tree remains, no need for them to spread.

"Come on, Rarity, we better see if Spike is okay." Twilight reverted back to her true form. She was calmer now, a bit more neutral.

Rarity stood in silence, a bit afraid. She looked and saw Garble's form, still shaken and disturbed. She turned to Twilight, still walking off, heedless of the fact that her fellow unicorn hadn't followed her.

Finally, she sighed and followed, stopping only to pick up the bindle Spike dropped. She would talk with her friend about it later.

Lullaby

"Are you okay, Twilight?"

It had been the first time Rarity had dared to speak since the fight ended. The two had run in silence until they came across Pinkie sitting next to a sobbing Mumble. The earth pony had explained what had happened. Fluttershy had taken Spike home to treat him, while Applejack and Rainbow Dash had gone back to Ghastly Gorge to dig Thrash out.

Since then, the trio had walked in silence back to the library. The storm that Rainbow Dash had set up several days ago was scheduled for that evening, so grey clouds were overcast, adding gloom. Once they had gotten into town, a few ponies tried to pry them on what had happened to Spike. Twilight hadn't answered, leaving her friends to make apologies for her.

The lavender unicorn sighed. "I... I didn't mean to hurt him that bad. I'm not sorry I did it, but... I feel like I should be."

"Twilight, getting that violent is a traumatic experience, regardless of the reason," Rarity assured. "And you had no choice. That brute would have kept coming after Spike unless he was scared off or... we dealt with him. You were just protecting your child."

By now they were at the library door. "I guess you're right... I should be worrying more about Spike, anyway."

"Ooh! Now we can do something fun! Maybe we can throw a party and..."

"Tomorrow, Pinkie," Twilight answered, a bit more bluntly than intended. "Tonight, it has to be just me and Spike."

The lavender unicorn opened her front door and walked inside. Moments later, Fluttershy flew out from Twilight's bedroom, alerted by the noise.

"Oh good, you're back. I checked Spike over. He's a bit bruised up and he has some cuts, but nothing's broken."

Twilight let loose a breath she hadn't even realized she had been holding. "That's a relief. Has he said anything?"

Fluttershy just lowered her head and shook it sadly. "The poor thing just won't stop crying. I calmed him down a little, but he's so upset.”

A lump formed in Twilight's throat. She swallowed. "Right. You all better get home."

"But don't you want us to..." Pinkie began.

"No. This needs to be between me and Spike."

"I agree, darling," Rarity said. "We'll come by tomorrow and check on you."

"Okie Dokie," Pinkie agreed. "I'll go make sure Applejack and Rainbow Dash are okay first. See ya tomorrow!"

"Just so you know, Owlowiscious is looking after Peewee. And, um..." Fluttershy noted. She flew over to Twilight's mantle and picked up Spike's gift. "I think you might need this."

Smiling sadly, Twilight took it with her magic. Her three friends excused themselves and went out the door.

Sighing, Twilight began her trek upstairs, every step seemingly taking forever. She finally reached the top, where she heard the faint sobs of her baby dragon.

Taking one last deep breath, she opened the door. Sitting on her bed was Spike, a bit bandaged by Fluttershy's tender care, but still looking absolutely miserable. His head was cupped in his claws at first, but hearing Twilight come in made him look up. His eyes were red and bloodshot, and misty with tears.

"Hey Spike," she said gently. He didn't move. He looked at her, scared as to what would come next.

Twilight approached him cautiously. When she was close enough, she pulled him into a hug. He neither resisted nor accepted this. He was just neutral.

She released him and looked into his eyes. Tears were forming in her eyes as well. "Don't... don't go running off like that," she said, trying to sound stern, but failing miserably.

Spike still didn't respond, just looking at her as if he was about to be punished.

Twilight levitated the picture frame from behind her back and sent it to her bedside table. When Spike saw he froze, his eyes giving an expression like he had just seen Garble fly back into the bedroom.

"I really like the frame," Twilight said, as if it were an ordinary conversation. "You picked some good pictures for it. It's cute."

Spike just looked at her in sheer terror.

"Spike... is that what this is all about? You want me to be your mother?"

He was silent. Gently, she brought a hoof to his shoulder. "Spike... you can tell me."

After a moment, he nodded, ever so slightly.

"And why did you think I wouldn't want to be your mother?"

Now Spike looked less horrified and more nonplussed, as if the unicorn had just asked him what ice was made of.

"Come on, I want you to say what's bothering you out loud. It will help you feel better."

"...I let you down," he said quietly. "You needed me, and I... I..."

Twilight patted his head gently, encouraging him to finish.

"...I abandoned you. You stood by me after everything, but... I couldn't..."

He broke down, his sobs coming out anew. Twilight held him close, letting him use his tears. They stayed together for a long time before the dragon calmed down. Twilight let go and backed up a bit, levitating a handkerchief up to his eyes and drying them.

"Spike... when you thought I was wrong, how did you feel?"

He blinked. He hadn't expected that question. "I... I guess I felt... confused. Like... I was wondering why you would do something so unlike you." Then, suddenly, anger flowed into him. "I should have known something was up then! I shouldn't have doubted you! I shouldn't have just walked out on you! And even if I didn't believe you, I should have stayed with you, or tried to talk the others into forgiving you, or..."

Twilight gently put a hoof on his mouth. "Easy there. We can talk about that in a moment. Now, what were you going to do about it?"

"I was... going to go talk to you afterward about it."

"...And... did you still love me? Did you want me to be your mother?"

"Of course!" he said quickly. "I mean... I just... didn't know what to do."

She nodded understandingly. "Alright. So when it looked like I had made a big mistake, you were disappointed in me, but you still loved me the same?"

Spike fidgeted a bit. "I guess that's a good way of putting it."

"Alright. Now tell me: now that we know it's you who made the mistake, why wouldn't I feel the same way?"

Spike looked at her, a bit surprised.

"Spike... I promised you I'd never lie after your first day of school, so I'm not going to sugarcoat this. Yes, you could have handled things differently even if you didn't believe me. And I must say, I'm more disappointed that you tried to run from your problems rather than face them. You made mistakes, but that's what I'm here for. You're just a baby dragon. You're very wise for your age, but you still have a lot to learn. I'm supposed to make sure you learn from your mistakes, and it sounds like you have.

"And did you really think I would stop loving you over this, after all we've been through together? All those years I spent teaching you, reading you bedtime stories, working to get you accepted? Or all the good you've done for me, all the times we played together..." A mischievous grin crossed her features. "All the visits from the tickle manticore?" She wiggled her hooves toward him. Spike, in spite of himself, giggled at this.

"Did you really think I wasn't going to love you just because you did something wrong?"

Spike was silent for a moment.

Then, in a flash, he felt very, very stupid.

He cried again.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry for making you worry! I'm sorry for running away! I'm sorry you and the others got hurt fighting those dragons! I'm sorry! I'm such an idiot!"

Twilight wrapped her forelegs around him, pulling him into a tight hug. This time, he hugged back, letting loose days worth of pent-up emotion. She rubbed his back with her hoof.

"Shh, sh, sh, no more of that. I don't want you dumping on yourself ever again."

"But..."

"You're not an idiot, Spike. You were just scared and confused, that's all. Whenever you think about yourself, I want you to remember a few things."

"W... what?"

"How you always got perfect grades when you were tutored. Or how you wanted to be my assistant just to be around me. How you wanted to be a knight when you were little just to help ponies and dragons," she giggled, causing him to blush.

"Or how about when you took my fears seriously and wrote to Princess Celestia, even when the others blew me off? Or when you gave your fire ruby to Rarity just to see her happy? Or when you stood up to three dragons who could really hurt you to protect an innocent egg you didn't even know. And even today, you still put Peewee's safety above your own.

"You're brave, Spike. And kind, and smart." She was crying now too, but still smiling. "And... and you know what?"

Spike looked up at her as she smiled.

"I would be proud to call you my son."

Spike's eyes widened.

And then he threw himself back into Twilight, his cries coming out anew. Twilight just held him for a moment. She adjusted herself, sliding onto the bed and lying on her back, allowing her child to rest on top of her. Music seemed to drift through the air as she opened her mouth and began singing.

"Hush now, quiet now
It's time to lay your sleepy head
Hush now, quiet now
It's time to go to bed"

Spike’s cries seemed to increase at his mother’s lullaby. Twilight softly stroked him. Outside, the storm let loose, and rain poured down, but the two paid it no mind.

“Drifting off to sleep.
Exciting day behind you.
Drifting off to sleep.
Let the joy of dream land find you."

Twilight levitated the covers over them as Spike nuzzled into the crook of her neck even farther.

“Hush now, quiet it now, it's time to lay your sleepy head.
Hush now, quiet now, it's time to go to bed.
Hush now, quiet now, close your sleepy eyes.
Hush now, quiet now, my how time sure flies.”

Spike’s sobs were quieting. He was smiling now, for the first time in days.

“Drifting, drifting off to sleep the days excitement behind you.
Drifting drifting off to sleep let the joy of dreamland find you.”

Twilight kissed her son on the forehead.

“Hush now, quiet now, lay your sleepy head.
Hush now, quiet now, it's time to go to bed.”

And so, they stayed that way for awhile, simply enjoying each other’s company. Before long Spike, exhausted from the days events, fell asleep. Twilight allowed him to rest. It reminded her of when he was an infant, always wanting to be by her side.

For right now, everything was at peace.

In an unknown location, sitting behind a desk, was the very same stallion Garble had spoken to days ago. He was dismissively tapping his hoof against the oak furniture while listening to another unicorn read notes off his clipboard.

“One of our field agents just reported in,” the navy blue unicorn stated. “I’m afraid the dragons never made it to Ponyville. Twilight Sparkle engaged them well outside the town.”

“Disappointing,” he said, sounding mildly annoyed.

“Indeed, sir. We’re halting production on the headline...”

“You’ll do no such thing,” his boss said, earning a surprised look.

“But... the dragons did no damage to the town. The other ponies won’t even...”

“You forget, we’ve kept tabs on the Bearers. The fashion designer, the baker, and the weather pony, they aren’t known for their still tongues. In all likelihood, the fact that those three went looking for Celestia’s little pet is going to be common knowledge within a day or two.”

“Would it be as effective as our original plan?”

“It might not be,” the crimson stallion nodded, “but ponies can be paranoid creatures, especially with the fears of the changelings about. Even the idea of a dragon attack can be enough to stir them up.”

Nonchalantly, he lifted something off his desk, levitating it in front of his face. “This will need some rewriting, and the ponies will require a bit more kindling... but our plans are hardly derailed.”

He tossed the paper back onto the desk. It was a newspaper, dated for the next day, with no story text, but a single ominous headline.

CELESTIA’S PET DRAGON CAUSES DESTRUCTION TO INNOCENT RURAL TOWN

Author's Note

Well, here we are, at the end of the first part of Families.

EDIT: Well, FIMFiction has banned song lyrics, so I replaced Candle on the Water with the more lawyer friendly Hush Now, Quiet Now.

For those of you wondering, yes, Scootaloo and Pinkie will now take center stage in this. More will be done with Spike and Twilight, but the remaining two plot lines are now the main focus. The next chapter will be Scootaloo, and then Pinkie. I promise, for those of you waiting for those, it's coming.

Now these mysterious ponies have been lightly hinted at all this time, you're probably getting a clearer picture of who they are. They will play an important part was well...

Flying Lesson Redux

The rest of the days passed without much incident, as most rainy days in Equestria did. Many bosses gave their employees off time for a storm so big, so not much else happened.

The next morning, Pinkie was up at the crack of dawn to begin her shift at the bakery, making donuts for the early morning rush. She was giving her employers a chance to sleep in, something they hadn't gotten much of a chance to do since the twins’ birth.

She was surprised when, thirty minutes before opening, Rarity came in, using her spare key. Shaking the grass from her designer boots, she trotted up to the counter.

"Rarity? What are you doing here so early? Usually you're all about beauty sleep! Ooh! Maybe you're not really Rarity! Are you a changeling? Can you do..."

"Pinkie," the unicorn said tensely. "Really, it's too early in the morning for those antics."

"Only you talk that much like Rarity. So what do you need?"

"It's not about what I need, Pinkie, it's what you need," she sighed. "Yesterday, before Twilight came back in, you were starting to tell us something. Is everything alright?"

At that point, Pinkie lost her smile. It was surreal to Rarity to see her friend this way. The earth pony was a pony of extremes; she giggled heavily, cried loudly, and sulked somberly. Seeing an intermediate response actually worried her far more.

"...No," Pinkie said quietly. "I've been wanting to tell you all something. I was waiting for everything with Spike to be over...”

Rarity shook her head. “Pinkie, it’s unhealthy to keep those kind of emotions bottled up...”

“I wasn’t doing it on purpose! Honest! I just didn't think it would take this long..."

Rarity shook her head sadly. "Well, I'm here now, and Spike's okay. Would you like to talk about it?"

Pinkie was silent again. "We're all getting together tonight, aren't we? I was going to tell you all then."

The unicorn arched an eyebrow. “Pinkie...”

“I’m not putting it off, honest. But... I just don’t want to have to tell the story twice.”

There was silence. “Pinkie... have you told the Cakes?”

“The day we got back from Canterlot. I... I never even told them about it before now. Please, please Rarity, wait until tonight.”

Rarity gaped at her friend’s reaction. Swallowing a lump in her throat, she nodded. "Very well. Until then, if there's anything I can do for you, don't hesitate to ask."

Pinkie shifted a bit. "Well, there is something..."

Rainbow Dash was rarely up before noon on days when she didn't have to work, but today was an exception. After the storm it was sunny skies for the next two days, meaning the pegasus had time to give her number one fan another training session.

Meeting in front of the Cutie Mark Crusader treehouse seemed to be a strange choice on the filly's part, but the elder mare nonetheless agreed to it. She arrived to see Scootaloo doing her wing strokes, clearly excited to start the days activities.

"Hey there, squirt, ready to get started?"

The filly jumped a foot in the air in sheer excitement. "You bet! I did all the exercises you told me everyday!"

"And did you always do more than you did before!"

"Uh-huh! I pushed myself, just like you said!"

Smiling, Rainbow pulled the filly into a one legged hug, gently trussing her mane with her other hoof. "Knew you had it in you," she smiled warmly.

"So, did that dragon die?" Scootaloo asked.

Rainbow Dash was confused for a moment, then remembrance came back. "Oh, no he didn't. He won't be flying straight anytime soon, but he'll live. I don't think those three will bother us again, though, not after what Twilight did to that red one. Spike's going to be okay too, Fluttershy told me so when she stopped by last night."

At that, Scootaloo looked apathetic. "That's... great," she muttered.

Rainbow arched an eyebrow. "Are you mad at Spike? Rarity told me that when she explained what had happened to you three, you seemed mad."

"Spike's an idiot!" she yelled, catching her mentor off guard. "Twilight was practically his mom already, and he wanted to throw everything away! That's stupid! Why would he do that!"

Rainbow placed a stern hoof on her shoulder. "Kid... yeah, Spike was acting stupid. But after the wedding... well, I wasn't really myself either. Ponies... and dragons, apparently... can do stupid things when they're like that."

"...I guess," the filly grunted.

"Well, we better get started. Let's do a warm-up. Some push-ups would be a good place to start..."

Twilight awoke to the warm sensation of her child resting on her. Her sleep for the first time since the wedding had been completely peaceful, no nightmares of changelings or vague cryptic visions from mischievous spirits. And Spike was still smiling even in his sleep, finally at peaceafter days of self inflicted torment.

Carefully she maneuvered her way out of her son's grip. Once on her hooves, she gently tucked the covers around him as if he was something incredibly fragile. Giving him one last kiss on the forehead, she trotted downstairs. Her stomach growling reminded her she had barely eaten the day before.

After Spike had fallen asleep the previous day, she had excused herself to do several things, including writing a report to the Princess about what she had learned, finding out how to apply for adoption papers, finding out if she even could legally adopt Spike given that many members of the Canterlot elite absolutely hated the idea of a dragon getting any rights like a pony, seeing if the Princess would be willing to give her an extension on her work so she could spend time with her child, reporting that the three teenage dragons were in Equestria, and other things.

Her mind was still a tangled mess of things she wanted to do, but she was excited to do them all. She had tried making checklist after checklist of what to do next, though whenever she had thought she had a plan, a new complication occurred to her.

At some point she returned to bed, allowing Spike to sleep with her. He hadn't woken once during the night, clearly he hadn't slept well the last few days either.

She was heading for the kitchen when a glimpse at the front door stopped her. There were letters dropped through the mail slot, unusually neglected in all the chaos of the previous day. She also noticed a package sitting among them, one with the Royal Seal on it. Her stipend, she guessed, must have been brought in by Derpy, whom she had given permission to do so when it came to packages.

She levitated her package up, noting it seemed heavier than usual. Tearing off the wrappings, she saw the usual wooden box, which she was required to mail back, that contained her bits. Unusually, however, there was a letter attached to it.

Dear Twilight Sparkle,

Due to your recent contributions to the Kingdom of Equestria, we have seen fit to increase your weekly stipend by a full thousand bits..."

Twilight gaped. Opening her box, she was frozen still by the several bits that practically overflowed from the container, including several fifty pieces where there had once been ten pieces. She had been expecting a raise in the wake of the Changeling Invasion, but not to this degree. Defeating NightMare Moon and Discord had netted her only half of that pay increase.

She sighed. Celestia was still feeling guilt, it seemed. Another problem in the wake of the wedding, it seemed, though the Princess of the Sun was more than capable of handling herself. Still, with the extra money, her research could be improved considerably. And with the Princess more compliant, perhaps she'd be more willing to deal with any complications with Spike's adoption... or was that a reason to hold off on anything right now? With the extra pressure being put on Celestia at the moment, getting caught bending more rules for her could be a disaster...

Her stomach growling reminded her of a more immediate concern. Setting the box on a table, she trotted to the kitchen to cook up a meal. An extra big one, she remembered. After all, Spike hadn't eaten much the last few days either.

"Alright kid, you've done good. Now we're going to try something a bit more intense."

Scootaloo beamed. "Alright! What is it?"

"We're going to try flying for distance," Rainbow Dash explained. She scooped the filly up in her forelegs and flew up into the sky. There was a cloud, a single cloud she had borrowed from work, still drifting just above Sweet Apple Acres. She deposited the filly on her cloud.

"This is going to really work you. Now, how far do you think you can make it on your wings?" Scootaloo looked around. They were still near the Cutie Mark Crusader clubhouse, she noted. It seemed a good distance away...

"Probably to the clubhouse..."

"Probably? There's no probability. That's a mindset I want you out of. You will make it to the clubhouse. I know you will."

"...You really think I can make it?"

"No, I know you can make it. You need to have that attitude. The only difference between a champ and a chump is the mindset. Are you a champ?"

"Yeah!"

"Then stretch your wings. Come on..." She instructed. Scootaloo obeyed, getting ready to fly.

"I'll be right below you to catch you. You'll keep going until you land on the clubhouse, land on the grass, or until your wings give out and I have to catch you. Now, don't look down at all. You hear me? You look down once, and that's it for training today."

"What? How am I supposed to see when I've made it?"

"I'll tell you. Now come on, go! Go! Go!"

Jumping a bit at her mentor's sudden yelling, the filly nonetheless obeyed, leaping off her cloud. Her wings moved in rhythm, occasionally flapping too fast, causing her to descend. After a bit, the flaps started putting a strain on her muscles, but she kept going at Rainbow's insistence.

"Come on, come on! Go! Go! You're doing great, go! Go!"

Scootaloo was sweating. She was feeling the burn. She had to be at least halfway there by now...

"Go! Go! Come on, no pain, no gain!"

The encouragements continued as she kept herself going forward. Every second it was becoming more difficult, but she persisted. Another flap, then another, then another.

She wished she could see her progress. The treehouse below her would give a good indication of how far she had gotten. Still, she had to be almost there by now...

"Come on, come on, halfway point! You're doing great... don't stop! Don't stop! Go! Go!"

Scootaloo's near halt was brought on by a revelation. Only halfway? She thought for sure she'd be there by now. She was so tired, but she had to keep going. She couldn't let Rainbow Dash down. She pushed through her aches.

"Go! Go! Go!"

She continued obeying, flapping, pushing. She felt like crying. She couldn't even make it five feet without getting this tired. But she hid it. She couldn't let Rainbow Dash think she was a wimp. She had to keep it up...

"Go! Go! Come on, almost there! Almost there!"

Her wings were beginning to buckle. Crying in desperation, she kept forward.

"You're almost there! Go, come on! Just flap your wings five more times! Five... four... three... two... one! You made it! Good job!"

Scootaloo fell on the grass, and almost immediately started crying.

"Hey squirt, what's wrong? Did you bump something?"

"I... I couldn't even make it five feet! I..."

She trailed off when she noticed something. She was looking straight ahead... but she still couldn't see the clubhouse.

"...What?" she turned around. There, a good ten feet away, sat the Cutie Mark Crusaders Clubhouse.

"You were losing a lot more altitude near the end, we need to work on that. But that was good."

"H... how did I make it that far?"

"Because you couldn't see your limit," Rainbow Dash explained. "The point of this was to teach you that limits exist in your head. They're when your brain is telling you to stop. You need to learn to ignore that. See, because you made it farther than your brain told you you could."

Scootaloo looked in awe. He mentor's forelegs wrapped around her, pulling her into a hug.

"Come on, I think it's time for something else," she said, lifting the happy filly up. She carried her charge up to the same cloud she had launched herself off of earlier.

"So what are we doing now?" Scootaloo asked as her hooves touched cloud.

The younger filly was surprised when her idol flopped down on her back. "Now, we nap."

Scootaloo blinked. "Nap?"

Rainbow Dash responded by draping a foreleg around the filly and pulling her close. "Even a champion needs her shut-eye."

Spike awoke to the smell of breakfast, an unusual wake up call, seeing as how cooking was one of his tasks. His eyes shot open. The aroma of pancakes with syrup and fresh squeezed orange juice filled his nose. Excitedly he rose up, only to be rudely reminded of the beating he had taken the day before. Groaning, he sat on the bed, trying to work his way through the pain.

It was a few seconds later when he remembered. Twilight was his mother now. She didn't hate him. All his worries about her not loving him the way she wanted him to were childish overreactions. He was overjoyed. Suddenly, the pain meant nothing. He had to get downstairs.

He rose again, wincing at the pain but mostly trying to ignore it. He set his feet on the floor as he stood, his body feeling twice as heavy as it usually should. Slowly he began making his way downstairs. His heart beat faster with each step, both with excitement as to who he was going to see and in response to the effort his body was putting up.

Owlowiscious, watching from a perch, stayed silent, torn between two conflicting desires. One was to obey his mistress and alert her if Spike tried to walk on his own, the other was a belief that Spike needed to do this. He sighed. He could always tell her he had fallen asleep a little too early.

Twilight had just finished setting out breakfast, and upon hearing the dragon's footsteps, she turned to meet her son's gaze. She smiled warmly, and he smiled back, his heart beating faster... then her eyes bulged out. "Spike!"

Spike jumped. "What? What's wrong?"

Instantly Twilight's magic surrounded him, lifting him into the air. "You shouldn't be walking around just yet! You're still sore from yesterday!" She placed Spike in a chair, as carefully as she could.

"Aw, Twilight, I feel fine," he moaned.

The unicorn stopped, lifting an eyebrow. "Twilight? You're not going to call me Mom?"

Spike scratched the back of his head awkwardly. “I... I don't know. I really wanted you to be my mom, but... actually calling you Mom just sounds weird. You’ve taken care of me all this time, but I’ve always called you Twilight, so..."

Twilight silenced him by kissing his forehead. "That's okay, I understand. You don’t have to call me anything new now. I'm still your mother... which means you listen when I tell you to take it easy, okay?"

He blushed. "Okay."

"Good. Now come on, after yesterday I think we both deserve a big breakfast," she said soothingly, tucking a napkin into his lap.

Spike licked his lips as he looked at the pallet laid out for him. Pancakes and orange juice, wheat toast with butter, slices of grapefruit, and some tea for Twilight. “You made all this? What’s the occasion?”

“I just wanted to take a day to spend with you. With what’s been going on we both deserve some time off,” she answered as she sat in her own chair, levitating her knife and fork to cut her first.

“Are we going anywhere?” he asked excitedly.

“Oh no,” she scolded, looking right at him. “I don’t want you moving around much today. We’re going to stay home and rest. We’ll think of something fun to do. Maybe I can read to you like I used to...”

Spike drooped a little, though he had to admit, even going back to his early days sounded appealing. “...Can we read some of the Daring Do books?”

She smiled. “Of course. And before that, are you up for sending a few letters to the Princess?” Spike swallowed his mouthful.

“Why? I thought you wanted me to take it easy.”

“I do... but I need to tell Celestia that those three dragons were here. Even if they’re leaving for good, it wouldn’t be right of me not to alert the authorities. I wouldn’t ask it of you if it weren’t important.”

Spike nodded. “I’m sure I’ll be able to do it.” He was silent for a moment. “Are you sure they’re gone?”

Twilight smiled. “Relax, I scared them good. They’re gone, and after you're healed we’ll probably barely talk about it again.”

Applejack wiped the sweat off her forehead as she looked over her work. It would be harvest time soon, and the trees were needing constant tending. Saplings replacing the trees Flim and Flam had dug up needed special attention in the first few years.

Smiling at a job well done, she pushed the baskets of weeds she had pulled up towards the barn, glad to be done with her work for the day. As she was imagining what to do next, Carrot Top trotted up to her looking quite frazzled.

"Applejack! Applejack! Is it true?"

The cowpony blinked. "Is what true?"

"It's been spreading all over town. You and the other Bearers fought off three dragons that were on their way here!"

"Yeah... they were comin' here because they had a run-in with Spike a few months back. Where'd you hear that from?"

"Pinkie and Rarity have been telling everypony who'll listen," her fellow farmpony revealed. "Is it true Twilight killed one of them?"

That got Applejack's eyes to pop out of her head. "What? Nah... she roughed up one of 'em real bad, weren't happy he was tryin' to hurt Spike, but last I checked all three of 'em were still up and about."

Carrot Top gulped. "Could... could they come back here?"

"Doubt it. Twi really shook 'em up. Doubt they'll think beatin' on Spike is worth the effort of havin' to mess with her again."

At this, Carrot Top breathed a sigh of relief. "I guess you’re right... hearing about those dragons just made me a bit hysterical."

"You afraid of them?"

"Are you kidding? We've had a dragon rampage through town before, and we should be thanking Celestia nopony got hurt. And the year before that, a dragon nearly suffocated us all, and he wasn't even trying."

Applejack rubbed the back of her head. "Yeah, I guess life's been kinda hectic ever since we got the Elements."

"You mean, ever since Twilight moved into town?"

Despite herself, Applejack felt her eyes narrow. "Just what'd you mean by that?"

Carrot Top flinched, realizing her misstep. Still, she decided to be honest with her friend. "Well...ever since Twilight moved into town, weird things have been happening. I mean, do you really think Discord would have come here if Twilight wasn't..."

"I think he would have come here anyway before too long," Applejack said through gritted teeth, "'sides, to all of you it was like wakin' up from a bad dream. You ain't got nothin' to complain about."

The orange haired pony nodded. “I know... I know. I wasn’t saying anything was her fault, really. I guess a lot of it would have come with or without Twilight. It’s just... honestly, there are times she just seems like a disaster magnet.”

Applejack fumed a bit, but her anger melted. “I’d be lyin’ if I didn’t say I got that impression sometimes. Still,Twi’s helped this town more than she’s hurt it.”

Carrot Top shook her head. "I know, believe me, I like Twilight,” she shifted uncomfortably. “Are you coming to market today?"

"Granny Smith's runnin' the stands with Apple Bloom," the cowpony said, relieved to be changing the subject. "We're lookin' to..."

As Applejack kept rambling, she failed to notice another pony, a unicorn stallion, standing behind one of her trees. Smiling, he levitated his pencil to write. It was just like his boss said, the story was already spreading.

Rainbow Dash had spent hours with Scootaloo, training the little filly and teaching her everything she knew. It was nearing sunset and, once again, the orange pegasus was exhausted.

"You did very good today, squirt," the elder mare congratulated, wiping her brow, "but we're going to have to call it quits now. We're having dinner to celebrate what happened yesterday."

"Alright," Scootaloo answered. "I'm about ready for a rest anyway."

Rainbow Dash ruffled her hair affectionately. They were back to resting on the cloud she had borrowed, enjoying a final piece of quality relaxation time. "You earned it, kiddo."

For a few minutes, the pair just quietly sat, watching the world turn. It was a peaceful, if not slightly wet, summer day.

"...Rainbow Dash?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you really mean it when you said I could do anything?"

Grinning, the rainbow maned pegasus poked her student in the ribs, tickling her. "You calling me a liar, squirt?"

Scootaloo giggled, wiggling out of her grasp, for a few moments at least. Rainbow Dash tackled her, digging her hooves into her sides and tickling her for all she was worth. "I don't lie, squirt, you should know better!"

The young filly shrieked and squirmed, but that brought no relief from her mentor's assault. After a few moments she relented, collecting Scootaloo in her forelegs and pulling her close. A wing draped itself over her, keeping her close. A wing wrapped around her.

"You can do anything at all, squirt, as long as it doesn't hurt anypony."

"...What if somepony tells you you can't?"

"Are you talking about that Diamond Tiara again? I told you, don't..."

"No, no... I mean, what if a big pony tells me I can't?"

Rainbow looked at her student for half a minute. Scootaloo gulped, feeling she had said too much.

"Well, big or small, I told you not to let anypony tell you you can't do something," Rainbow Dash said simply. "Don't let them get to you."

Scootaloo nodded enthusiastically, believing the suspicion was off of her. "You got it. I'll tell any big pony just that."

“...Like who, exactly?”

Inwardly, the younger pegasus kicked herself. “Oh, just... somepony.” It was a lame response, and the filly knew it even before the response left her mouth. “You know what, Rainbow Dash? Nevermind. It’s really nothing...”

“Kid...” Rainbow Dash said softly, though the single syllable carried a force that rendered Scootaloo speechless, “is everything alright for you at home?”

Scootaloo froze, chills running down her spine. “Of course, everything’s great. You know, I think I’ve had enough training for today. I think I’ll just scoot on...”

She trailed off. She was on a cloud, several feet above the air. There was no place to run.

“You ran from me at the wedding when I started questioning you about your dad. I’m not letting you this time. What’s wrong?”

“...Nothing.”

“Scoots, you’re a worse liar than Applejack.”

“I... I...”

“Scootaloo,” Rainbow Dash said slowly, placing her hooves on the small filly’s shoulders, “I’m trying to help you. I can sense something’s wrong. Soarin’ could too. Please tell me...”

“It’s none of your business!” the filly snapped angrily.

Rainbow Dash widened her eyes at her number one fan’s unexpected aggressiveness. A slight tinge of hurt entered her features.

Seeing this, Scootaloo moped. “I’m sorry, Rainbow Dash. I... I didn’t mean...”

The elder mare scooped her up in a hug. “It’s okay, squirt. I didn’t mean to pry,” she said soothingly. Scootaloo gave no verbal response. She simply nuzzled her face into the crook of her mentor's neck.

"...Kid... you know I care about you, right?" "Mm-hmm," the filly mumbled.

"And you know you can tell me anything, right?"

"...Yeah," Scootaloo said quietly.

The older pegasus pulled them apart. She looked into her eyes with a look that she hoped was firm, but loving. "Then I want you to promise me something."

"...What?"

Rainbow Dash took a deep breath. "If something ever is wrong... you'll tell me. I don't want you keeping anything from me that would hurt you."

"I promise."

"Pinkie promise?"

Scootaloo went through the motion, although without the usual enthusiasm. "Pinkie promise."

Rainbow Dash scooped her up in another hug, which was returned almost instantly. The two stayed that way for a long while. The older mare could have sworn she felt her coat getting slightly moist. Tears? She didn't know. She felt like she was holding the most precious thing in the world, and to her, she might as well have been. She wanted to help this filly, wanted to be let in.

She was beginning to understand Twilight's pain. Should she press harder? Ease up and let her open up naturally? Go confront her parents? Would Scootaloo try to run as Spike had? She felt helpless.

Rainbow Dash took a deep breath. She would go consult the others on this tonight. Right now, it was the best she could do.

"Alright kid, it's getting late. I have plans, and you better get home. You going to be okay?"

"Yeah... don't worry, Rainbow Dash. I'll be just fine."

Author's Note

Posted this on my tablet, let me know of any hiccups.

Edit: Hiccups fixed.

And thanks to my readers for finding the name of the movie that Scootaloo's flight is homaging, "Facing the Giants". Go look up the death crawl scene, it's good.

The Runaway

Finally, after a particularly long and uneventful day, night fell. Twilight put away her law reference books, it was time for dinner. She had laid out a buffet of daisy sandwiches, salads, hay fries, a few gemstones for Spike, tea and water, and various other things.

Smiling to herself, she walked up her stairs to the bedroom and poked her head in. "Spike? Come on, it's time for dinner."

Spike responded by continuing to lie on his back, right on Twilight's bed. His eyes were closed, and they didn't look like they would be opening anytime soon.

Not that this little detail stopped Twilight. She walked up and prodded the baby dragon. "Come on, wake up. You're the guest of honor."

"Hughn," Spike grumbled, turning a bit but not waking up.

Twilight sighed, using her magic to levitate him up. Gently she placed him in his basket, tucking him in. With a final kiss on the cheek she walked out. Spike had been tired all day, the ordeals of the previous day having taken the strength out of him. He had drifted in and out of sleep while Twilight had read to him that day, and ended up asleep for a good while as Twilight had returned to her studies. She had hoped that he would wake to attend dinner, but it didn't look like that was going to happen.

She was just putting away the gemstones when Rainbow Dash, the first to arrive, tumbled in through a window and landed on the floor. Dusting herself off, she turned to her friend. "Am I late?"

"Nope, you're actually early," Twilight noted, her face looking curious. "Rainbow, did you just fly a marathon?"

It was a fair question, it looked like exercise had been all her friend had done that day. "I've been training Scoots all day," the pegasus noted. "I finally just asked her about her family."

"You did?" the unicorn asked, breath hitched. "Did she say anything?"

Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her head awkwardly. "She tried to run again, but we were up on a cloud and she couldn't. Then she got real defensive, said it was none of my business. Then, she kind of broke down."

Twilight winced. "What did you say after that?"

The pegasus shyed away. "I let her cry for awhile, then made her promise she'd tell me if something was wrong."

Her friend sighed, shaking her head. "So the problem's still up in the air, huh?"

Rainbow Dash was spared from answering by the door opening and Fluttershy coming in, with Applejack close behind. "Twi, are Pinkie and Rarity here yet?"

Twilight was a bit stunned at the intensity of her friend's words. "I haven't seen them yet. What's wrong?"

"What's wrong is that those two have been going around town tellin' everypony that you skinned them dragons alive. You'd think you were some kinda crazy person."

The unicorn gaped. "Come again?"

"I had twenty different ponies ask me to clarify if you killed them dragons, and every one of them heard it from one of those two yahoos."

Twilight shook her head. "So the whole thing is going to be all over town soon... really, I'm surprised Rarity wants it getting out. I figured that was something she would think was improper.”

“Maybe,” Rarity said, walking into her friend’s house after hearing the tail end of the conversation, “but not telling everypony about those awful brutes would simply be irresponsible. Why...”

She was cut off by Applejack jamming a hoof into her chest. “Well why th’ hay have you been tellin’ ponies that Twi killed those dragons?”

“I have not,” Rarity said, sounding a bit offended. “The rumors can get out of hoof sometimes. You know how it is.”

"I oughta," Applejack groaned, "I've been puttin' up with 'it' all day."

"Well, I apologize, but I most certainly haven't been adding any embellishments."

“Yeah, I haven’t been telling anypony anything that didn’t happen,” Pinkie said.

“Oh, hello Pinkie,” Twilight greeted. “I didn’t hear you come in.”

Silence washed over the room as the five not pink ponies processed the previous sentence.

Twilight placed a hoof on Pinkie’s forehead. “Wow, Pinkie, are you alright?”

The earth pony shifted a bit. “Well... I have something I need to tell all of you.”

Rarity and Fluttershy had been expecting this. The other's however, had worried looks on them. Rainbow Dash’s hoof hit her forehead. “Oh for... when did we get all this drama in our lives?”

“Rainbow,” Rarity scolded.

Applejack placed a hoof on her fellow earth pony’s shoulder. “Whatever ya need to say, tell us.”

“Let’s eat first,” Pinkie said quickly. “It’s a long story... and where’s Spike? This dinner is for him.”

Twilight kicked the floor. “He’s asleep. He’s out of energy from yesterday. I tried to wake him, but...”

The other ponies groaned. “But... this was to celebrate him recovering!” Pinkie pouted.

“Well, let’s not let all this food go to waste,” Twilight said. “We’ll do something with Spike later. Pinkie, why don’t you tell us what’s wrong?”

Daring Do and the Griffin’s Goblet was looking to be even better than the last book, Scootaloo decided. She lost herself whenever she was home, which was fine with her father, who always liked when she wasn’t getting in the way.

A knock sounded on the door. In a flash the filly slid the book under her pillow and smiled. A moment later, Speedy Delivery came in. “Hey there, kiddo. What have you been up to?”

“Oh, today I just... I just hung out at the clubhouse,” she said weakly. “Apple Bloom and Sweetie Bell were busy today.”

He nodded, but looked at her daughter carefully. “You look a little worn out to have just been sitting in that clubhouse all day...”

Scootaloo shifted around uneasily. “Oh. Well... I did ride around on my scooter a bit... I guess it was hotter than I thought out today.”

She laughed. Her father leaned in. He was still smiling, but there was something sinister in it. “Kiddio...you know I don’t like it when I’m lied to, don’t you?”

“Of course.”

“I really hope you’re not lying to me. Don’t tell me that I raised a bad kid,” he leaned in closer.

“You didn’t,” she assured, squirming.

“Good. I mean, it’s bad enough that you’re too clumsy to fly, I’d hate for you be a liar.”

Scootaloo opened her mouth to say “Yes, daddy”, but something stopped her.

Don’t let anypony tell you you can’t do anything... not even me.

The words of Rainbow Dash.

“I’m not clumsy.”

Speedy Delivery stopped cold. He looked at his daughter, his eyes wide. His body began to shake. At that moment, one could hear a pin drop.

“...What did you say?”

“...I said...” Scootaloo took a deep breath, “that I don’t think I’m clumsy.”

Pinkie looked at the table, then at the five friends who were gaping at her.

“You mean... they actually...” Twilight said slowly.

A few tears forming in her eyes, Pinkie nodded. “They... they weren’t happy...”

Fluttershy patted her back gently. Pinkie looked at her for a moment, and the yellow pegasus nodded a supporting nod.

“So... what happened next?”

Pinkie's forelegs ached as the pick dug left splinters in her hooves. She wanted so bad to rest, but her father's cold gaze on her moving on.

"I... I don't understand," the pink earth pony sobbed. "I just put together a party.."

"You know what you didn’t do?" Clyde asked coldly. "Your chores. The work we need to survive on. A cutie mark in such a frivolous pursuit? Bah!"

"But...”

“No buts. You can dress it up all you want, devoting your life to parties is laziness.”

“But we had a get-together last week..."

"Don't compare the two," the rock farmer snapped. "Enjoying oneself after a day of work is fine, but all you want to do is laugh and play!"

"I... I want to make ponies happy..."

"If that were true," he answered sternly, "you'd be working to be a doctor, or a philanthropist, something that would do real good, not just being a distraction to ponies."

"But..."

"Enough. You still have a lot of work to do! I'll make you into a respectable pony!"

"...Granny Pie would have listened to me..."

Clyde stiffened. It was like Pinkie had punctured him with a knife. Tears began spilling from his eyes. "You..."

"She would have loved..."

"Don't you dare lecture me about her!" Clyde said angrily. "I knew my own mother, a lot better than you do. Don't think I don't!"

"I know you did," Pinkie said, crying. "You were so sad when she..."

"Don't. You. Dare," Clyde said angrily. "Just get back to work." With that, the head of the farm stomped off angrily, leaving the filly alone with her work.

The ponies looked on sympathetically as their normally cheerful friend cried at the painful memories. Pinkie had fallen into Fluttershy's forelegs, and the yellow pegasus nuzzled her friend comfortingly.

"I don't believe it!" Rainbow Dash yelled, banging the table with one of her hooves. "How could they do that to you?"

"They just didn't understand," Pinkie wept. "I... I just wanted to make them happy... I was still going to work..."

Twilight sighed, a hoof on her forehead. "It sounds like... it sounds like your father had an ego on him," she concluded.

Pinkie actually looked up at the unicorn. "But... he always said humility was a virtue."

"Ironic, isn't it?" the unicorn answered dryly. "There's been a lot of ponies who have believed they were in the right, even while they were doing the wrong thing. Tartarus overflows with them."

Pinkie hiccuped and nodded. "That makes sense."

"Pinkie..." Applejack asked carefully. "About your granny...your pa loved her?"

The pink mare nodded. "She was so wonderful. We had parties all the time when she was alive...not really colorful ones, like mine, but still really fun. She'd sing songs, tell us stories, everything!" For a moment, Pinkie sounded like her normal self.

"When she died...Dad changed. He seemed like he was always smiling, laughing. After...he was just so sad. He almost never smiled. He had never been mean to me or my sister's before I got my cutie mark, but he seemed...different."

Applejack sighed. "I remember how I was when Ma and Pa passed on," she muttered, taking off her hat somberly. "I guess yours was just as sad.

"But that always confused me. He never cried, even once. I think...he was trying to be strong."

There was an awkward silence for a moment. It was Rainbow Dash who broke it.

"Well, what happened next?"

Three days of constant plowing, rock breaking, and house cleaning later and Pinkie decided she had had enough. She remembered her dear Granny Pie's words, telling her to keep laughing in the face of adversity, and to always do what she felt needed to be done.

She knew what she needed. She needed to leave.

In the dark of the night, she packed up her things. Her saddlebags filled with blankets, a pillow, a few slices of bread she had nicked from the kitchen, and a photograph. It was something she had mentally debated with herself on, deciding whether or not to take it. Through it all, she still loved her father and mother, and even though they were being cold now, she knew they still loved her.

Inkie and Blinkie were sympathetic, she could tell, but they feared similar punishments. They couldn't help her, but she still loved them. She wanted to remember him. Finally deciding she could fix this if she regretted it, she stuck the photo in the bags as well.

She slowly stepped down the steps, taking note to step over the ones that creaked. She managed to reach the bottom with no incident. Carefully, she made her way across the room, inching closer to the door. She cringed at every noise, the house settling becoming her greatest fear.

She reached the screen door of their farmhouse, and slowly brought her mouth around the knob. It opened, creaking a bit. Deciding it was best now to go for broke, she opened the door in a flash and bolted out.

She stopped at the bottom of the porch steps, catching her breath. The hard part was over, she was in the clear. She began trotting away.

"Hold it," a voice said coldly.

Pinkie's mane stood on end. She looked behind her. There was nopony there. She swung her head curiously until it finally traveled up.

Her father's head was sticking out of the bedroom window, and he did not look happy.

"Where. Are. You. Going?"

Pinkie trembled... but remembering Granny Pie's words, she spoke. "...I can't stay here."

"You are going to stay here," he demanded.

"...I can't."

"Come back inside, now!"

Pinkie did the exact opposite of what she was told. She turned around and began running, ready to outrace or hide from her father. His next words, however, stopped her cold.

"If you walk out, don't bother ever coming back!"

She froze in place. For several seconds, or perhaps even minutes, Pinkie couldn't quite remember now, there was a stalemate.

A hoofstep, then another, and Pinkie's legs carried her away from her childhood home. The sound of a window slamming down filled her ears for a moment, but it seemed to echo forever.

Halfway down the road, a new sound filled her ears. "Pinkie!"

She froze and turned. Her mother was chasing down the road after her. She began to pick up speed.

"Pinkie, wait! Please, stop!"

To her own surprise, the filly actually stopped. She turned to face her mother, and was surprised to see that her eyes were moist.

"Pinkie, please... don't leave."

"I have to," Pinkie said sadly. "You're not letting me have fun..."

"Pinkie, we're only trying to do what's best. Please..."

There was a silence. The runaway looked down the road, then back at her mother. "You spanked me..."

"...We... we might not have done it the best way. We were only doing what we thought was for the best. Please..."

"You hurt me," she said. There was no anger, only sadness.

"Pinkie, please... come back to the house and we'll talk. I'll calm your father down, I promise...you can go back to your normal chores...please..."

The cries had genuine sadness and fear in them. They tugged at the filly's heartstrings. She wanted so badly to obey, but she wanted to leave too. Maybe she could work things out...

...

"You didn't talk to me before."

It wasn't said in anger, or even sadness. It was a mere statement of fact.

She turned. She walked.

"Pinkie! Pinkie, please!"

She kept walking.

"Pinkie!"

She didn't look back.

"...Fine! Walk away! But don't come back! See what's it's like out there! I hope I never see you again!"

She kept walking. She didn't look back. She never looked back. She walked, and walked, until the sun rose on the horizon. By then, she had entered the area of crop farms. She found a bale of hay, crawled into it, burying herself in the straw, so deep she could pretend the rest of the world didn't exist.

And then she cried.

Speedy Delivery was not happy. And that usually meant trouble for Scootaloo. But Scootaloo wasn't happy either, and she was determined to make it mean trouble for Speedy Delivery.

"You don't think you're clumsy, huh?" the older pegasus said slowly. Then, like flipping a switch, his demeanor suddenly changed. "Well fine, I mean, how am I to know? I only raised you and gave you everything you've ever had."

"Including my scooter," the younger pegasus challenged. "I've done things on that you wouldn't believe."

"Of course you have," he said sweetly. "Since you can't fly, you have to settle for a poor substitute. It's nothing to be ashamed of, sweetie, you're just not good enough..."

"I am good enough."

"Of course you think that, because you’re spending far too much time playing instead of learning. You're just a..."

"I'm not stupid!" Scootaloo screeched, causing Speedy Delivery to hold his ears at the sudden increase in noise. He glared at his offspring.

"I think you're forgetting I'm your father, I know best. You listen to me..."

"I don't care!" she challenged. "You're wrong!"

"You can't fly!"

"I did today!"

Scootaloo's hooves clamped over her mouth in horrific realization at what she had just admitted. Her father was no longer trying to hide his rage, though he was keeping it pent up. "What?"

At this point, Scootaloo decided to just go for broke. Determination seeped back in her voice, rage she hadn't even been aware she had kept pent up came to the surface. "That's right! I flew! Rainbow Dash offered me lessons and I took them! She helped me fly! I flew farther than I ever thought possible today! I could do it! You just couldn't see it! You were wrong!"

It was like a weight off her chest. She stood proudly, firmly... for a moment. Her father's gaze which seemed to bore right through her, got her to shrink down.

Then, Speedy Delivery took a breath.

Pinkie took a deep breath. It was easier now, making it through her story without losing it. Fluttershy acted as an emotional brace, having heard the story before. Her friends had varying reactions.

"I don't believe it!" Rainbow Dash said angrily. "How could they... how could she ask you to stay after all that? How could you even think of staying?"

"I don't know," Pinkie said sadly. "Maybe I should have stayed if they were willing to talk things out..."

"No way," Rainbow Dash said bluntly. "They were being jerks. Just drop them!"

"...Isn't that what we did to Twilight?"

The cyan pegasus looked like she had been stabbed in the gut. Twilight flinched as well, the memory still painful for her.

"Well... that's different, this seems pretty black and white..."

"We thought that at the wedding too," Fluttershy pointed out gently.

"Pinkie..." Rarity said slowly, "I cannot say whether or not you made the right choice in deciding to walk away, but I must ask: did you ever consider going back to try and patch things up?"

After a pause, Pinkie nodded. "I thought about it, but I... I could never work up the courage. My dad and mom were so mean... I don't think..."

They were quiet while they let Pinkie regain herself. She continued. "I don't think I can face them."

"Why the hay are you bringing this up to us now?" Applejack asked. "It seems... a bit out of the blue."

Pinkie was quiet again. "Princess Luna told me I needed to talk about this. I... I guess it's been messing me up for awhile..."

"...Like at your birthday?" Twilight asked quietly.

The earth pony nodded. "And... and my parents are coming here, to Ponyville."

Five sets of eyes popped out of their heads. "What?"

"I got a letter from them a few days ago. They say that they want to come and... and try to make things right."

There was silence.

"Are... are you going?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"...Yes," Pinkie said. "I need to."

There was another silence. This time, it was Twilight who broke it. "When are they going to be here?"

"In about ten days."

"Do you want us to be there?" Twilight asked gently, already knowing the answer.

"Could you please? I'm so scared..."

"You really have to ask?" Rainbow Dash said, as if she had just asked if ice was made of water. "Of course we will."

Pinkie knew in the back of her mind that all her friends would say yes, but actually hearing it happen made her cry. For the next several minutes, she just let her friends comfort her. Everything was going to turn out just fine.

However, the moment, was interrupted by a knock at the front door. Excusing herself, Twilight walked to answer it.

She was quite surprised to see two members of the Royal Guard standing before her.

"Lady Sparkle," one greeted.

"Oh, um, hello," she said, stunned. "Can I help you?"

"We were sent from Canterlot to search out the three dragons you reported earlier today. We haven't found anything in a three hundred mile radius, so we're about to give an all clear, we just need to ask you a few questions."

As Twilight handled the guards, Rarity excused herself. Covertly, she signaled for Applejack to follow. The two went into another room.

"Okay, Rare, what's up?"

"Applejack... Pinkie talked to me earlier today."

"She told you all this?"

"...No. She told me something else."

"What?"

"Oh, I think you know."

"...No, I really don't."

"Oh Applejack, you don't have to hide your feelings from me. It might be difficult, but I think you could make it work."

"Huh?"

"You really must be open to this. If you go tell Twilight how you feel, I'm sure you two can..."

"Finally, this is the last one," Vinyl noted, levitating the last two boxes into the living area. "I don't see why we couldn't hire some movers for this?"

Octavia rolled her eyes. "Really, this apartment costs five hundred bits a month. We need to cut corners until we get savings."

"Cruddy Canterlot... I don't see why I had to move here instead of you moving to Ponyville."

"Because there's not much demand for a fancy cellist in a small hick town."

"Oh, here we go, do you always have to insult my town?"

"I did no such thing!" Octavia said, insulted.

"Yesh, news flash, prim and proper, hick generally has negative conotations..."

"Oh, wow, you now know a four syllable word, how wonderful," the grey mare answered with a roll of her eyes.

"And that's another thing, do you always have to..."

"PINKIE!"

The two mares threw themselves at each other, locked in a fearful embrace. "What was that?" the earth pony said fearfully.

"It must be the end times," Vinyl said quickly. "Quick, let's make out while we still can!"

The fancy mare rolled her eyes. "You are just a simple minded creature."

"...Sorry," the unicorn muttered as she began to pull away, but her partner tightened her grip.

"I didn't say no."

Author's Note

Okay, last time I'm going to use this joke, promise.

Sweet Celestia, this was hard to write. Both Pinkie's story and Scootaloo calling her father out...wow.

Note: Scootaloo's scene isn't over. Far from it. You'll see the real fallout next chapter...this isn't a climax. I might reword the scene later, because I'm not %100 happy with it yet...

Now, important: thoughts on Clyde? I'm not saying my intention, I need a genuine reaction to him. Let's see if I wrote him right...

More Trouble Brewing

Applejack wobbled out of the farmhouse and into town, her body still sore from the night before. She was sincerely hoping to not run into anypony she knew that morning.

"Hey AJ," a voice called out from above. Knowing who it was, she tried to ignore it. Unfortunately, Rainbow Dash was not one to be ignored.

"You look tired. Did you have a long night with..."

"Don't. You. Dare."

"Aw, come on..."

"It ain't funny," the cowpony growled. "You know why I'm so sore..."

"Yeah, apparently Royal Guards aren't too keen on you jumping at another pony yelling angrily. Who'd have thought."

"...It weren't that bad..."

"AJ, you knocked one of the guards out."

"It was an accident!"

"It took me, Twilight, and the other guard to hold you down. You're lucky you're not in jail right now."

The cowpony grumbled angrily.

"So, when's your first date?"

Applejack swung at her friend, but Rainbow Dash was already in the air, so the attack didn’t amount to much.

“Aw, don’t be like that,” the pegasus chuckled, clearly only encouraged. “I think the two of you just need a good night of cider drinking and your feelings will come out. Who knows? Maybe we'll fly the two of you to Las Pegasus and get you...”

The glare her friend shot her got Rainbow Dash to stop talking, but only because she was too busy laughing. Grumbling, the cowpony continued on, with her friend right behind her.

“Don’t ‘cha got somethin’ better to do than harass me?” Applejack shot.

“Not really,” she shrugged. “That’s the thing after a big storm, weather tends to be sunny for a while. We just needed to set out a few clouds, and I’m not needed for that. Which means I can rib you about this all day.”

“No you can’t. I’ve got farmwork to do today. I can’t have ya floatin’ behind me all the dang time.”

Rainbow Dash shrugged. “Fair enough. Looks like my fun is down for the day. I wonder if Scootaloo is up for another lesson?”

“Scootaloo?” Applejack smirked. “Not prankin’ with Pinkie, or hangin’ out with Fluttershy?”

The cyan mare blushed. “Well... I’m still worried about the kid. See, yesterday...”

“Uh, Dash?” the cowpony muttered in shock.

“What? ...oh...”

The reason for the surprise was that there seemed to be a gathering just ahead of them. There was a makeshift stage made out of milk cartons. There was a backdrop composed of a wooden frame covered with a canvas. Drawn on was an olive branch with the words “Seek the Peace” written in big, black letters.

“What the...”

A white unicorn with a megaphone for a cutie mark stood on the stage. Levitating a bullhorn up to his lips, he began speaking. “Citizens of Ponyville, hear me! You are in great danger! Certainly you have noticed just how close to death you have all come to. No, I am not talking about the changeling invasion, though that little mess had many of the same root problems. I’m talking about the attack just two days ago that could have gotten you all killed had things happened just a little differently.”

Coming up to the crowd, Rainbow Dash and Applejack gave each other curious glances. The cowpony tapped the shoulder of the first pony she came to, which happened to be Lyra.

“Hey, do you know what the hay this guy’s talkin’ ‘bout?”

“He’s talking about the dragons you and the other fought a few days ago,” the unicorn noted, levitating a newspaper up to her friend. “It’s made the papers.”

Applejack looked on and realized that this wasn’t any local paper. It carried the title of The Truth, and it bore an ominous front headline.

CELESTIA’S PET DRAGON LURES HIS KIND TO THE OUTSKIRTS OF A PEACEFUL RURAL TOWN. DESTRUCTION BARELY AVERTED

“What the ponyfeathers is this?” Rainbow Dash said angrily.

“Can you all imagine what would have happened had that dragon not been at the town’s edge? You would all be out of your homes and likely your employment, and many might have died.”

There was some murmurs to that. Rainbow Dash and Applejack looked at each other, not liking where this was going.

“And do you know why this happened? It happened because you’re housing a dragon, one that has been forced on you by our so-called beloved princess. Celestia sent him to live here, and now he has put you in danger!”

That got murmurs, both at the insulting of Spike and the criticism of the princess. Rainbow Dash snorted angrily while Applejack dug her hooves into the ground.

“Celestia insisted on keeping a beast among civilization, and look what it nearly cost all of you. Sure, you might have been spared this time, but what happens next time? Are you really willing to put your lives in danger over some monster.”

“That’s it!” Rainbow Dash said, flying up. Applejack tried to restrain her friend, but missed her by a longshot as the pegasus flew forward and landed on stage. “Listen here, I’m already sick of you!”

“And what do we have here?”

“Look you, I’ve been listening to you for a minute, and I’m already sick of you badmouthing my friends. You better stop, or else!"

Applejack hit her forehead with her hoof. She knew what happened next.

"Behold, one of Celestia's attack dogs, baring her teeth at the slightest resistance," the speaker said, playing the crowd once again.

"Slightest? Your badmouthing the princess and my friends!"

"That incompetent tyrant sitting on the throne in Canterlot? The one who allowed the Changeling Queen to set up an invasion right under her nose? Why not?"

"Look you, I'm going to..."

"And behold! The true colors of the monarchy," the pony jeered, "threatening with physical..."

"Oh shut up," Bon Bon jeered from the back. "I'm getting pretty sick of you myself."

"Oh, you poor soul, so lost from the monarch's..."

"Actually," Doctor Whooves countered, "I'm growing quite tired of you myself."

"Oh, and I suppose you think you're better versed in the ways of the world than I am?"

"You have no idea..."

“You’ve all been cheated and lied to! The Princess...”

“Oh, put a sock in it,” another pony yelled. Much to the speaker’s surprise and horror, that cry received a chorus of agreements to it.

Suddenly, the speaker who had been filled with vim and vigor mere moments ago was beginning to falter. "Friends, I speak nothing but the truth. The dragon..."

"Is a respected member of our community," Mayor Mare interrupted, coming up to the front. On either side, she was flanked by Chief Book ‘Em and one of her aides. "One I do not like you badmouthing. And I don't recall you getting a permit to speak here." After a pause, she leaned down to her aide and whispered "They didn't get a permit, did they?"

"No, ma'am," the aide assured.

“Well then,” the old mare continued, “you must pack up and head out.”

“You can’t silence the truth!”

“You’re right,” Book ‘Em said coolly, “but I can silence the idiot yelling stupid things at the ponies in my town. So I suggest you pack up and leave, immediately.” This received a chorus of agreements from the crowd.

The pony backed up a bit, his eyes shifting nervously, clearly unsure whether to stay or leave. In the end, he knew he was beaten, the crowd wasn’t on his side. He jumped off his stage. With a glow of his horn, the setup folded itself into a cube, rather impressive magic, all things considered. “You’ll see the truth eventually,” the unicorn proclaimed, then walked off, ignoring the jeers he was getting.

The Keeper smiled. “Well done, Ponyville,” she noted, looking at Applejack’s tome. Sighing, she turned her gaze to the one belonging to another pony. “I just wish Canterlot was as intelligent...”

“Ask yourself, how many of you were horrified at the thought of a dangerous creature attending the same school you did?” This got a number of agreements. “But because even at a young age you took a stand, you were spared any danger! You chased that beast off, though Celestia has ignored your feelings!

“And I ask of you: can you sleep at night knowing how poor Canterlot’s defenses are? The Royal Guard was on high alert, and yet the Changeling Queen was able to waltz right in and kidnap a member of the Royal Family and impersonate her for months! Those expertly trained guards expecting an attack lost the capital in ten minutes! All the warning in the world couldn’t have helped them!”

That got agreement out of everypony.

“And where is Shining Armor now, when the Changeling Queen needs to be found? On vacation! Fraternizing with his consort and deciding that that’s more important than your lives! He knew the kingdom was in trouble, yet he insisted on holding the ceremony right then and there!”

Another chorus of agreements, even as two Royal Guards pushed their way through the crowd. The unicorn speaker noticed them.

“And what have we here?” the speaker sneered. “Come to try and shut me down!”

“That all depends,” one guard said, trying to keep his tone neutral, though a tone of disapproval was heard. “Let’s see your permit.”

Unlike his Ponyville counterpart, this one was better prepared. He produced a parchment decorated with the Royal Seal. It was a permit, authorizing speaking on a political matter, and authorized for this specific area of the city.

“...It’s legit,” the first guard muttered, unable to keep the disappointment out of his voice.

“Very well,” the second guard mumbled, “carry on, as long as this doesn’t get violent, we don’t care.”

It was half-truth, half-lie. The speaker noticed as they walked away, and continued making comments about them.

“Behold, how they flee from the truth...”

It took all of the guards’ discipline not to just turn around and silence the speaking pony, but that was exactly was he was counting on, and they knew it. They simply walked off, ignoring the shouting crowd.

Spike awoke feeling much better than the previous day. The pain that had coursed through his body was disappearing. He had been brought gently to the breakfast table by his mother, who fed him generously as the day before.

“I’m sorry you fell asleep last night, that dinner was for you,” Twilight sighed. “Do you want to do something special next month?”

Spike perked at this. “Why next month?”

“...Pinkie... I have a lot to tell you. See...”

She was interrupted by her front door opening. Applejack and Rainbow Dash rushed in, looking disheveled. “Twi, good, you’re here... so is Spike, that’s good.”

“What’s going on?” the unicorn demanded.

“You’re not going to like this,” the pegasus said nervously, producing the newspaper the speaker had been passing out.

Rainbow Dash was correct. One look at the paper and Twilight looked nearly as mad as she had when facing down Garble. “What. Is. This?”

As Spike took the paper, Applejack spoke. “There was some fella speakin’ in th’ town, bangin’ on about how Spike was a menace and th’ Princess isn’t runnin’ things right,” she practically spat.

“Oh, those...” Twilight growled.

Then she glanced over at her son. His expression stopped her.

He wasn’t crying, but he looked like he wanted to... or at least, would have if he were younger. He just looked at the headline, not bothering to read the rest, he knew it was the same comments he had heard for years.

“Spike...” Twilight said slowly, “it’ll be okay...”

“I know,” Spike said, his voice wavering a little. “I just thought... I just thought it was over... that I didn’t have to put up with this anymore...”

“Oh, you won’t,” Rainbow Dash assured, “nopony listened to him. He’s been chased off.”

Spike breathed a sigh of relief, but Twilight had to shatter that perception. “I’m sorry, Spike, but this doesn’t look like it’s limited to Ponyville... this might be a problem.”

Spike drooped again, but this had no effect on Rainbow Dash. “I don’t think so. Can’t the Princess handle this?”

“How? It’s not illegal to print political opinions in Equestria.”

“Well, yeah,” Rainbow stuttered. “But...”

“How big can this thing spread?” Applejack asked. “I don’t want these fellas gettin’ the upper hoof...”

“I doubt it will come to anything,” Twilight said, “but it never hurts to be careful. Spike, are you up for sending another notice to the Princess?”

Before Spike could answer, Scootaloo came into the library, clutching the second Daring Do book between her teeth. She was initially bounding in, but upon seeing her idol she stopped in surprise.

“Squirt?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Huh, Runbuw Dush,” she muttered before spitting the book out. “Hi, Rainbow Dash!”

“Hey kiddo,” she smiled, wrapping a wing around her student and pulling her in close.

Twilight levitated the book up. “Did you finish this already? You just checked it out two days ago!”

“Well, no...” she admitted, “but I don’t need it anymore! My dad said he was going to buy me the whole set tonight!”

The three adult ponies looked a bit surprised. “That’s nearly a two hundred bit set,” Twilight said in a bit of disbelief. “He’s buying them for you just like that?”

The filly nodded. “He’s buying them for me as an apology present.”

That got the their attention. “What do you mean...” Spike began, but he was interrupted by Rainbow Dash scooting down to her level.

“Kid... was something going on?”

Scootaloo kicked the ground a bit. “Well... please don’t get mad, Rainbow Dash, everything’s better now...”

“Kid, I won’t make a big deal out of things if they’re really better.”

“...Well... my dad... he was just putting me down. He didn’t mean to,” she added quickly, “he was just looking out for me. But... he was doing things that made me feel bad.”

“...And what did you do?”

“I... I just... got mad and told him he was wrong. I told him everything... about our flying lessons...”

“Wait,” the older pegasus was looking upset, “they didn’t know about the lessons? Were you keeping this from him?”

“...Yes. He... he kept telling me that I was too clumsy to learn how to fly... he was just being overprotective.”

“Oh really?” the older pegasus said, crossing her forelegs, “and did he say this himself?”

Scootaloo smiled and nodded. “He said that he was sorry... and that he would teach me flying.”

“...Really?” Rainbow Dash asked slowly.

“Yeah! Thanks for teaching me, but you don’t have to anymore. My dad is going to start tomorrow... not that I don't like learning from you, but..."

"I understand," Rainbow Dash answered. "He's your dad. I'm happy for you."

Twilight, Applejack, and Spike exchanged a look. They weren't sure if even Rainbow Dash herself believed it.

Scootaloo hugged her idol’s leg. "Thank you so much for teaching me. And... I wanted to invite you to have dinner with my family."

That caught Rainbow Dash off guard. "Really?"

Scootaloo nodded happily. "I told my dad that Soarin' was coming into town to meet you, and he decided he wanted to thank you for teaching me by having you over for a meal one night. Will you do it? Please?"

Rainbow Dash was silent for a moment. "I need to talk to Soarin' about it, but I'm sure he'd say yes. Sure!"

"Great!" the filly exclaimed, looking giddy. "I got to get back home, but I'll tell my dad what you said! Thanks for everything, Dash!"

With that, the filly skipped out, looking happy and content.

There was a silence that hung over the library. "Well," Applejack said at last, "that solves that."

"Yeah," Rainbow Dash noted, rubbing her chin. "A little too well."

"Now Dash," the cowpony started, smiling smugly, "you sure you're not just... jealous?"

Twilight opened her mouth to comply, but memories of the wedding came flooding in. "...Maybe we should keep a few eyes out..."

Applejack looked at her friend incredulously. "Twi, you really think that filly's bein' abused? From the look of things..."

"We all went by 'the look of things' at the wedding, and look what happened," the pegasus retorted. "I'm not taking any chances..."

"I agree," Twilight noted. "Just don't do anything reckless, Rainbow Dash," Twilight noted. "The last thing we need is to make ourselves look bad... especially with these ponies around," she added, holding up the newspaper.

Pausing, she glanced at the paper, bothering for the first time to look at the author of the piece. "I wonder who this Olive Branch pony is...”

Olive Branch, meanwhile, was rubbing his head with a hoof. "So... the ponies of Ponyville didn't take to our message," the said wryly.

"That's right," the speaker pony said. "Even if we could get permits, I doubt anypony would listen to us..."

The leader brushed his subordinate away. "We always knew that town would be a particullarly hard nut to crack... they are tight knit, after all. I knew trying to apply for a permit wouldn't have changed much."

"So... where do we go from here?"

"We'll have to wait," Olive Branch said simply, "for our speakers in Canterlot to report back. In the meantime, I have another little surprise cooking up..."

Rarity was currently entertaining a rare guest. While Zecora wasn't an unusual sight around Ponyville anymore, seeing her among frivolities such as dresses was something unusual. Still, this particular dress was to help her home country, so she was willing to take the time to help her friend.

"Though to get used to it might take awhile, vibrant colors are a zebra's style..."

"I see," Rarity said politely, sewing the patches of cloth together. "I must say, this is a far cry from pony fashion... but anything endorsed by Fancypants will sell."

"Um..." Fluttershy said nervously as Rarity wrapped the fabric around her body, "am I going to have to wear these at the auction?"

"Oh, no darling, I couldn't possibly ask you to after..." Rarity trailed off. Zecora lifted an eyebrow but thought it best not to comment. "Believe me, I wouldn't even ask you to if I thought any of the others would do it. I dare say, I don't think Pinkie or Rainbow Dash would be able to sit still for more than five minutes. This simply has to be done now, I've delayed far too long already, especially for a client who pays as well as Fancypants."

"This rich young pony I wish to meet, his generosity is quite a treat."

"You'll get a chance to meet him in about a week," the unicorn assured. "He'll be coming by to pick up my dresses for his auction..." Rarity trailed off. "Have you heard what went on in town?"

"That wicked speaker? I did indeed. For such hurtful things there is no need."

"Oh my, yes," the pegasus said timidly. "I saw everypony talking about it after he was chased off. Rainbow Dash broke it up, thank goodness..."

"Yes, well, that pony seemed a bit... xenophobic, I was wondering, did they say anything to you?" Rarity asked, turning toward the zebra.

"They have not spoken to I, when they see me they just pass by."

Rarity shook her head. "I was appalled to hear it. Derpy told me when she delivered my mail this morning. That pony's lucky too. What I wouldnt give to march up to him and give him a piece of my mind."

"Reacting in anger leads only to dread, stay calm and peaceful, you should instead."

Rarity sighed. "I suppose you're right... rather unladylike, I know, but after all Spike's suffered through the last few days..." she shook her head. "There's simply been so much going on, darling... and I must say, this wouldn't have happened if I'd have had the mind to keep quiet..."

"I believe they say the loosest of lips, can sink even the mightiest of ships."

Rarity sighed. "I believed I was doing the right thing, warning everypony of the threat. But..."

"Oh Rarity, don't feel bad..." Fluttershy said weakly.

"When horrible equines want to have their say, they'll twist the truth in whichever way," Zecora noted sagely. "For now, there little you can do to atone, so why not concentrate on the work in your home?"

Clyde reached the end of his slow, melancholy song. Pinkie, Inkie, and Blinkie clapped, half out of obligation, and half because they truly did appreciate it.

"Okay, enough of that," Granny Pie laughed. "Let's pick up the pace! Come on, sonny, sing something upbeat!"

"Mother," Clyde winced, rubbing his head with a hoof, "it's important for them to learn some slow, respectable songs..."

"Oh of course it is," the elder mare waved a hoof, "but they've had their fill for tonight. Come on."

"...I still say they should keep learning," Clyde said, though he was clearly resigned to losing the argument.

"Oh, pish-posh. You're such a fuddy-duddy. Why, even as a kid you hardly let loose if I wasn't tickling you."

At that, Clyde blushed. His kids perked up. His wife, busy knitting in her chair, stopped and looked amused, in spite of herself.

"Mother..."

Granny Pie just smiled. "All I had to do was poke you right..." she jabbed the tip of her hoof into his ribs. Instantly Clyde, of whom his kids suspected would have his face enchanted to stay in the same expression if he thought he could get away with it, cracked a smile and a snicker. He immediately put himself back to normal, or tried to anyway. The nervous sweat from what he expected was coming next kind of made that hard. His children tittered, also sensing what was coming.

"Mother..." Clyde tried to sound firm, and his level of failure in that regard was nothing short of impressive. "Don't..."

"Go on, kids, try it!"

Clyde nearly screamed in terror. Rightly so. His foals, who had developed a sixth sense to know when an adult gave them permission to be rambunctious, leapt straight at their father. The farmpony hit the ground as his kids climbed over him.

"You kids stop or I'll..."

Any threats were lost in his laughter as six tiny hooves assaulted him. Granny Pie laughed too, not lifting a hoof to help her son.

"S-stop!" he giggled. "A-alright, that's i-it!"

He managed to get Pinkie and Inkie pinned. Blinkie still sat on his back, tugging at his ears, but he paid her no mind for now. He instead pressed a hoof into each of his daughter's stomachs, causing them to giggle.

"Pinkie?"

Pinkie Pie came back to reality, noticing that the cookie she had been decorating now had more icing than cookie.

"Sorry, Mr. Cake," Pinkie said sheepishly.

"Try dabbing the excess on the other cookies," her employer instructed. As she got about her task, he spoke again. "Thinking about your parents?"

"...Yes," she said, not slowing her work. "...Dad was just... he wasn't really different before Granny Pie passed on, but..."

"Grief does weird things to ponies," Mr. Cake said simply.

"But... it didn't seem to do anything at all..." Pinkie sighed. "He cried a lot for a few weeks... we all did. Then he went back to being him. I thought..."

Mr. Cake looked at his employee awkwardly. "I think the only way to straighten all this out to talk to him."

Pinkie felt her stomach lurch. She would have never thought it was possible to wish an event would both come and never happen, but here they were.

"Why don't you go relieve Cup of the twins," he suggested. Pinkie could be distracted from a lot of things, but her surrogate siblings were not one of them, and he knew it.

"Oh! That could be fun!" she said. She knew it was a distraction, but she jumped on it. It was what she needed at the moment.

Scootaloo skipped home. A weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Her dad and her had cleared the air, and she was going to get lessons directly from him. No more getting talked down to, everything was going to be perfect.

She opened her front door, and was almost immediately greeted to her father calling calmly from the other room. “Scootaloo, is that you?”

“Yes!”

“Then come in here,” he said. The instruction was unnecessary, Scootaloo was already heading toward the living room.

Speedy Delivery sat on his couch, watching his daughter come in. He opened his mouth to speak, but she spoke first.

“Rainbow Dash said she’d love to come for dinner!”

“Oh, did she now?” he answered pleasantly.

“Yeah! She going to talk to Soarin’ about coming! She should know sometime soon and...
Speedy Delivery stood. Scootaloo stopped as her father walked over to her. There was a tense moment.

“Well, let’s see those wings.”

Smiling, the young filly extended them proudly.

And then, a large hoof came down on top of the left one, sending it to the floor. Scootaloo yelped in surprise and pain as she was pulled to the floor.

“Ow,” the filly whined in pain. Her father’s hoof pressed down on it, not as hard as he could, but enough to cause some discomfort. He grinded his hoof, causing additional pain. “Wh-what are you doing?”

“You disobeyed me,” he said coldly.

“But...” she had tears in her eyes. “But you said...”

“Well, I had to take advantage of an opportunity. You were simply stupid enough to fall for it.”

“I’m not stupid!” she shrieked.

Speedy Delivery responded by grinding harder, causing her to yelp in pain. “You just cut yourself off from something you loved. Do you feel smart?”

Scootaloo let out another sob. “Why are you doing this?”

At this, he leaned in close to his daughter’s face. “Because, I’m your father. You’re my daughter, my little pony. I decide what’s best for you. Not Rainbow Dash, not anypony else, me. I’m truly disturbed that you don’t get that. But you understand now, don’t you?”

Scootaloo sobbed.

“Don’t you?”

A hiccup. “Y-yes.”

The hoof grinded harder. “Yes, what?”

“...Y... Yes, Daddy.”

At this, he finally released his daughter. Scootaloo fell back, sobbing on the ground.

“Now, why did you make me hurt you?” he sighed. “This wouldn’t have happened if you weren’t such a bad kid.”

Scootaloo just sobbed.

“Now...say you’re sorry.

“...I... I... I’m sorry, Daddy.”

“Yes, you are,” Speedy Delivery answered neutrally. “You will not be leaving this house until the dinner with Rainbow Dash, so I suggest you get comfortable.”

Scootaloo looked at her father, confusion showing through the tears. The dinner was real. “But... why?”

“You shouldn't question him, little one,” a new voice said.

Scootaloo stopped. It wasn't her mother. She turned her head towards where she had come in.

“After all,” Olive Branch noted, “Father knows best.”

Author's Note

Wow, who saw this coming except for all of you?

Seriously, I'm sorry you guys had to wait so long, and I'm equally sorry if it doesn't live up to expectations. I'm just a tired, tired man right now.

Please let me know what you think, and I'll try to have the next chapter up sooner.

Sports and Politics II

The next few days, all things considered, were surprisingly peaceful, at least in Ponyville. The speaker didn’t dare return, it was clear he’d get no support. Rarity spent most of that time indoors, finally getting her order for Fancypants done. Applejack’s farm work caught up for her, keeping her home. Twilight, meanwhile, was having troubles of her own.

“My dearest Twilight,” she read Celestia’s letter out loud, “I have heard of these troublemakers. They are on the streets of Canterlot as we speak, trying to stir up trouble. Under other circumstances, I would simply ignore them long enough for the controversy to die down. Fear and paranoia tend to burn out quickly, especially when confronted with logic. However, under the circumstances, I fear more proactive measurements must be taken.

“I wouldn’t worry for Spike’s safety, at least not yet. These ponies need public approval, and in order to get to Spike they would have to harm ponies, which would be bad for their image. I would still recommend you keep him indoors for a while. Also, due to the protests I must currently deny your application for adoption papers. I’m sorry, Twilight, but given the circumstances it might be best for all of us to wait until this dies down. I promise to send you the necessary paperwork as soon as I can. I will send further information as it becomes available.

“Sincerely, Princess Celestia.”

Twilight shook with rage. Not at the Princess, but at the conditions. After everything, Spike still wasn’t getting his happy ending...

She shook the thought off. Spike was her son, no matter if she had some piece of paper designating it so. She had more immediate concerns to worry about.

She picked up a copy of Warning Signs of Abuse and sat it on her favorite reading table. Rainbow Dash was still counting on her.

CELESTIA THROWS GOOD BUDGET TO ATTACK DOG IN LEAN TIMES

Celestia scowled at the headline. Perhaps waiting a bit before giving Twilight her raise would have been smarter, but she still couldn’t stand it. She knew most of the ponies complaining about the proposed tax increase would be taking milk baths throughout the whole ordeal. Not that such a thing was likely to happen now. Fancypants had successfully contributed about half the needed funds, with Jet Set raising another fourth through his various auctions, the damage wasn’t going to be as long lasting as first thought.

CHANGELINGS: HOW’D THEY SLIP UNDER CELESTIA’S RADAR?

She sighed at that one too. Cadance, alone, in those caves for weeks, could have been avoided if only for some attentiveness on her part.

The next article caused her to gape.

TWILIGHT SPARKLE: ATTACK DOG TO THE END
Twilight Sparkle has continued a position of support to Celestia despite rumors of some less than savory dealings behind the scene. We have previously noted the dramatic pay raise that she has received in her service of our dear tyrant. Perhaps this is less a case of brainwashing, and more a case of her being paid generously enough to work for such a cruel...

The paper burned to ash before Celestia’s anger. She fumed. Such an accusation... it...

“Sister?” Luna called, entering the room. the Princess of the Night entered with a few papers levitating behind her. She curiously glanced the floor where the ashes of the former tabloid had been before looking up. “Is everything...”

“Yes,” Celestia said, “I just... there are some arrows even I have trouble bearing. What have you brought me?”

“More bad news, I’m afraid,” the younger alicorn muttered, levitating the papers to her sister. “There’s a petition going around Canterlot to evict Shining Armor as Captain of the Guard, another to have Master Spike deported to dragon territory, and demands there be a cut in Twilight Sparkle’s funding.”

She sighed as she looked over the demands. “Any news on the changelings?”

“We have confirmed they were in the desert territories,” Luna informed. “There were more than enough sightings, and we found a mountain that was clearly used for a temporary base. We have searched for a trail, with the Appleloosian militia and the buffalo tribes assisting. The bison in particular have expert hunters, and they seemed all too willing to help.”

Celestia nodded. “They do love Equestrian cuisine,” she smiled. “I remember visiting. Chief Thunderhooves developed quite a sweet tooth for pie.”

“Still,” Luna said, “perhaps it’s time we called in Shining Armor from his honeymoon. Things are looking bad politically, he needs to be here.”

The Princess of the Sun was quiet for a moment. “After the wedding, they deserve some quiet...”

“Do not let your compassion get the better of you, sister. Remember how you excluded Cadance from suspicion during the wedding?”

Celestia looked like she had been stabbed. Luna went on. “You cannot put your loved ones’ comfort over running our kingdom. You know what I’m saying is right.”

“...I know,” Celestia sighed. “That doesn’t mean I have to like it. Very well, I’ll have word sent to bring Captain Armor home. In the meantime, we’ll leak that he took his honeymoon at my insistence. Given that these ponies seem eager to target me in particular, that should take some of this off him.”

“Are you sure that’s wise?” Luna asked skeptically. “Your own name is being tarnished...”

“My rule has been long enough that I can absorb it,” she said sternly. “For all the bravado this group shows, such a major change seems unlikely.”

“Are you still suggesting that we simply wait for this to die out?”

“...No. A few days ago I would have recommended it, but things are beginning to get out of control. I think we need some proactive steps.”

“What do you suggest?”

“I will agree to meet with a representative and let him plead his case. It doesn’t matter how much he kindles this fire, fear and paranoia tend to fall under reason and logic.”

“I suppose...” Luna nodded, “though they do not seem like rational ponies...”

“Perhaps not, but they will still not last long. Things will calm down, hopefully once we find the Changeling Queen.”

“Very well... any word on how Twilight Sparkle is handling this?”

“The group is not as popular in Ponyville as in Canterlot... thank goodness... so she and Spike are relatively safe. From what I hear, that group has bigger problems.”

Rainbow Dash knocked impatiently on Scootaloo’s front door. After about half a minute, the front door opened, and Quick Delivery greeted her. “Hey... what can I do for you?”

“Uh, yes...” Rainbow began, a little off guard. The mare seemed a bit dazed, her eyes seemed to be looking past the cyan mare and at something in the distance. “You’re Scootaloo’s mother, right?”

“Oh yeah... you must be Rainbow... Dash,” she said, as if she was having trouble forming her words.

“Yeah... I’m here because of Scootaloo inviting me and Soarin’ to have dinner with the family.”

Quick looked confused for a moment, then brightened up. “Oh yes, we wanted to thank you for the flying lessons... and of course, we’d love the opportunity to meet a Wonderbolt.”

“Yeah. Well, I sent a letter to Soarin’, and he got back to me with a response. We can have the dinner Saturday night.”

“Oh that’s good, that’s just what Speedy was planning... so you’ll both be by tomorrow?”

Rainbow Dash blinked in confusion. “Um...”

“Oh! I mean Satur-next Saturday! Oh, sorry. I’ve just been working so hard lately I can’t think straight. Anyway, I’ll pass the message along to Speedy.”

“That’s great. Can I talk to Scootaloo real quick?”

“Oh, no, no... poor filly fell asleep after the last training exercise.”

“...I see. Well... alright, I’ll see you in about a week.”

“We sure will. Good night!”

Rainbow Dash lifted an eyebrow before glancing up at the midday sun. “Right... see ya.”

With that, Quick Delivery closed the door. Rainbow Dash stared at the wooden barrier for a moment before turning around. This whole thing was suspicious. Quick Delivery seemed off somehow, but there was little to be done about it now.

She wanted to barge in and see her number one fan, to see what was going on... but then what? Even if she did find anything, it would be their word against hers, and being arrested for breaking and entering wouldn’t help the case.

Sighing, she took to the air and flew off. Maybe Twilight had found something.

Scootaloo pressed her hooves against the glass as she watched Rainbow Dash fly off. She pulled up every inch of her willpower to stop from rapping the glass to get her attention.

How can she help me anyway?

Before Rainbow Dash came along, she was a good little girl. She might have been clumsy, but she obeyed her father. Then she met Rainbow Dash and became so confused. It was doing what she said that made her dad angry.

She couldn’t remember being this scared. Throughout her whole life, through everything, her father had never physically hurt her. It was so jarring, like she had been wearing blinders her whole life that had been just knocked off.

Had her father always been like this? A bit condescending, certainly, but was it all intentional? This whole time...

Or... was he? She had tried doing it Rainbow Dash’s way, and look what it had gotten her. She had been fooled, so easily. How? Rainbow Dash had told her she needed to stand up for herself. Maybe her dad was right...

But... good parents didn’t hit their kids...A good parent wouldn’t have done what her father did.

Apple Bloom’s sister spanked her the last time she misbehaved, she remembered. This was no different, wasn’t it?

But Rainbow Dash said...

But her father said...

She flopped onto the bed. She pressed her front hooves against her head. She was so confused, if felt like her brain was going to split in two. She wished she could just go to sleep and escape the confusion. She wished she could go back in time and undo what had happened. She wished Rainbow Dash would fly in and whisk her away. She wished her father would come in and tell her she was forgiven.

She wished a lot of things. She wished she knew what she wanted.

“Alright, alright, settle down there,” Mrs. Cake cooed to the foals surrounding her. “There’s plenty for each of you.”

The foals all jumped as the baker passed out sugar cookies to them. She smiled at each smiling, happy face, but stopped on one.

This filly looked dirty. Not raggedly so, more like after a hard day of play. But she seemed thin, as if she wasn’t eating, and her expression was more of relief than excitement.

“Here you are, dear,” she said, trying to keep a straight face. The pink filly snatched the cookie. “Thank you,” she said, sounding more genuine than it should have, before turning. Even with her back to her, Mrs. Cake could tell she was devouring the treat like it was her first meal in days.

Quickly, Mrs. Cake made her way over to her husband and whispered in her ear. “You see that filly over there?”

Looking to where her wife was pointing, he nodded. “She seems a bit raggedy. Why?”

“...I don’t think she has a home.”

Mr. Cake blinked. “An orphan? Are you sure?”

“Not entirely. But I’m going to find out.”

“Cup, what are you...”

Carrot never got to finish that sentence, because at that point his wife saw the filly heading towards the exit. Thinking quickly, the mare moved to intercept her.

“Excuse me, sweetie?”

Pinkie stopped and looked at the baker. “Um, yes?”

“You seem like a nice young mare. What’s your name?”

“...Pinkie,” she said, as if unsure.

“Well, Pinkie, would you like a cupcake to go with your cookie?”

“Yes,” she answered immediately.

She smiled, leading the young one into the back. “I’m about to put a new batch into the oven. Why don’t you help me? I can teach you how to make them.”

“That’s neat! My parents only ever taught me how to make bread.”

Mrs Cake lifted an eyebrow. “Oh? Your parents are bakers?”

“Oh no,” she said, stumbling over her words. “They just liked to cook. They taught me how to do a little...”

“Well then, let’s see if we can’t help you improve your skills a little more...”

Day had turned into night, and yet the filly showed no interest in going home. In the past few hours, she had made cupcakes, muffins, cookies, and cakes. True to her word, she had some knowledge in baking, and took to the new recipes quickly.

Celestia had lowered the sun, and Mrs. Cake sent her to their restroom to bathe. While she was doing this, she quietly got the guest room ready, making sure to lock the window.

When Pinkie came out clean, the Cakes served her dinner. She ate hungrily, despite all the sweets she had eaten that day. After dinner, Mrs. Cake tucked her into the guest bed, where she instantly made herself comfortable.

Mrs. Cake gently patted Pinkie on the head before speaking. “Pinkie... do you have anypony else taking care of you?”

Immediately Pinkie turned white. Her mane seemed to deflate. Even without answering, Mrs. Cake knew the truth.

“Oh, I... um... what makes you think that?”

“Well, you made yourself awfully comfortable here for somepony who would have somewhere else to go.”

Pinkie shifted, trying to think up an excuse. But Mrs. Cake’s eyes bore right through her, and she sighed. “No... I’ve been on my own.”

“What happened to your parents?”

“...They...” the filly was silent for a good long while. Mrs. Cake just sat silently, waiting. “...died.”

The older pony gently rubbed her mane. “Why have you been living alone?”

“I... I don’t want to go to an orphanage.” Suddenly she leaned forward, wrapping her forelegs around the baker. “please don’t tell anypony! Please, please, please!”

Mrs. Cake hugged her back, and gave her a few minutes to calm down. Finally they parted.

“Why don’t you get some sleep tonight? I’ll talk with my husband about this tomorrow.”

“Okay,” Pinkie dropped. Mrs. Cake hesitated for a moment, then kissed her forehead. This seemed to ease her, she let her head hit the pillow.

“Good night, Pinkie,” she cooed, reaching the bedroom door and flicking out the light. She closed the door behind her, then, slowly so Pinkie wouldn’t hear, she locked the door. No need to risk her running away.

Mrs. Cake watched as the filly she had raised played on the floor with the twins. The day she had come into the bakery, they were unsure what to do with her.

They had vowed to report her to the authorities, but they never did, both because she was a joy to have around, and because she proved invaluable help around the bakery.

Before long, they were calling the guest room “Pinkie’s room”. Before long, they were sending her to school, attending Parent-Teacher conferences, and watching her perform in her school play, taking several pictures and showing them off to their friends and customers.

Eventually, Pinkie was noticed by the Mayor. She sent word around the orphanages, but nopony had reported her missing. There was little point in taking her back anyway, if she actually was happy. No point in adding one more foal to the already overwhelmed system.

There was never an official adoption. Pinkie never started calling them “Mom” and “Dad”, they never referred to her as their daughter. But everypony saw it that way anyway. There was no need to have it spoken.

And now... learning that they weren’t truly the only family she had left... it was a bit jarring.

She trotted over to Pinkie and nuzzled her gently. Pinkie paused, then returned the gesture.

“Are you feeling better?”

“...Not really,” Pinkie moaned as Pound and Pumpkin cooed, latching onto Pinkie. “My stomach’s still churning.”

“It’s only another week,” she tried to reassure. After a few moments, she spoke again. “You know... we never regretted taking you in. Ever.”

“I know,” Pinkie actually laughed. “I never regretted coming here.”

“You know regardless of what happens, you’ll have a home here.”

Pinkie nuzzled her foster mother again. “I know... and thank you.”

Calm Before the Storm

The longer the days went on, the more agonizing they got, for all involved. All the drama of the last few days gave way to routine without relief. There was tension coming, and none of them liked it.

Rainbow Dash's worry was likely only surpassed by Pinkie's. Every morning, and every evening, she had dropped by the library and asked Twilight what she had found, though neither of them were sure exactly what she was looking for anymore.

Indeed, each day the news seemed to get worse. Child abuse, especially when it was done non-violently, was notoriously hard to prove. Each case Twilight read made her stomach tie into knots. Celestia had tried for years to get better laws on the books, but the case by case nature of it made the task nearly impossible.

More than once, Rainbow Dash considered trying to visit Scootaloo again, though she quickly dropped that idea. If there was something going on, trying to visit might only make things worse.

"I should have stopped her," she had said one day while visiting, earning a look from Twilight.

"What do you mean?"

"Scoots. When she came by and told me everything was okay, I shouldn't have just let her go. Everything was telling me something was wrong."

"Dash... that wouldn't have sat well with the police, going off an instinct..."

"I know," she snapped. "But... I..." she placed her hooves on her stomach. "I can't stand this. It's driving me crazy!"

"It's only another two days," Twilight assured.

“Don’t tell me...” she began angrily, but she sighed. “I know, but...”

“Maybe you should read something to take your mind off things.”

“I’m all finished with Daring Do,” the rainbow maned pony brushed her off.

“There are other series besides that,” she noted, pulling a book off the shelf. “Here, this one is good. High fantasy, you’ll love it.”

The rainbow maned pony took it and leafed through the pages. “This one will take weeks...” she noted.

“It’ll get your mind off things.”

Celestia looked over the reply her messenger had brought her. She nodded, telekinetically floating over a ten bit tip to her servant and waving for him to wait. She turned back to Luna, who was sipping her own tea.

“It seems Olive Branch has agreed to an audience,” the Princess of the Sun noted, “but he wants it in two days.”

Luna tilted her head. “Whatever for?”

“Time to prepare,” she noted. “To gather the list of grievances they want to present and convince me to change.” She took a parchment and quill and began scratching out her reply.

“You’re allowing this?”

“If I do not, they will twist it to suit their agenda.”

“Yes, but... two whole days? It seems a bit of a stretch. Suppose they’re planning something?”

“It has occurred to me,” she admitted, finishing up her letter. She duplicated her letter with a simple spell, then handed the original copy to the messenger. “Stamp it with the Royal Seal and deliver it.”

The messenger took it and saluted, running off. Celestia turned back to her sister. “I seriously doubt anything will come of it... still, perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad idea to increase security.”

Spike ate the last bite of his gem cake. Twilight had to giggle at her boy’s appetite, he was finally eating normally after all those days of sorrow. This picnic had been a great idea, it seemed.

“Well, well, hello, Miss Sparkle.”

Twilight’s fur stood on end. She sprang to her hooves, looking around in worry. There, in front of their picnic, was a pony with an olive branch for a cutie mark, being flanked on either side by six large, muscular guards. Her eyes widened. An olive branch...

She grabbed Spike with her magic and placed him behind her. Olive Branch...

“Oh how cute,” the newspaper editor sneered.

“Don’t come any closer,” Twilight warned, her eyes glowing along with her horn. “There’s not a pony alive that can match me!”

Olive Branch just smiled. “Well, then... I guess it’s a good thing that we aren’t ponies.”

Suddenly the seven ponies’ eyes turned green, and a flash of flame revealed seven changeling soldiers.

In a flash, Twilight had summoned a shield around her and her son, keeping them safe. “I should have known. Don’t worry, Spike, they can’t get in here.”

“Oh, they don’t have to...”

Tensing up, Twilight turned to her boy, only to find him on top of her, his small arms wrapped around her neck. His eyes glowed the changelings’ sickly green and his fangs grew to monstrous proportions before they sunk into her neck.

Twilight awoke with a shriek, her heart racing. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself. She looked around. She was home.

She calmed herself. Of course, the nightmares were back. They wouldn’t just go away thanks to a talk with Applejack. The anti-Celestia group was not a group of changelings in disguise, Celestia had given each solid background checks and required each speaker to be tested. The excess magic shedded during the invasion meant that a changelings magic could be identified, and it was a simple matter for the Royal Guards to test any pony’s magic. The group had been cooperative in that regard at least. Her home was warded against the changelings as well, and she had not allowed to let Spike leave the house unaccompanied since the group had surfaced.

“Uh... Twilight?”

Twilight blinked, looking over at Spike’s basket. The dragon had lifted his head from his pillow, and was looking straight at her through the glaze of sleep. “What’s wrong?” he slurred.

“Nothing, Spike... I just had a nightmare. Go back to sleep.”

She laid her head back on her pillow and tried to think of a few comforting thoughts. Her head lifted at the sound of sheets rustling and tiny claws on the wooden floor.

Spike climbed into her bed, wrapping his arms around her neck and nuzzling close. Caught off guard, Twilight still instinctively wrapped her forelegs around him. “Spike... Wha...”

“You always let me sleep with you when I had nightmares. I think it’s only fair,” he mumbled. It was clear his exhaustion was fighting his compassion.

Twilight smiled, lifting the covers so Spike could slip under them. He was asleep before she had finished straightening them, and Twilight followed soon afterward.

”Pinkie...” Mr. Cake said slowly, “what is that?”

“An alligator,” Pinkie chirped.

“...Why are you feeding it a bottle of water?”

“Silly! Because reptiles don’t drink milk. Only mammals do that.”

“...I mean, why are you taking care of a baby crocodile?”

“Alligator.”

“...Why are you taking care of a baby alligator?”

“Fluttershy got it at her cottage yesterday, she said it was orphaned because of a few poachers.”

“...Pinkie, when we said you could get a pet... well, we didn’t mean something that could grow up so big... or that could bite!”

“Silly, he has no teeth! See?”

She pushed the reptile uncomfortable close to Mr. Cake’s muzzle. The gator opened his mouth wide, showing that it only possessed a set of gums. It helped confirm this statement by biting down on the baker’s nose.

“Aww, he’s hungry!” the mare cooed. “Isn’t that cute!”

“Uh, Pinkie?” Mr. Cake slurred.

She gently pulled her gator away. Placing him on the counter, Pinkie pulled a bottle of protein pills, pulling one out and popping it in her pet’s mouth.

“Oh, it’s already civilized?” Mr. Cake noticed.

Pinkie nodded. “He’s been eating pills since he was a hatchling!”

Mr. Cake breathed a sigh of relief. If his foster daughter really was going to keep this thing, at least it wouldn’t bite him in the flank as it grew old.

Pinkie giggled as the gator bit her front hoof. “Aww... I think I’ll call him Gummy...”

Gummy hadn’t grown much in three years, which was just fine for both of Pinkie’s employers. It proved a surprisingly good playmate for the twins... at least, he didn’t make too much of a fuss if they wanted to hug onto him tightly.

Pinkie was nearly as unresponsive as her pet today. Even watching the twins, she seemed to be on autopilot, and had to throw herself into playtime to distract herself.

Pound and Pumpkin sensed the change, nuzzling up to their foster sister. Gummy cocked his head at his master, wishing he knew what to do. She was taking deep breaths, and tears were appearing in her eyes.

Mr. Cake sighed as he saw this from the doorway. Trotting in carefully, he placed a hoof on her shoulder. Pinkie jumped initially, but relaxed when she saw who it was.

“Are you alright?” the baker asked, then added a hasty, “I mean, besides the obvious.”

“...No,” she admitted, sounding bitter. “My tummy hurts.”

“It’s only one more day,” he soothed. “After tomorrow, you’ll feel better, even if...”

He didn’t finish. He couldn’t. “Things will be alright. They want to come see you, remember? They wouldn’t be doing that if they weren’t going to make amends with you.”

Pinkie wiped her eyes. “I keep telling myself that.”

“...Maybe you should go for a walk, clear your head.”

“But... the twins...”

“Today’s a slow day,” he assured, “we can handle everything just today. You go out and try to clear your head. You’ve hardly left the bakery all week.”

Pinkie blinked, realizing her foster father spoke the truth. She had been so mopey the past week she hadn’t done much of anything...not since she had told the others the truth about her parents.

“...You’re right,” she said at last, standing up. “I want to talk to Twilight about something anyway.”

“Seriously, where does she get her gender politics?”

“You noticed, huh?”

“Twilight, you don’t need a degree in writing to see that. I mean, really, it’s like mares and stallions are two different species. And what’s up with the length? I’m starting to think she got paid by the word. And there are how many books?”

“About...”

Twilight and Rainbow Dash’s discussion on literature came to an end as the front door opened and Pinkie walked into the library, smiling a small smile.

“Hey Twilight... Rainbow Dash.”

Both mares just stared at her, causing her to flinch. “What?”

“Pinkie...” Rainbow Dash said slowly...”are you nervous about your parents?”

Pinkie was about to answer, but Twilight cut her off. “Of course she is, they’re coming tomorrow,” she snapped a bit. She turned to Pinkie to talk, but she was cut off.

“Tomorrow?” the cyan pegasus shouted. “I thought it was the day after... the dinner with Scootaloo’s family is then...”

“What?” Pinkie said nervously.

“I... I’m sorry Pinkie,” Rainbow Dash said. “I... I messed up, I...”

Pinkie put a hoof up to her friend’s mouth, silencing her. She smiled in support. “Dashie, you don’t have to worry. My family’s coming in the morning, and your dinner’s at night.”

Rainbow Dash blushed. “Oh...” She rubbed the back of her head with her hoof. “I guess I did kind of overreact...”

Twilight rolled her eyes a bit, but concern crossed her features as well. She slowly took her gaze off Rainbow Dash and turned to her earth pony friend. “When are your parents going to be here?”

“Just after breakfast,” Pinkie answered. “That’s why I’m here, actually. Do you think... can I stay here tonight? Pretty please? I... I don’t feel comfortable sleeping at home tonight.”

Twilight and Rainbow Dash exchanged glances. “Pinkie,” the pegasus began slowly, “you’re not trying to run from this, are you?”

Pinkie shook her head vigorously. “No, no, no, no, no. I just...” Her eyes got wet. “I’m... scared. Please? I don’t want them in the house when I’m not awake...”

Rainbow Dash barely suppressed her groan. “Pinkie...” she began, but she was cut off.

“You can,” Twilight nodded, giving a reassuring smile. “I’ll tell Spike to set up the guest bed...”

“Ooh! I can go tell him! Where is he?”

“In the historical section, sweeping. Tell him if he just gets it out, I’ll set it up.”

“Okie dokie,” Pinkie chirped as she bounced upstairs.

After a moment of silence, Rainbow Dash spoke up. “Are you sure this is a good idea? Maybe we should make her face it.”

“I understand the logic,” Twilight answered, “but this is already nerve wracking enough for Pinkie. Plus...” she trailed off, then sighed. “This might be just paranoia, but... I kind of want to check Pinkie’s parents in case they’re... changelings.”

She blushed a bit, expecting Rainbow Dash to laugh. The pegasus just arched an eyebrow. “What makes you think they are?”

The unicorn shook her head. “I guess I’ve just been... edgy since the wedding. I think I’m starting to see changelings everywhere I go...”

“Please don’t go crazy on us. We need you to do the real work.” It was meant as a joke, and it was taken as such.

“...Are you still feeling bad about what happened?”

Rainbow Dash had not been expecting that question. “What made you think that?”

Twilight shot her companion a look that spoke volumes. “...Helping Scootaloo and Pinkie won’t make what happened just go away.”

Rainbow felt her stomach drop. She should have known she couldn’t keep things a secret from Twilight’s observations. “I know... but... it would make me feel better...”

“Rainbow, you really care about Scootaloo, don’t you? If you’re just treating her like a chance to be redeemed, you’re not being very fair to her.”

“Of course I care about her!”

There was a brief silence.

“...Sorry. I didn’t mean to snap.”

“And I didn’t mean to insult you. Just... be careful, okay?”

Rainbow Dash put on a proud smile. “When am I not?”

Twilight shot her that look again.

Celestia looked over the latest letter from Olive Branch, confirming that he could make the meeting time, and agreeing to the conditions. They would bring only three ponies, no weapons, and would behave civilly during the negotiations. She sat the letter on the table as her sister poured herself a cup of tea.

“Well, here’s hoping that all goes well,” the Princess of the Sun said, filling her own teacup.

“Indeed. Perhaps if things go well, we can commemorate the event with some champagne and...”

She trailed off at her sister’s glare.

“...Please?”

“No, Luna.”

“It was over a millennium ago!”

“I had to ban alcohol for a half a millennium because of it.”

“It wasn’t that bad...”

“The economic crisis lasted a decade.”

“Sister, I am not a foal any longer! I should be able to partake in this activity! I...”

“No. And that’s final, little sister. Do you understand?”

Luna glared at her sister for a moment... then lowered her head and sighed in defeat. “Yes, Celly.”

Scootaloo had done nothing but sit in her room for a week, but she had never been bored that whole time. When trying to figure things out, that had left little time to truly have nothing to do.

The door opened, and Scootaloo flinched. Speedy Delivery walked in, giving her the same cold glare he had been giving her the last few days.

“The dinner is tomorrow. You remember how to behave?”

“Yes, daddy.”

“I mean it,” he said harshly. “You better not say anything until it’s time. Do you understand, or have you learned nothing?”

Scootaloo felt like crying. “Yes, I do.”

There was silence. Speedy reached toward her. She flinched, but was surprised to find his touch soft and gentle.

“There, there. It’s not entirely your fault. Rainbow Dash is manipulating you, I understand that.”

Scootaloo looked at her father with confused eyes. “Then... why did you hurt me?”

“Sometimes a parent has to hurt their little foal,” he whispered. He probably meant it soothingly, but it made her shiver in terror. “It’s what’s best for them.”

He leaned down until he was eye level with her daughter. “You have a lot to learn, little one. Maybe it was a mistake letting you have so much freedom, but I thought it would be better than risking you blabbing about what me and your uncle Olive Branch have been up to. I suppose it’s my fault, I shouldn’t have overestimated you.”

Scootaloo winced. Her father either didn’t notice or didn’t care. He went on.

“I’m going to give you another chance. If you can just get through dinner without saying anything, then I’ll forgive you. That’s what you want, isn’t it?”

She was silent. Her father pressed her hoof down on the back of her head. “Isn’t it?”

She gave a whimper. “Y-yes, daddy.”

He smiled. She didn’t feel any warmth from it. “Good.”

Then, he hugged her.

She froze. When he pulled apart, he looked into her eyes. He seemed warm, gentle.

“I’m sorry,” he said. He sounded genuine. “I’m doing this because it’s best for you. What I’m planning means great things for you, and me, and your mother. Once you see what comes of it, you’ll see why I had to do all this.”

Scootaloo cried. Her father hugged her once more.

“Shh, it’s okay, everything going to be okay, sweetie. Daddy’s here.”

He let Scootaloo cry for a good ten minutes. When they finally pulled apart, he smiled at her.

“Now, what do you say?”

“I love you, Daddy.”

To her immense surprise, Speedy kissed his daughter on the forehead.

“I love you too.”

Author's Note

Well...here it is. I'm soo sorry for the unannounced hiatus. It's been a hectic few weeks.

I know you probably wanted more than this, but I assure you, the next chapter will be Pinkie meeting her parents, and it will be out next week, same time.

And, about the Changelings...there. I closed the possibility. The anti-Celestia-Group are not changelings.

Guess which ponified book series RD and Twilight are talking about. Note: the author of the real world series is a guy).

Note: Olive Branch isn't Scootaloo's real uncle. It's an honorary title.

Regrets

The Cakes were usually up early in order to begin baking the goods for the day, but today their early rise had nothing to do with their business. A sign hung on their front door saying “Shop closed for personal business, will reopen tomorrow.”

Mr. Cake sat at the table, tapping his hoof against the wooden surface, while his wife paced the floor in front of them. There was a tense silence that had been building since the night before. They’d be here any second, and they prayed to the Royal Sisters it would be before Pinkie.

The knock finally came, hitting the front door with a few raps. Both just stared for a few moments before the matriarch of the family walked over. With a final deep breath to steady herself, she gripped the handle and opened the door.

She had spent the better part of the last two weeks trying to convince herself that they’d look like ordinary ponies when she saw them and not terrible monsters, and to her surprise, they did. They were all dull colors, with expressions of unease on their faces, but nothing about them would have made them stand out among a crowd.

Still, looking at them, there were a number of peculiarities about them. Clyde... an unusual name, for a pony... had a face that looked worn. Pinkie had described him as stone faced, though it seemed that stone had softened and eroded. The lines on his face could have made him pass as Pinkie’s grandfather. He was well built, a certain mark of his profession, though at the same time he seemed exhausted.

Sue Pie was at her husband’s side. She might have been considered attractive, had it not been for her style of mane and glasses being the opposite of what even common sense said to use as fashion. Rarity would probably have a heart attack on seeing her. Still, she had a strong, lean figure, making Mrs. Cake a little self conscious about her own weight.

Behind them were Pinkie’s two sisters, though at the moment, she couldn’t see them well.

“Is this the Cake residence?” Clyde asked, in a voice that, appropriately enough, sounded like gravel.

“It is,” Mrs. Cake answered, trying to sound emotionless. She stood to one side and allowed the the family to come in.

As they stepped through, she got her first good look at Inkie and Blinkie. She knew Pinkie was the oldest of the three sisters, but to her these two seemed her senior. Inkie’s boulder cutie mark barely stood out among her grey fur, while Blinkie’s pickaxe mark was more visible. It was clear Pinkie alone had left the family business.

After a moment, it clicked with Mrs. Cake. Pinkie was a grown mare, but she still often acted half her age. Whatever ponies thought of that, it did make it hard to picture her as an adult. Inkie and Blinkie, by contrast, were calmer and more stoic, and their frames were closer to Applejack’s that their sister’s.

“Where’s Pinkie?” Sue asked suddenly.

“She stayed the night with a friend and will be along shortly,” Mrs Cake said evenly. “Sit down.” The missing “make yourself at home” was obvious, but not commented on.

Inkie and Blinkie had noticed Pound and Pumpkin and were cooing at them. The infants giggled and laughed happily, sensing nothing wrong with the two. Mr. Cake steeled himself for the inevitable question on their parentage, but it never came. If they did suspect what most strangers did, he guessed they kept silent out of the knowledge they were far from morally superior.

There was a long, pregnant pause.

“Well...” Mr. Cake said at last, attempting anything to break the ice, “can I get you anything to drink? Perhaps a treat?”

“No... thank you,” Clyde said. “We agreed not to take anything until we talked to Pinkie.”

“Well, she’ll be along shortly... I hope.”

The rock farmer nodded. “Inkie, Blinkie, maybe it’s best if you waited in another room,” Clyde instructed.

They both looked up from the twins, who they had engaged in a game of peek-a-boo. “But, Pa...” Inkie started.

“No buts,” Clyde said sternly. “This... this is going to be a hard conversation to have.” He softened at the last sentence. “Please...”

“But...”

The protest was cut off by the Cakes, who gently began pushing the girls out of the room.

“You can wait in our kitchen,” Mrs. Cake instructed. “Just don’t mess around the stove.”

The two were pushed through the swinging doors that led to the kitchen. Nodding in satisfaction, the bakers turned back around.

“But we want to see our sister again!” Blinkie whined.

The Cakes gaped, looking back at the doors, then at the magically appearing mares. Mrs. Cake put a hoof to her face. “Great... it’s a family thing.”

Pinkie had rolled out of Twilight’s guest bed with her stomach doing flip flops. She had wobbled into the bathroom and held her head over the toilet, waiting for the expulsion she thought was coming, but it never did. She wished it would, at least there would be some relief after.

She had cringed at Twilight’s offer for breakfast. She’d have had no appetite even if she hadn’t eaten in a week. She felt herself being torn apart. The librarian finally managed to force a glass of water on her, at least.

Then it was out the door and on the road. Every step was a battle with her nerves as the bakery inched closer and closer. By the time it was in sight, every breath was as if she had run a mile. She hardly noticed the rest of her friends already in front of the building.

“Are you ready for this?” Rarity asked gently. Pinkie didn’t answer. She hardly heard. She was taking a step at a time now, her body sweating hard. She felt dizzy, her vision was getting fuzzy. She felt like every bit of her form was distorting. She wanted, more than anything, to run... but she didn’t.

She was on the porch now, and the tears were starting to leak. She had never been this scared. He knees were shaking. She felt her knees give out, but she was caught, Applejack to one side, Rainbow Dash to the other.

“Easy there, sugar, we got you.”

She gulped, nodding. Standing back up, she took a deep breath. Before she could reconsider, she pushed forward and flung the door open.

Four faces looked at her. Both sets of parents, sitting to either side of one of the tables. Mr. and Mrs. Cakes looked at her with worry. The other faces...

Time stood still. For a long moment, nothing existed except Pinkie and her parents.

“...Pinkie,” her father spoke at last. She felt dizzy again. “Please sit down.”

With great difficulty, Pinkie found her balance. She slowly made her way to the only available chair at the table. The Cakes sat to either side of her, the Pies across from her.

The remaining five ponies stood awkwardly to one side. Mrs. Cake motioned them to the kitchen. Understandingly, Twilight led the others out of the room. Halfway there, however, she stopped.

"Hold it," she said, turning and walking towards the table. No pony spoke as she lit up her horn. For a few seconds, Clyde and Sue were bathed in a beam of light from the unicorn's horn. After a few seconds, the purple light turned red, and the spell stopped.

"Changeling check," Twilight explained, noting the confused faces. The Pies nodded in a way that told Twilight it had not been the first they had been subjected to on the way here. Clearly Celestia had tightened security on travelers.

Her duty completed, Twilight turned and led the others to the kitchen, leaving the five earth ponies to their discussion.

“Pinkie,” Clyde began, in a tone that sounded too controlled. “You know me. I’ve never been one to dance around an issue." He took a deep breath. "So I'm going to dive right into it. You need to know... what happened after you left."

Sue returned to the farmhouse, her hooves deliberately stomping the hardwood floor harder than they needed to. Inkie and Blinkie stood at the front door, waiting for her.

"Well?" Inkie asked. "Did you get her to come back?"

Sue glared at them through her glasses. "Your sister decided that her parties were more important to her than we were. So I let her run. Let her find out what it's like out there."

Both of the remaining Pie children looked alarmed at the prospect. In a flash Inkie was at the door. "Maybe we can still catch her, and..."

"Get away from that door!" her voice nearly boomed. In an instant her command was obeyed. "Your sister... Pinkie made her decision. She can either live with it, or come crawling back on her knees. But I won't let you chase after her."

"But..."

"But nothing! Now get back into bed before I take a paddle to both of you!"

Jumping, the two obeyed, running up the stairs to the room they shared. Sighing, Sue marched up the stairs herself, entering her bedroom to meet the gaze of her husband, who had not risen from the double bed.

"I told you it would be a waste of time," he grumbled.

"Not now," Sue spat, laying on her side. "I can't believe Pinkie would have up and left."

"That girl..." he growled, putting his head back on the pillow. "A cutie mark dedicated to wasting time. Bah."

No other word was spoken between the two. The sounds of the night, the occasional raven cawing, leaves rustling, were the only thing that filled the dark bedroom.

Clyde didn't sleep. Neither did Sue, though he didn't know it at the time. He thought back, to the day Pinkie had been born. Such a bright coat color was a bit of an omen, though they didn't account for that. The Source had gifted ponies with a variety of colors, and birth parents rarely had anything to do with it. She had giggled and cooed in his forelegs and his mother had been overjoyed, tying a balloon reading "Happy Birthday" to her crib and celebrating by telling every one of his friends and families tales from when he had been a newborn. At this time, he had been mortified, embarrassed, yet he constantly looked back on it with fondness.

He looked at the side table. A picture of the family, Pinkie included, looked back at him, their happy eyes and ear-to-ear smiles mocking his current mood. He flipped the picture over so it was facing the table top. He then turned, looking at the ceiling. He tried to entertain himself by counting the boards in it, but his mind drifted back to Pinkie.

At only two, she had danced with Granny Pie when Inkie had come into the world, and eleven months later Blinkie had joined. In just four years his quiet farmhouse turned into a noisy funhouse. Granny Pie was always entertaining the kids. Story nights, happening more frequently, always ended with the family on the ground, laughing. Inkie and Blinkie had enjoyed this, of course, but Pinkie had taken to her much more intensely.

That should have been his second omen. His mother was always something of an odd one out in the family. It amazed his grandfather when his father had brought her home. Yet she was still family, her infectious nature easily worming past the family's stoney dispositions. She had embraced the simple life they chose to live, and she more than pulled her weight in chores and work, never needing much to find happiness, so any who found her out of place didn't think it was too bad.

Pinkie, however, started growing into a worry. She had embraced her granny's philosophy and demeanor, but the work ethic came slowly. She could recite tales and stories she had been told, of the legendary Midnight Castle, the Mirror Pool, and several other oddities, but could not remember the basics of rock farming. She had to sit through three lectures on the importance of rotating crops before she remembered.

Still, he had shrugged it off. Sloth was a common sin of the young, he himself had grumbled at chores as a colt, and though he remembered less than half of what he learned in school, he remembered his mother's stories as clearly as if he had heard them yesterday. He was sure the phase would pass. He was not worried about her leaving the family business. That would be her choice, but he'd see to it that she would make a responsible one.

Granny got sick on Pinkie's seventh birthday. The doctor's said she could be treated, but the procedure would require several operations, medicine, and other complications to her life. She declined. She'd lived a full life, seen her grandchildren be born, and made them smile. She was ready.

So, three months later, she told her family she loved them, and passed on into Paradise with a large smile on her face.

The family had cried. They buried her under her favorite tree. For three days, they mourned.

Pinkie was back on her hooves first. She was smiling and laughing, reminding them that Granny had died happy and content.

The attitude burned Clyde, but he knew it was true. He put on a brave face and life went on. But it became more subdued. Work became more frequent. With Granny gone the housework now had to be split up between them, usually by one of the children. Things were hard, but most of them took it in silence. Most of them.

Pinkie had been the most vocal at hating the extra workload. She did her chores, and did them well, but with great reluctance, and always dashing back to the farmhouse as soon as they were over. In her room she would dance and sing, off key at first, though it impressed him how quickly she improved. These noises lasted well past bedtime, and she had to be repeatedly told she needed to go to sleep. She was constantly caught trying to make cakes and pies, despite repeated warnings that money was tighter now, and they needed the supplies.

Clyde had realized what was happening. Pinkie, well intentionally, was trying to fill Granny Pie's void. She was reciting her stories and songs at every available opportunity. She wanted to learn to learn to bake, so Sue taught her to make bread, promising she could help with the sweets when it was time to bake them again.

It hurt, seeing her leap about. She was a cheap imitation as far as he was concerned. She could never calm down and be serious. She neglected her work more and more, he had needed to yell to get any reaction out of her. And then, now, a cutie mark in that kind of irresponsible behavior?

"Where did I go wrong?" he wondered out loud.

"Some foals just turn out bad," Sue muttered. Clyde jumped. He had nearly forgotten his wife was there in his thoughts. "Just try and get some sleep."

Sleep didn't come that night.

The next morning it became clear that no pony had slept. Yet there were still chores to do. Fashion designers would be coming from Manehattan and Canterlot soon for the gems and geodes, artisans for the malachite, and scientists for the minerals they could cultivate.

The work got done, but even he had to force himself through it.

That night he broke the usual rule and they simply got take-out. Sue was too tired to cook.

Sleep came that night out of exhaustion. The next day work happened as usual. There was story and song time that evening. It failed miserably.

Over the next few days, Clyde noticed a change in his children. Inkie and Blinkie looked upon their father with respect, as they always had. But there was no love backing it anymore, at least none he could see. Fear replaced it. A fear of not living up to his standards.

"I'm not going to hurt you," he assured them. "If your cutie marks take you away from rock farming, I'll understand. Whatever makes you happy."

"But... Pinkie..."

"She didn't know the meaning of hard work," he clarified. "Pinkie wanted to goof off all day. A cutie mark in that? Disgraceful. Whatever you two do, I know it will be something you put effort into."

The discussion calmed them somewhat. But only somewhat.

It had been a week since Pinkie had left before it happened. Clyde had been standing in Pinkie's old room. He was convinced by now that his eldest daughter was not coming back. It had been painful realizing she wasn't going to come crawling back on her knees once she saw what the world was like.

Sighing, he began to pack everything away. Crayons, coloring books, and other things his two remaining children could use would be given to them. Balloons, streamers, and confetti (where had she even gotten them?) would be thrown away.

He opened her bedside table. Inside were drawings. The first was a sketch of a pedal powered flying machine. "Bah," he muttered. Then he took a closer look. There were some calculations, a few close up of parts, and the like, and notes on things to figure out later. It was crude, but it looked as if it could conceivably fly with some work.

He placed it on the bedside. The next sketch was of a cannon. One that she was hoping would shoot confetti and streamers. This one was thrown away.

The next was a crayon drawing. Of his mother. There were dried tear marks on it. He couldn't bring himself to throw it away.

Another drawing of Granny Pie. And another, and another. Then a picture of the whole family, her included, standing and smiling.

He tossed it back onto the "don't throw away" pile.

The next sheet wasn't a drawing, but a long, written story, lasting several sheets and stapled at the top right. The Tale of the Royal Pony Sisters, he realized. He moved to the next. The Mirror Pool. The next. Escape From Catrina. He rolled his eyes a bit. If ponies had been in danger as often as the old tales suggested, he failed to see how they could have survived so long.

The final sheet wasn't a story. It was a list of "Granny Pie's Super Awesome Sayings". Clyde went down it.

"Lies fly, then fall. The truth hops but keeps going."

"Laugh when you are scared."

"Remember, laughter is one of the strongest forces in Equestria. It can pick a pony up in the darkest of times."

His ears twitched. He remembered.

Even in your darkest time, in your darkest place, you'll always have somepony to look out for you. Keep a song in your heart and a spring in your trot, and everything will turn out okay.

He dropped the papers. He was stunned silent.

In a flash he was downstairs, running toward the front door.

"Dear?" Sue spoke up. "Where are you going?"

He stopped and looked at his wife. "...We've made a mistake. Which way did you find Pinkie going?"

"Clyde, that was a week ago..."

"She couldn't have gotten far in that time," he said, sounding like he was trying to convince himself more than his wife. "She's too young to have traveled too far. We have to find her!"

"She went north..."

"I'll ask the neighbors if they're going that way soon, ask them to look. Gather all our extra money, we'll see if we can charter a pegasus chariot."

"The harvest..."

"Our neighbors owe us a few favors. They can reign it in while we look..."

"Wait," Pinkie interrupted. She had listened to her father, too scared to speak up. But on this revelation, she simply had to inquire.

"I did," Clyde said simply. "We searched for days in the direction we saw you leave. We even hired a chariot and drove out as far as we could afford, but nopony had seen you." He was silent for a moment. "You doubled back, didn't you?"

She swallowed, then nodded. "I was... I was afraid of you finding me. When I thought I got far enough I tried circling around..."

Clyde nodded. "I figured. We searched everywhere until we couldn't afford it any longer. We gave up. For years, we thought we had lost you. Then, two years ago, we picked up the paper and saw you on the cover."

Neither Pinkie or the Cakes had to ask. NightMare Moon, Pinkie's ascension to an Element of Harmony. That had been how Clyde and Sue had found her at last.

There was an unspoken question that Mrs. Cake badly wanted answered, but she waited until her foster daughter had a chance to ask it for herself.

"Why did it take you two years to come and see me?"

For the first time since he sat down, Clyde looked uncomfortable. He shifted a bit. "Pinkie... I believe your granny said something about that. 'The hardest thing anypony can do is admit when they've been foalish.'"

Pinkie's eyes widened as she realized something. Tears were spilling out of her parent's eyes.

"I would take back everything if I could. I thought that cutie mark was a sign that you had no ambition, and now look. You've accomplished things most ponies could only dream of. Please, Pinkie... I'm sorry." He spoke the words like they were the hardest things he had to say. The weight of the last several years were on them. "I've wronged you. Please..."

Pinkie sat at the other end of the table, wide eyed and slack jawed at the confession. Then, in a flash, she was at the other end of the table, in her father's forelegs, crying her eyes out.

The initial meeting between Pinkie's friends and her sisters was awkward, not helped by Twilight's insistence that they be scanned. Finding them clean, they began talking awkwardly, trying not to listen in to what was supposed to be a private conversation between Pinkie and her parents. At the sound of crying, Rainbow Dash had to be held back from storming in and demanding to know what was going on.

"Settle down, y'all," Applejack said sternly. "We'll go in when Ma an' Pa Pie are good and ready."

"Oh my, I hope everything is alright out there," Fluttershy noted.

Twilight, sitting in front of a chessboard, briefly considered using a scrying spell to see what was going on, but decided against it. She moved her knight to like up with Blinkie's princess. "Check."

Blinkie moved her princess to capture Twilight's piece.

Twilight responded by moving her prince into a new position. "Checkmate."

Blinkie fumed. "You're good."

"So are you. It's not often I have somepony that good to play with," Twilight reassured.

"Thanks," Blinkie said, setting up the pieces again. "I'd probably be better if Inkie would play me more often."

The remaining Pie sibling stopped her frantic pacing and looked at her younger sister. "How can you play games at a time like this? Our sister is in there!"

Blinkie shrugged. "There's nothing I can do until Mom and Dad are done."

"I'm ready to move in if Pinkie so much as says my name," Twilight assured her, moving her first pawn. "Anyway, I'm sure everything's going fine."

At that point, Mr. Cake stuck his head in the door. "Um... Inkie, Blinkie? Pinkie's ready to see you."

The younger Pie sisters were out the door in a flash. The sound of them saying their oldest sisters name joyously filled the other ponies ears. A lot of excited talking followed. Rainbow Dash moved to follow, but was stopped by Rarity. "Honestly, let Pinkie have a few minutes with her sisters."

The cyan pegasus fumed, folding her forelegs in a huff. "I can't stand sitting here."

"Well, you're gunna," Applejack said sternly. "'Sides, I think it's pretty clear things are gonna be alright. Sounds like they're havin' quite a reunion."

It was another few minutes before Pinkie's voice called to them. "What are you all doing in there? Come on, the party's out here!"

At Pinkie's statement, the others exited the kitchen half expecting to find the main dining room decorated by Pinkie, ready for a traditional party, but they found things undecorated. Just the family, with their tears drying, ready to celebrate.

"So, everythin' okay in here?"

"No," Twilight said suddenly. "I'm not alright. I haven't been alright in a while. I've been burying my feelings for far too long. I can't stand it anymore!" She got on her knees in front of a certain earth pony. "I love you Applejack!"

Suddenly she grew pegasus wings and magically levitated Applejack onto her back. She took off, leaving a rainbow trail behind her. "Let's be together forever and ever...

Pinkie? Pinkie?

"Huh?"

"You spaced out there for a second," Rainbow Dash said.

"Sorry," she smiled. "I was just thinking..."

"I don't blame you," Clyde said warmly. "It's been a hard day."

Mr. and Mrs. Cake, with some help from Sue and Applejack, were passing out sweets to everypony, and a feeling of festivity was beginning to fill the air. Twilight was the next one to approach the patriarch of the Pie family.

"Sorry about the scan," she said. "I've been a little on edge since the invasion."

The rock farmer waved her off. “I'm fine. We went through about three checkpoints on the way here. I'm amazed the Princesses had them set up that fast. Though, from what I hear, the breach in security was a big one."

"You don't need to tell me," Twilight said a bit sourly.

"And they were nothing compared to that group outside the city."

At that, both Pinkie and Twilight looked at him with alarm. "What was that?"

Clyde blinked. "There was a group about a mile outside of town. They followed us for a bit, asking us if we were aware of what a tyrant the Princess was. They kept shoving pamphlets in our faces."

He paused as he took in the two mares' shocked faces. "Is that something we should be worried about?"

It Gets Worse

Clyde wasn't happy at this new development. He had expected to spend the entire day with his family, catching up on his oldest daughter's accomplishments and working on a way to integrate her back into her family. But now, Twilight Sparkle was pushing him out the door of Sugarcube Corner, demanding to be taken to the spot where he had run into the Anti-Celestia group.

Still, Clyde could sympathize. These ponies had threatened her son (a dragon for a son... that was an interesting story right there) and she was not about to give them any chance to harm him. His parental instincts had kicked in, and he agreed.

Pinkie would be coming with them, as would the earth pony Applejack. Inkie and Blinkie had wanted to come, and though they were both of age, they had buckled to Clyde and Sue's demands that they stay behind.

"Are you sure about this, Twi?" Applejack muttered. "You said yerself we shouldn't be actin' hasty..."

"We aren't going to confront them," she assured her. "At least, not directly. I just want to see what they’re up to. If they are going to do something illegal, they're not going to get the drop on me."

"Are you sure you don't want the rest of us to come with you, dear?" Rarity asked.

"No," she said immediately. "There's more that has to be done here." She turned to the Cakes. "Can Spike stay here until I get back?"

Confused, the pair nodded. "Of course... but do you really think it's necessary?"

"I'm not taking any chances," Twilight answered. "If they came here, I want him hidden. They'll be reluctant to attack Sugarcube Corner since an assault on a public place would mark against them." She took a breath. "Rarity, go get Spike and escort him here. Rainbow Dash, keep your dinner date with Scootaloo's family, that's not something we can put off. Everypony else, just stay put. We won't be long."

"If you insist..." Rarity said reluctantly.

"We'll be back before you know it."

That conversation had been the last bit of talk in the group until they were out of the city. Finally, Clyde spoke up. "Has this group been causing you problems?"

"Not really," Twilight admitted. "They need the public on their side, so they haven't done much more than trash Spike and the Princess."

Clyde slowed a bit. "Then why worry about them?"

"They aren't popular here. The only speaker that tried got run out because the ponies here respect Spike. But they're still hanging around. I need to know why."

"Ya think they're up ta somethin', Twi?"

"I wouldn't doubt it... I wonder what their angle is..."

"We can figure it out," Pinkie chirped happily, looking like her old self again. "We'll get rid of those meanies! Then, we'll figure out what's wrong with Scootaloo, and fix that! Then we'll finally have that big party to celebrate beating the changelings! We'll have cake, and pie, and punch..."

Twilight started to tune out Pinkie's chatter, but she noticed Clyde listening happily, as if his daughter's voice was beautiful music. She smiled despite herself.

Since the wedding, there had been no peace. The falling out, the invasion, the apologies and guilt, Spike running away, Pinkie's parents, and Scootaloo's troubles had all piled on each other. There had been too little peace. But now... it was finally clearing. The dinner with Scootaloo was tonight, and that should tell them both what needed to be done. That only left the Anti-Celestia group, and the Princess would deal with them... hopefully.

Rainbow Dash flew up towards her home. She had to shower before the dinner, and she'd hoped to avoid Rarity’s insistence that she do her mane or wear a dress.

Just as she was about to open the door, something grabbed her from behind. Yelling in surprise, she turned... or more accurately, was turned by something. She opened her mouth to yell in surprise, only for another pair of lips to come crashing down on them.

Once she realized who it was, she kissed back, but only for a moment. Then she pushed away and playfully swatted at his side. "That wasn't very tactful," she said evenly.

"Oh really?" Soarin said. "You didn't seem to have much to complain about a second ago." He wiggled his eyebrows playfully.

Rolling her eyes in an equally playful manner, she opened the door to her home, heading inside with her coltfriend right behind her. "You could have picked a more romantic time for your first kiss," she chided.

"You didn't seem like the type," he shrugged. "Anyway, any news on Scootaloo?"

"Nothing I didn't tell you in the letter," she said, walking into the kitchen and pouring drinks for her guest and herself. "That's why we're heading over to her house tonight. You need to use the shower?"

"I think I better... I just flew all the way from Canterlot."

"You can go first then," the mare noted, pointing in the general direction of her bathroom. "Shower off and get ready. I don't want to be late."

Sugarcube Corner, despite being closed, was still as lively as ever. Inkie and Blinkie were playing with Pound and Pumpkin, causing the foals to giggle happily at every funny face. Rarity and Fluttershy decorated the dining area with streamers and balloons, ready to celebrate Pinkie's reconciliation. Mrs. Cake and Mrs. Pie remained in the kitchen, baking treats.

It was a rather tense situation. No matter how friendly one tried to be with the other, there was the unmistakable looks of jealousy in their eyes. As far as Mrs. Cake was concerned, Sue had just stolen her child from her. And as far as Sue was concerned, Mrs. Cake had stolen several years of her child's life from her.

They tried not to voice it. Pinkie's heart was big enough for two sets of parents, no matter how much it hurt to share her, and neither wanted to cause the child more pain by fighting.

"Was Pinkie happy here?"

Mrs. Cake's ears perked up at Sue's question. It wasn't an accusation, or a questioning of her parenting skills. It was simply a question that she wanted answered.

"Of course... we raised her like she was our own."

"She did well in school?" she continued interrogating. "You didn't have a problem getting her to work?"

She shook her head. "No... she was always eager to bake. She never had any trouble in primary school. She needed the grades and the bits for her secondary schooling."

Sue gaped at her. "S-secondary schooling? What could she have needed that for with her cutie mark?"

Mrs. Cake was not angry at her surprise. Both her and her husband had been equally as surprised when they heard it. "Engineering."

Sue's mouth nearly hit the floor. "Wh-wh-what?"

"I know... I thought it was crazy too. But she had all these designs she wanted to see built. She'd spend her free time in the backyard, tinkering with all these parts, trying to build a flying machine."

Sue's eyes actually widened further. "Don't tell me... she actually managed to build it?"

Mrs. Cake nodded. "It took years, but she finally did it... she made a cannon that shoots party decorations too."

Sue's shock slowly faded, to be replaced by sadness. "So... me and Clyde were worrying about nothing..."

To her surprise, Mrs. Cake actually shook her head. "I don't think so... Truth be told, Pinkie was pretty irresponsible about everything that didn't involve her special talent. When she was on the clock, she worked just fine. When she had to do her chores, well... it was something else entirely."

Sue nodded. "We were worried that would be a problem..."

"It was... the only reason we ever agreed to let her babysit Pound and Pumpkin was because we literally had no other choice."

There was an awkward silence.

"The twins... they're yours biologically? Not adopted?"

"Yes," she answered. "Me and Carrot... we had some recessive genes that come out."

The last part was clearly to answer what she knew Sue must be thinking, but was too tactful to ask. She nodded. "I see..."

Silence once more as the pair kneaded dough. "Aside from the irresponsibility, was there any other problems? Any... misbehavior?"

"Not really," Mrs. Cake said. "Pinkie was very well behaved. The only time she really got in trouble was about a year after she moved in. She tried baking without us and nearly set the kitchen on fire." She looked at Sue, for the first time moving from her neutral expression to a slightly angry one. "I was about to take a paddle to her. But once she saw it, she broke down crying. She cried so hard, I couldn't bring myself to hurt her. I ended up grounding her instead."

Sue didn't have an answer for that. She simply went back to kneading her share. The silence was awkward at that moment. Mrs. Cake sighed. "Listen... I care about Pinkie, and I know you do too, regardless of what happened."

"That doesn't change the things I did," Sue said sadly, stopping her work. "Or what I didn't do."

Mrs. Cake nodded. “It doesn’t. But maybe you can make up for it before you leave.”

Sue smiled sadly. “I suppose it’s pointless to try and talk Pinkie into coming back to the rock farm, isn’t it?”

“You’re welcome to try,” was all Mrs. Cake said, and it said enough. The fact that she was offering Sue the chance to take Pinkie made it clear that she didn’t think such a thing was possible. Sue felt her heart ache.

“She’s happy here, right?”

“As happy as we can make her.”

Rainbow Dash looked at herself in the mirror as a brush ran through her mane for the seventh time, wondering if she should do anything with it. This was both dinner with Scootaloo’s parents and a date with her new coltfriend, she needed to look her best. But she hated having to style her mane unless it was absolutely necessary. Even during the Gala and at the wedding, she had only let Rarity do as much with it as was needed.

A knock on the bathroom door was accompanied by Soarin’s voice. “Come on, are you ready yet? I thought one of the advantages of dating you meant no waiting to get ready.”

Rainbow Dash opened the door and whacked him with the manebrush. “Ow! What was that for?”

“That was still sexist,” she said flatly, but there was still a smile. “And this is kind of a big deal. Think I should style my mane?”

“Nah, I like it the way it is,” he grinned. He waited for her to grin as well before adding in a bit of teasing. “Sides, I doubt you could do anything with that mess anyway.”

That earned him another smack, but Rainbow Dash took it as a joke. “You're lucky you're cute,” she said playfully.

“And the fact that I’m rich and famous doesn’t hurt either, does it?”

“Please. I’m going to get my own money and fame. I don’t need a stallion for that.”

He shrugged. “Fair enough... I think that’s enough banter for now. Come on, dinner awaits.”

Clyde had enjoyed the walk through Ponyville now that the large weight on his past had been lifted off his shoulders. It was absolutely wonderful to have his daughter next to him, pointing out the buildings she frequently inhabited, and waving to ponies she knew. A few had approached for introductions to the old stallion, only to be halted by Twilight, who said they were in a rush now and they’d all get a chance to meet him at the inevitable “Welcome to Ponyville” party that Pinkie was sure to throw.

On the outskirts, they continued walking, while Pinkie finally explained to him about Spike and his relation to the Anti-Celestia group. Clyde nodded, then spoke aloud. “I suppose I understand why you want to check this out... no assuming when it comes to your foals... er, in a manner of speaking.”

“I’ve made that mistake before,” Twilight grumbled.

The older pony looked at her with an interested expression. “What do you mean?”

“It was during the first Winter Wrap-Up we had in Ponyville... we do everything by hoof, no magic. When the clean up was over, I decided to play a prank on Spike. He ended up dunked in the river. Then it turned out the ponies who were supposed to have heated the pond with the underground pumps had slacked off their duties. Spike was sick for two weeks.”

Despite the story, Pinkie actually giggled. “Rainbow Dash and Applejack had to hold her down to stop her from hurting the ponies responsible, and it took Rarity, Vinyl Scratch, and Lyra working together to suppress her magic.”

Clyde nodded. “A few years after Pinkie left, something similar happened in our town. A foal took a swim as soon as it was over. He wasn’t so lucky.”

“The ponies who did it got off too easy,” Twilight spat. “Ninety days jail time.” And then, her ears drooped. “Still... I shouldn’t have pulled that prank...”

“Twi, we told ya, it wasn’t your fault,” Applejack patted her back. “Even with how we were runnin’ in circles, nopony was quite that dang fool enough. Anypony coulda fallen in them ponds when they was bustin’ up the ice... dern foals slackin’...”

Twilight sighed. “I guess you're right... Still, I want to get this done and get back to Ponyville.”

“By the way, what’s th’ plan when we see ‘em?” Applejack asked.

“We spy a bit to see what they’re up to, if we can get in close enough without being seen.”

“And if we can’t?” Clyde ask.

“We run a changeling check on them and then get back to town,” Twilight sighed. “There’s nothing else we can do. We’ll think more about helping Scootaloo, if she really needs our help at all.”

Clyde spoke up again. “I’ve been meaning to ask, who exactly is Scootaloo?”

Pinkie suddenly panicked. “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t tell you! You see, there’s this little pegasus filly that hangs around with Applejack and Rarity’s little sisters, and...”

“Excuse me.”

The four ponies heads turned as another pony, a unicorn with a white coat and a megaphone cutie mark. Applejack tensed. “Are you aware of the grip of tyranny that...”

He trailed off as he saw who he was talking to. His face contorted into an expression of contempt, like he was looking at something rancid and filthy. “Well, look who it is. Celestia’s little lap dog.”

Scootaloo’s heart began racing as she heard the knock on the front door. Sweat began forming on her forehead. She looked up at her father, who gave her a condescending look.

“Now remember, just act like everything’s okay, and by the end of the night, it will be. I know it’s a lot to ask of you, but I’m sure even you can manage this.”

Scootaloo gulped, but nodded. “Sure thing, Daddy.”

“Good girl,” he said sweetly, patting her head as Quick Delivery opened the front door. A chorus of welcomes was exchanged as Rainbow Dash and Soarin stepped in.

“Ah, Miss Rainbow Dash. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you,” Speedy said quickly. “I wanted to thank you for everything you’ve done for my daughter.”

Rainbow Dash grinned. “Heh, it was nothing,” she assured, playfully ruffling the foal’s mane. “She’s a natural at it. Aren’t you, Scoots?”

“Y-yeah,” Scootaloo said, trying with all her might to keep the tremble out of her voice. “A natural.”

“And Soarin, we’re honored that you would grace our home.”

“Hey, it’s no problem,” the Wonderbolt said dismissively. "I don't get good, homecooked meals much anymore."

“Well, we have no shortage of that," Quick Delivery said happily. "Can I get you anything to drink? Water? Soda? Wine?"

"Water," Rainbow Dash responded, and her coltfriend in kind. She turned back to Speedy Delivery, putting on her best friendly smile, though she was still unsure exactly how much the stallion deserved it. "So, how are the flying lessons going? She was doing great at her last one."

"Oh, Scootaloo is a natural," Speedy said with a grin. It looked friendly in every way, though for some reason it still made Rainbow Dash uneasy. "She's going to be joining you on the Wonderbolts someday," he added to Soarin, "aren't you?"

Scootaloo swallowed the lump in her throat, and then tried to speak without her voice cracking. "You bet."

"But we can talk about that over our meals. Please, come side down." He motioned to the table. Quick Delivery had finished pouring the drinks, water for the guests, a glass of cider for her husband, and a glass of wine for herself. As the two guests set, they both noticed Scootaloo had gotten only water as well. A bit strange for a foal so young.

"I'm so glad you agreed to this," Speedy said as he and his daughter sat down. His wife excused herself to enter the kitchen. "I wanted to get to know somepony that my daughter holds in such high regard."

Rainbow Dash waved this off. "What can I say? I am pretty cool that way."

Quick Delivery came in balancing the plates on her wings. It was salads, Rainbow Dash was pleased to see. As the matriarch of the Delivery family passed out the plates, Speedy continued. "I don't suppose I could get a letter of recommendation for Scootaloo while you're here, can I?" he asked Soarin. "I'm hoping to get her into a good flight school."

"Well, it's a bit complicated," he admitted. "I'm going to have to see her fly... but if Rainbow Dash says she has talent, I think she'll do fine."

"Excellent," he said. "We can go out after we eat. Come on, I'm sure you're all hungry."

"Why have you come? Are you here to suppress us? Is Celestia trying to bully us out of our noble cause?"

Twilight gritted her teeth. "No. I want to know what you're doing camped out outside town. What do you possibly hope to accomplish?"

"We simply seek to open ponies’ eyes to the incompetence of your master, though you're too blind to see it."

"So your great plan to invoke change is to harass travelers into coming to a backwater town? I'm not buying it! What are you really up to?"

"And, the Princess'a lapdog comes to do her bidding with wild accusations! I suppose you have proof of your claims? We have a right to protest against against things we see as harmful to us."

"I haven't made any claims, I merely asked what you were up to," Twilight snapped, her patience running thin. "And by your logic, I have a right to investigate ponies that are trying to have my son exiled."

"Your son? That's what you claim that little beast is? He's a monster! He'll eat you whole."

"Listen, you..."

"Twi," Applejack spoke up, "reel it in. He ain't worth it, and he's too darn thick ta listen ta reason."

"Pretty big talk coming from a country hick whose cutie mark is for playing in the dirt."

Applejack flared up at the insult, but a hoof on the shoulder from Clyde stopped her. "They're trying to bait you," he whispered. "Just stay calm."

"Fine, don't tell me," Twilight said. "I don't think I'd trust anything you had to say. But I trust the lot of you will agree to be scanned?"

Much to Twilight's surprise, the pony seemed to calm down. "Typical changeling scan, yes? Very well, let's get it over with."

The lavender mare blinked in surprise, as did her companions. Was it really that simple? Just like that? Carefully, Twilight approached the red pony and lit up her horn.

A second later, it felt like she had been punched straight in the brain. She staggered back as her magic was suddenly pushed back into her, and her mind felt like it had been split in two.

Seconds later, a hoof hit her in the face.

Rainbow Dash had to admit, one way or the other, Quick Delivery was an excellent cook. As she took another mouthful of leaves, Speedy was talking. "I guess I should thank you," he said. "I guess I have been a bit too busy with my work. I didn't mean to neglect my daughter."

"I can understand," Soarin noted. "I imagine the mail work could keep you busy."

"Well, it's not quite that," Speedy admitted. "I'm not planning to make Scootaloo live off my postpony salary forever. Whenever she gets her cutie mark, I want her to get some good continuing education. So I've been working on a little project."

"Project?" Rainbow Dash lifted an eyebrow. "What do you mean by that?"

"Oh just something that's going to mean big things for Equestria," he said casually.

Rainbow Dash looked at the stallion for a moment. Then, she started to laugh. She wasn't sure why.

Soarin laughed too. "Well, I'm sure you'll... you'll be fine," he said.

"Oh, excuse me," Rainbow Dash said, leaning back. "I just... I feel dizzy all of a sudden."

"Yeah, me..." Soarin began, but then his eyes widened in horror. "Wait... what did you put in our food?"

Scootaloo froze in terror as she realized what was going on. "Daddy, what..."

"It's just a special ingredient," he assured, smiling pleasantly.

"You... you ba..." Soarin began, attempting to stand up. Attempting being the key word, as his legs immediately gave out and he crashed to the floor.

Rainbow Dash fared a little better, managing to catch herself on the table. She pulled herself up, reaching toward Scootaloo. "Scoots... what?"

She was silenced by a hoof to the side of the head. She saw stars dance in her vision, and as the world went black, she heard Speedy Delivery's final words.

"Send a message to Olive Branch. Tell him we have what we were waiting for. He can start his negotiations."

Author's Note

I meant to post this up last night, but my internet had to go out, which means I'm uploading this on my iPad, which I hate doing, because it inevitable leads to problems.

I was unsure of this chapter, but then again I'm unsure of all my chapters, so it balances out. I might revise this a bit once I get back from my business trip (I leave tonight). Still, I hope you like it!

The Reason

Applejack really wished Twilight was awake right now, because she was the smart one and she would have really liked her input.

As soon as she saw that unicorn levitate that magically suppressing horn ring up to her head, she had tried to leap to her friend's defense, only to be ambushed by two other ponies from behind, and she wasn't the only one.

So now, what Twilight had hoped would be nothing more than an investigation had ended with the four of them tied by their back hooves, hanging upside-down from the thickest tree branch they could find.

The cowpony struggled, trying to make the ropes come loose, but such actions proved fruitless. Clyde and Pinkie were having no better luck, their own struggles only serving to tire themselves out. Twilight hung limply, unconscious from the beating she had taken.

"We might as well save our strength," Clyde said finally, allowing himself to limp. "We'll still need to fight our way out of here if we do get free."

The ponies guarding them apparently weren't bothered by their discussion of escape. The unicorn that had taken down Twilight was talking to one of his subordinates, a pegasus with a lightning bolt cutie mark.

"Make sure Olive Branch gets this quickly. He's about to go into negotiations with Celestia, and this will tip the scales in his favor."

The pegasus nodded in approval, and like a shot he was in the air, heading toward Canterlot.
Nodding in approval, he turned to a group of ponies that he had apparently collected when his captives weren't paying attention. They were all large, nearly as big as Big Macintosh, three earth ponies and two unicorns.

"Just keep them in place. That horn ring should block the lapdog's powers, and our files on the other two say they're too stupid to be much of a threat." Applejack shouted at this insult, but she was ignored. "The time is right. Four of the six Bearers are our prisoners, and the remaining are the prissy ones. We can finally go after our target, and I will lead you there."

"But Olive Branch said..."

"He didn't know what would happen! We have a chance! That beast will die!"

"No!" two simultaneous voices yelled as Applejack and Pinkie Pie both began thrashing anew. It was Applejack who managed to get the first words out. "If you lay a hoof on that boy, I'm gunna..."

She was hit by a blast of magic from one of the unicorns. It didn't burn or hurt her seriously, but the force still knocked the wind out of her, ending her sentence with a strange groan. Turning back to the assembled ponies, he spoke again. "Fillies and gentlecolts, we're about to do a great service for Equestria. Onward!"

Soarin groggily returned to consciousness only to remember why he had been knocked out. He attempted to open his eyes and focus, but his vision was greatly blurred. His wings were unresponsive, he realized, they had been bound to the sides. He was hogtied too... not a good sight to wake up to.

"Rainbow?" he tried to call, but it came out as "Ruhnbow?"

A scratchy moan answered him. He turned and saw Rainbow Dash, hogtied and wingbound like he was, still teetering on the edge of consciousness.

"Well, this is great... I thought seeing you tied up would be a little more enjoyable than this."

He could hear Spitfire scold him for not taking a situation seriously as he looked around. He was still in the Delivery family's home, he would guess. It looked like a basement, at any rate, with a water heater and a few boxes of Hearth's Warming decorations. What was an unusual attribute was the cage.

It wasn't professionally made, that was for sure. It looked rather makeshift, but he knew it would hold. That much was clear.

"Ugh... Soarin? What happened? Wait... the dinner..."

"Looks like you were right, something was up," he noted. Rainbow Dash began struggling against his binds. "No, save your strength."

"'Save my strength'? Scoots is in trouble, we need to get..."

"I know, but tiring yourself out won't help," he said bluntly. "You want to be a Wonderbolt? Rule one, you need to keep cool under fire. Now, we need to assess the situation."

"How?"

“We let this simmer for a moment," he said, dropping his voice to a whisper. "Eventually, a guard will walk in, and believe me, they're suckers if you play them right."

As if on cue, a door opened, bathing light into the room. Immediately Rainbow Dash took this as a sign to start yelling. "You... I'm going to...”

“P-please don’t be mad,” a little voice whimpered.

All of Rainbow Dash’s anger melted away when she realized who it was, replaced by fear. “Scootaloo? Are you okay? Did he do anything to you?”

“He... he stepped on my wing... when I told him what you said. Please, I didn’t know he was going to do this...”

“Scoots, listen, you need to get us out. Open the cage and untie us.”

“...I... I can’t. He’s going to be really mad if I...”

“Scoots, listen: I can help you, I can protect you from him.”

Soarin’ spoke up. “What your dad is doing is wrong, it’s illegal. If you let us go, I guarantee he won’t get to you.”

“...But, he’s my dad...”

“He hurt you, Scoots!” Rainbow Dash’s voice was enough to shatter glass at that moment, and despite Soarin’s attempts to shush her, she went on. “Why would you want that?”

“He just did it because... I disobeyed him...”

“That’s not a good dad! Scoots, listen, you need to...”

“Scootaloo? What the Tartarus are you doing down there?”

Scootaloo froze and began shaking as her father descended the basement stairs. “I told you to stay out here. Honestly, can’t you do anything right?”

“Don’t you talk to her like...”

“Shut it,” the father growled, walking down the stairs. “You little lapdogs trying to tell me how to raise my foal. I swear, that’ll be over soon.”

“You’re working for Olive Branch,” Soarin stated. There was no question, just the tone asking for confirmation.

“Yeah,” he said. “I am. He was happy when he found out I could get you here, and he was even happier when he found out that Celestia’s attack dog ended up caught.”

“You...” Rainbow Dash’s anger increased. “If you hurt her, I’m...”

Speedy Delivery reached through the bars and struck the mare in the muzzle. It was hard, and it drew blood.

“Daddy,” Scootaloo said, starting to tear up, “please don’t...”

“Would you rather I hit you instead?”

“...N-no...”

“Then get upstairs. Now.”

Crying, Scootaloo sprinted up the steps, tripping twice in her haste, before she was out the door.

“Look what you’ve done to her. She used to be a good kid before you got a hold of her.”

“She’s better than you deserve,” Rainbow Dash spat, but at the same time she was doing her best to wiggle away from her captor.

“Another example of Celestia trying to control our lives. You damn dogs coming in here trying to tell me how to raise my foal...”

“Listen,” Soarin said, hoping he would speak over his marefriend’s insults, “if you really have a problem with the way Celestia’s running things...”

“Don’t even try telling me trying to talk her into stepping down would work. She’s been ruler for over a thousand years. But she’ll step down. Olive Branch is on his way to make sure of that.”

Olive Branch entered the castle to a thunderous applause. The crowd being held outside the gates were all too happy that their efforts had paid off. They were pushing forward, doing everything outside attacking the guards to see their leader one more time.

“Olive Branch? Please stay still.”

The guards who spoke it received only a customary nod as they searched his assistants’ saddlebags. Finding nothing offensive, they instructed, “Come this way.”

The unicorn nodded, motioning to the two earth ponies with him to follow the guard. It was a quiet walk to Celestia’s throne room.

The escort entered first. “Presenting Olive Branch,” he announced, stepping aside and allowing the three guests to enter.

“Thank you,” the unicorn said, levitating two bits toward the guard. He looked at them with a mix of surprise at the generosity and outright revulsion at having the protesters’ coins. Eventually, he pocketed them, vowing to spend them as soon as possible.

The throne room was empty besides Celestia and Luna. In its center was a table, surrounded by five chairs. Two of them were occupied by Celestia and Luna, the former looking calm and serene, while the later was barely hiding her contempt.

“Olive Branch, I’m glad you could make it. Please sit down.”

Even through everything he had preached, Olive Branch admired how calm the Princess of the Sun was being. He took his seat, his assistants sitting on either side of them.

“Care for tea?”

“Two sugars, please,” he said politely, and his assistants followed suit.

“Well then, now that we’ve had the customary greetings, let’s get down to it. I would very much like to hear your list of grievances. I trust you narrowed it down to the most extreme?”

“I asked the citizens what they wanted,” he nodded, levitating the list out of his assistant’s pack and sliding it toward the Princesses. They scanned the list, finding the expected demands, that Shining Armor be replaced, that security be tightened, that more power be taken out of their hooves.

“And what matter would thou wish be focused on first?”

“The list isn’t anything I care about. You may do what you wish.”

That was not an answer either sister had expected. They both stared at the supposed revolutionary until finally Luna said, in a blunt tone, “What?”

“I really don’t care how you run Equestria. It doesn’t matter to me in the end.”

There was another silence.

“Do you mean to tell me that this whole movement... was a lie?” Celestia said, anger entering her voice.

“No... only my part. I’ve been wanting an audience with you for awhile, but a common pony like myself has a hard time getting an audience with royalty, and even a noble couldn’t meet with you in private like I wanted. They served a purpose I needed, but I’m finished with them. Still, they won’t be done with you, so I suggest keeping a hold of that list. You’ll need it.”

“You foal!” Luna cried, slamming her hoof on the table. “You caused all this trouble for a selfish motive?”

“Cause it? Hardly. Your incompetence did that, I merely took advantage of it. By the way,” he levitated another slip of paper out of his assistant’s pack and slid it to them. “This is the address of one of my followers. He’s abusing his foal. I’d put a stop to that.”

The two Princesses gaped at this. Olive Branch shrugged. “What? I’m not heartless. Now I suggest you listen to my request.”

“Insolent cur! This one good deed does not make up for all your trouble! We will not negotiate with the likes of...”

A raised wing silenced her. But it wasn’t done because Celestia was being kind. She glared a glare usually reserved for Discord or Chrysalis and said, in a growl, “What is it that you want?”

“I want something you have been keeping to yourselves ever since you took the throne. I want immortality.”

Twilight awoke with a groan. She looked around through blurred and was hit with vertigo, though she didn’t know why. She tried to piece together what had happened. She tried lighting up her horn. She couldn’t feel her magic.

She remembered her brain feeling like it had been split apart. She realized what must have happened: a horn ring. It was suppressing her magic now, and having it be placed so unexpectedly had caused her magic to be pushed back into her.

Through all this thinking, she hardly noticed she was hanging upside down until she heard Applejack’s call. “Twi? Twi?”

“Huh... whoa!” she suddenly was awake enough to notice her surrounding. “What happened?”

“They got us, Twi,” the earth pony moaned. “I’ve been trying to break free, but it’s no good.”

“Ooh! Now that Twilight’s awake, I’ll bet she can do something fun! Oh! Break the ropes and do some super cool magic stuff...”

“Pinkie,” Clyde said patiently, “horn ring.”

“Oh... right.”

“Still, I trust a pony of your caliber knows how to remove it?”

“Don’t bet on it,” one of the guards said, though he hardly looked at them. “That ring’s as high a caliber as you can get without being able to suppress an alicorn.”

“Cute,” Twilight thought, as she began concentrating.

“Ya gotta figure a way out of here quick, Twi,” Applejack said. “Most of them varmints went after Spike.”

Twilight froze. Or she would have, hanging by a single rope meant all four ponies were swaying. “What?”

“It’s true,” the guard said, looking at her with a malicious smile. “By now, that beast is likely a dragon skin rug.”

“What?”

A silence hung in the throne room.

A very angry silence.

“Immortality?” Celestia repeated, not quite believing it.

“I know you figured out how to make yourselves immortal through the Source. I’m all set to head there myself, I simply need the key you know and...”

“Foal!” Luna shouted, using her Royal Canterlot voice once more. “You’ve wasted our time for a curse?”

“Believe me,” Celestia said coldly, “I would give you immortality if I knew how and I didn’t shudder to think what a pony like you would do with such power.”

“Oh don’t give me that ‘immortality is a curse’ nonsense,” the unicorn waved a hoof dismissively. “It’s allowed you to reign for a millenium. I want that kind of power... oh don’t worry, fighting the two of you would be too much work. I’ll find my own kingdom to rule. I think I could whip the griffons into shape...”

Celestia stood. “We’re done here. My guards will escort you out.”

“Are you sure you want that, Your Highness? I think you might want to reconsider when you learn who I have.”

“What?”

Luna’s roar was accompanied by Celestia whirling around glaring at him. “Hostages? Honestly? That’s your plan?”

“Indeed. Ponies will die...”

“I cannot risk the thousands of lives you will ruin to save any hostages. What makes you think I would?”

“Please. The reason the invasion happened is you considered the comfort of your niece more important than the lives of your citizens.”

Two pairs of eyes went wide as the Princesses gaped at their opponent’s knowledge.

“Oh yes, I know Twilight tried to warn you. I was saving that as a trump card to tell the public if you refused to see me, but it proves my point. Now then, I merely have to use my magic to send the signal, and Twilight Sparkle will die. And before you get any ideas on trying to stop me, if I don't send the all clear signal every thirty minutes, my associates have orders to kill them anyway.”

“You beast! Release Twilight Sparkle at once or I shall...”

Luna was cut off. But not by Olive Branch. By her sister. It hadn’t been a gesture to be silent, even that wouldn’t have quieted her rage now.

It was laughter.

Not a simple chuckle, or a sarcastic laugh. No, it was full, deep belly laughter. The Princess of the Sun lost her composure as she fell bottom down on the table, laughing like Olive Branch had told the most hilarious joke she had heard in her incredibly long lifetime. Her hoof pounded the table in rhythm to her roars as tears rolled down her her cheeks. Her laughs became labored pants as the other four ponies looked on feeling a bit disturbed.

“Wh-what’s so funny?” Olive Branch demanded, trying and failing to sound intimidating.

“I’m... I’m... okay, I think I’m okay now,” Celestia said, righting herself. “It’s simply this: in the centuries I’ve ruled, have seen some truly foalish... no, that’s too kind... idiotic attempts at my throne, or equally half backed assassination attempts. Your base plan is full of holes as it is. Suppose I gave you what you wanted. Then what’s to stop me from hunting you down after you released your hostages? Especially since you told me where you were going. I could have a squad on you long before you ever reached the Source. And since you were dropping your group, nopony would likely know of your disappearance.”

“I... I had plans!” Olive Branch said, in the single most transparent lie Celestia had ever heard.

“But picking Twilight Sparkle... my student, as your hostage, takes the proverbial cake. It pushed your scheme far past a mere annoyance and made it amusing. I shall treasure this memory.”

“I don’t think you understand,” Olive Branch shouted. “It only takes one message from me and your lapdog is dead. Twilight Sparkle is safely restrained!”

“Let me guess, you had some Royal Guards working from the inside lend it to you? You must have had inside assistance to know of what exactly happened the eve of the wedding. I’ll be conducting an investigation to find and punish them soon, thank you for telling me. I take it they gave you a standard issue? You didn’t try for the true military grade I keep locked away?”

“Y-yes... it will hold her!”

“No it won’t. I trained and mentored Twilight myself, and she came to my attention through her raw power. Now tell me, what makes you think standard issue will be enough to hold her?”

A blast of magic hit the guard, sending him flying. The remnants of a horn ring landed somewhere in the grass, while Twilight and her fellow hostages fell to the ground, being stopped by Twilight’s magic for a soft landing.

They readied themselves for resistance and found none. The lead unicorn had only left four guards, and the three remaining conscious ones had wisely decided to run.

Twilight had no clever quip, nothing to say. She simply began racing towards Ponyville, and the others quietly followed.

Author's Note

Well, here we are. Two things I want to note:

I'm curious to see the reaction to this twist, both Olive Branch's true motives and the fact that he's not the mastermind he liked to think he was. But this lays down the groundwork for the rest of the fic, and the sequel. The main focus will be on Scootaloo, Rainbow Dash, and Speedy Delivery the next two chapter. Trust me, though, I'm not done with Olive Branch yet.
Don't let Olive Branch turning in Speedy make you think he's a nice pony. All it means is he has one shred of dignity versus the several thousand decent ponies have.

Also, I didn't mention it in the fic yet, but the other unicorn, the one leading the attack on Ponyville, is named Rabble Rouser.

The Struggle, Part 1

Things were not at all happening the way Olive Branch had thought they would. He was trying, and failing, not to show this, much to Celestia's continued amusement.

"I have her drugged!" he yelled. "She won't be awake..."

"You're lying," Celestia said bluntly. "You would have brought that up first thing if it were true, and you're far too nervous besides."

"...Well, I have others! The Element of Loyalty, and a member of the Wonderbolts..."

"The fastest flyer in Equestria and a member of the military? Do you honestly think that will work out better?"

"You can't take that chance! I'll send the signal right now and have them killed."

"Go right ahead."

Olive Branch gaped. Even Luna looked a little unsure at the bluntness of the statement.

"Tia..."

"You're bargaining with their lives! I knew it, you're a tyrant..."

Celestia put her face very close to the unicorn, causing a shiver to run down his spine. She spoke slowly, menacingly.

"Rainbow Dash, as you said, is the Element of Loyalty, as in, loyal to her friends, loyal to her town, and loyal to me. She wouldn't want me engaging in actions that would harm others, even to save her own life. And the Wonderbolt? It doesn't matter who it is... likely Soarin, I'd guess, Luna told me they were dancing together at the wedding... every member of that squad has pledged to serve others with a level of conviction that a pony like you can't comprehend. So go on, send your signal. I will not disrespect their values to appease a foal like you."

Silence hung in the air.

"Fine," Olive Branch said angrily, lighting up his horn.

Speedy Delivery glared at his two captives, watching as Rainbow Dash struggled, trying to work her way out of the bonds. It was no good, they were tied too tight. Soarin had not put as much effort into getting free, but was instead carefully talking to his captor.

"Do you really think this will work?"

"I know it will work," the mailpony said dismissively. "Celestia is a foal. An invasion happened right under her nose. She'll fold to Lord Olive Branch's commands. Then, when he is king, he's promised me a place in his court. I'll be able to pull my wife and daughter out of poverty."

"Scootaloo's going to suffer no matter where you take her," Rainbow Dash spat. Speedy made a move to hit her again, but by now she was too far into the cage to be hit.

At that moment, Speedy Delivery straightened. Then he let loose a sigh. "Just got the word. See, this is what your Princess thinks of you. She won't even give up her power to save your life."

"I wouldn't want her to," Soarin spat.

"Neither would I," Rainbow Dash added.

"Idiots," the mailpony muttered as he placed the key in the cage lock. After opening it, he grabbed a knife, not a fancy one, just a sharp looking kitchen knife, and came towards them. He passed by Soarin and straight to Rainbow Dash, giving her a kick to the muzzle. As she cried in pain, he spoke. "This is what you get for trying to take my foal away from me." He raised the knife up.

A hoof to the back of the head stopped him as he fell to the ground. Soarin was up, and he tossed aside the ropes before clenching on to Speedy's fallen knife.

"How'd you get free?"

"These were amateur knots," Soarin noted around the knife as he cut through his marefriend's bonds. "Honestly, this whole thing seems pretty poorly planned out."

As soon as her binds fell away, Rainbow Dash was in the air. Instantly she regretted it. She felt dizzy, like she had just done several aerial loops. “What th...”

“It’s the drug,” Soarin said. “Whatever they hit us with still has us dizzy.”

“Then why doesn’t it affect you?”

“It does, I’ve just been trained to handle myself. Now come on, Speedy won’t stay down forever.”

"Then let's get Scoots and get out of here!" She quickly sped out of the cage and up the stairs.

"Wait! They might have..."

As soon as Rainbow Dash opened the door, a blast of magic sent her to the bottom of the stairs. A unicorn and an earth pony pushed their way down, effectively blocking the exit.

"...backup," Soarin finished wearily.

The unicorn aimed and fired at him, which missed him by a great distance thanks to his superior combat training. In no time at all he was on his opponent, striking him in the eye. The pony grunted in pain as his comrade struck Soarin on the head, sending him staggering to the ground.

Rainbow Dash, recovered, flew to help him, but another blow to the back to the head sent her to the ground. As she groaned, she flipped onto her back, looking up at the very angry face of Speedy Delivery.

Another blow to the face, and another. By now Rainbow Dash was sure she had a black eye, and she felt blood caked on her upper lip. She dodged the next stomp by shifting a bit, then swung her foreleg upward. Her aim was true, and she hit Speedy, not too hard, but hard enough to stop the attacks momentarily.

That moment was all Rainbow Dash needed. She let loose a flurry of strikes, each hitting the object of her rage. Her punches weren't as strong, but they were much faster, and he was showing clear bruises, unable to get his own hits in.

After a few moments, she decided to fly back and slam down onto her opponent. She flew back, and found herself hitting the wall.

Suddenly she struck the back of the wall.

It hit her roughly five seconds after the wall did. In tight quarters she was robbed of her greatest strength, her speed and her manuverability. She was handicapped farther than the mere aftereffects of a drug.

The last true fight she had been in was with the changelings, and she was beginning to realize that fighting them and fighting Speedy were different things. The army she faced was made of several weakened units, given strength by sheer numbers. The entire invasion was a ploy to get love, and Rainbow Dash wondered, in the back of her mind, if the soldiers she fought were weak from hunger. Speedy, by opposite, had strength, not Big Mac's level but enough to cause damage. Her punches were certainly hurting him, he could still keep going.

She flew forward to punch him again, but by this time he was beginning to recover from shock. Finally mustering up the concentration, he reached out and struck his opponent in the face. The temporary pause was enough to get another punch in, pushing her against the wall once more.

"So... you can get a hit in that's not a cheap sucker..." She was cut off by a punch to the stomach, and another to the nose.

Before a third strike could follow, Speedy's unicorn companion came crashing down on top of him. Rainbow looked up the stairs just in time to fly out of the way of Soarin and the earth pony, who came crashing down after him in a ball of violence.

"Go get Scootaloo," he instructed as he tried to keep his opponent pinned. Rainbow Dash needed no second bidding. She flew up the stairs, her hooves never hitting the ground at her speed.

She was up on the ground floor before long, looking around. "Scoots? Scoots?"

"You stay away from my foal!" Quick Delivery screamed, coming toward her menacingly. Or at least, in an attempt to be menacing. She ended up stumbling on her face.

Rainbow Dash just stared at this a minute.

"Just... just give me a minute," Quick slurred.

Rainbow Dash refused. She flew back through the house, calling Scootaloo's name.

Owlowiscious was not happy with recent events. Flying into Twilight's home that night had been the best thing that had ever happened to him. He was made a pet, a much sought-after position among animals. It meant escaping mother nature's harsh design and avoiding being prey, or having to take prey. Twilight worked him hard, but fed and rewarded him well, Spike had proven a good companion after his initial jealousy, and he thought fondly of Peewee as an apprentice.

So he was alarmed when he learned of the Changeling Invasion nearly destroying them, further alarmed by Garble and his friends targeting Spike specifically. And now... there was this.

A group of ponies... thirty, at least... were at the door of the Golden Oaks Library. He was currently the only one home, since Rarity had whisked away Spike and Peewee. He could get away quite easily, but there was so much knowledge in this tree...

"Let's burn him out!" a cry came.

"No. If we act unruly, it will alert the town to our presence. We're not equipped to handle a whole population."

"But Rabble..."

"I said no! Don't forget it!"

Owlowiscious was relieved, but this was still a problem.

"Hold still while I get this door open," a voice said, as the doorknob began shaking.

Owlowiscious thought a moment. He wondered if he should try to take them on, but he knew it was foolish. There were a good deal many more than he could hope to make a difference with. He needed to get help.

Stretching his wings, he flew out the window.

Twilight galloped on toward Ponyville, her determination managing to outstrip her cohorts despite their superior physical prowess. Not that this surprised any of them at the moment.

"Twi... what's th' plan when we get into town?" Applejack asked between breaths.

"We find them and kick their flanks."

"Wait!" Clyde said, trying to run up to her. "We can't... take them all on and..."

"You can't," she clarified.

"But won't this cause more problems? Dragons are already known for causing..."

"I. Don't. Care."

"Wait!" Clyde grabbed her by the foreleg, nearly causing her to fall. Skidding to a stop, she turned and glared at the rockfarmer, magical energy glowing in her eyes. "Let go of me," she demanded.

Clyde gulped, but held his ground. "Please, Miss Twilight, just listen..."

"I said let go of me!"

"Twi!" Applejack yelled, grabbing her friend. "Remember th' weddin'? You lost it like this an' it just made everythin' worse?"

That snapped Twilight out of her rage. Her expression was stunned for a moment. Then, tears began forming in her eyes.

"But... Spike! My son..."

"Ya can figure this out, sugarcube, I know it."

Twilight took a few deep breaths. "We... we need to think about this on the way there," she said at last. "We can't afford to wait here."

"Why don't we just teleport?"

"I wasn't thinking at first," she admitted. She blushed. "But it would be a bad idea. With how far of a head start we got, we could end up teleporting right in the middle of the mob. I don't think even I could fight them all of if they lunged at me all at once."

"See?" Clyde said. "I think a more rational means would work better."

"I guess you're right..." Twilight was silent for a few seconds. "And I know just the trick. Come on, we better get moving, I'll think of something."

Rainbow Dash found her in her room, curled up onto a ball on top of her cover, sobbing her eyes out.

"Scoots!" she said in alarm.

"R-Rainbow..."

"Come on, we're getting out of here!" the older pegasus said, moving toward her.

"B-but my d-dad..."

"Scoots, forget him!" she yelled. "He's trash! Come with me, I'll make sure you never get hurt again!"

"But..."

She was cut off by Speedy tackling her to the ground. "Get away from her!"

"You get away from her!" she shot back, wildly swinging her hooves.

Scootaloo wailed, but it did nothing to stop the two brawling ponies. She hopped off her sheets and scooted under the bed, trying to hide from the melee between her two loved ones.

"No, Scoots! Run!"

"You stay put, you little brat!"

"S-stop it!" she sobbed. "Please, just... stop!"

"Scoots, please..."

A swing of the hoof to her stomach silenced her. "See? This was never a problem before she came along. She's ruining your life just by being in it!"

"Shut it!" Rainbow Dash roared, trying to get the upper hoof.

Speedy Delivery wrestled with her eventually landing a blow that sent her back into Scootaloo's end table, causing the lamp resting on top to shake. Undaunted, she grabbed the lamp and tossed it, striking him in the side of the head. Speedy hit floor, groaning.

In a flash, Rainbow Dash was on the floor, belly first, reaching under the bed to get her student.

"Scootaloo, please, come here."

"N-no," she sobbed, scooting back. "Please, Rainbow Dash, just go. He's already really mad at me, you're just going to make it worse..."

"I'm going to make it better! You won't have to put up with your dad ever again, I promise!"

"But..."

"Listen, I know you think you have to be loyal to him, but you don't, because he's not loyal to you. If he was, he'd treat you better than he treats you. He keeps telling you things that hurt you, but I've seen what you can do! You're an amazing filly! You deserve better than this creep! Please, Scootaloo... don't let him treat you like this."

Scootaloo shook for a moment. Then, slowly, she started trotting towards her.

"That's it... that's it..."

And then the lamp came down on her.

With a cry, Rainbow Dash's head hit the floor. Speedy Delivery stood above her.

"Scootaloo... you're in trouble."

Celestia hated the taste of popcorn. And yet, it best made her point, so she continued to pop them into her mouth, her composure never wavering as she watched Olive Branch, who was looking more and more nervous.

"I believe we can give them another thirty minutes," the Princess of the Sun waved it off, clearly enjoying the chance to drop her regal demeanor for a time. “Maybe they just have a miscommunication.”

Olive Branch just sat in a puddle of his own sweat, clearly not happy by the recent turn of events. He should have gotten confirmation that his hostages were dead by now.

“Must we continue to play this game, dear sister?” Luna said. “I think it’s clear the Bearers are in no danger. Let us commence with the arrest.”

Olive Branch’s eyes widened. Luna noted this and decided to add, “I believe this constitutes high treason, with compromising several of Equestria’s defenses. The sentence could be severe.”

“Indeed it is,” the older sister answered. “I really wished to hear from Twilight first, but I’m sure she’s fine. Unless, of course, you have any other futile attempts to add?”

Olive Branch sighed, looking resigned. “Very well,” he said. He lit up his horn again.

There was fire. A ball of it. Not used as a weapon, as Luna thought it was at first. It simply engulfed the three ponies that had tried to blackmail them moments before.

“What? No!” Celestia yelled, suddenly feeling alarmed. She cast a spell in an attempt to stop what she recognized the spell was doing, but it was in vain.

When the flames dropped, there was only scorched tiles left. Olive Branch and his assistants were long gone.

“A teleportation spell... clever,” Celestia sighed, poking the floor with her hoof.

“He couldn’t have gone far,” Luna said quickly. “The castle is defended against unauthorized teleportation in or out. What was that foal thinking?”

“Perhaps he was being foalish,” Celestia said. Then, her eyes widened. “Or perhaps he set up a distraction so he could slip out...”

Outside the walls of the palace, the guards were beginning to feel more at ease. Not completely, but enough that they had managed to convince themselves that this wasn’t going to be a problem. The group of ponies, and it was a large crowd, were still waiting for Olive Branch to emerge and let them know what victory they had won today. They were shooting the guards dirty glares, but so far nothing had happened that had required them to step in.

That is, until a ball of fire erupted in between the guards and the crowd.

“Citizens of Equestria,” Olive Branch’s voice erupted from the flames, “If you’re hearing this, it means that I have fallen. As I suspected, Celestia has had me killed for speaking out against her. But even though I have fallen, my ideas live on! I beseech you, storm the palace now and fight back! I did not go down easily, and she is weakened! You saw she can be defeated at the wedding, now go forward and do your duty!”

The guards eyes widened. They looked at the crowd, hoping that the crowd would be questioning whether it would be really worth it to go against the immortal sun goddess.

As it turned out, they didn’t. Some surged forward immediately. Desperately, the guards put their shields up.

Had the numbers been smaller, they could have won. But it was only a handful at the door on what had been expected to be a peaceful day. They were overwhelmed. Thankfully, they hadn’t been blood-crazy enough to do anything more than knock the guards out. They had bigger fish to fry.

Author's Note

Yeah, as you can all see, Olive Branch isn't quite as harmless as he seems. Where he teleported to will be discussed next chapter.

The Struggle, Pt. 2

Owlowiscious landed on the windowsill with a quick hoot. Instantly Fluttershy and Spike were at his side, the latter having Peewee perched on his shoulder..

"What's wrong? Did they come by the library?"

"Hoo."

"The protesters."

"Hoo."

"The..."

"Um, Spike, Owlowiscious is saying that the protesters came to the library."

"What? But... Twilight was on her way there... if she didn't stop them, then what happened to her? What if those ponies got her?"

"Got Twilight? Darling, she's much too clever for those louts," Rarity assured as she trotted over. "She must be on her way to talk with them and they somehow slipped by."

"She's been gone a long time..." Spike noted, looking out the window, hoping to see his adopted mother trotting over the horizon.

"Yes, well, I'm sure they just had trouble finding them. And need I remind you she has Applejack and Clyde with her? I'm sure if those brutes try anything, those two are more than a match for them."

"Um, everypony..."

"Yeah, but what if they ambush them or something? She could get hurt!"

"Um, I... I think..."

"Honestly, dearie, there's nothing to worry about. I'm sure Twilight's just fine. She'll be here in... no... time..."

Rarity trailed off as she gaped out the window. Spike saw to and froze in terror.

"Uh, yes. I was trying to tell you... I think they saw Owlowiscious leave, and they followed him here."

The owl in question rotated his head a full one hundred and eighty degrees around, and his eyes widened too. The very ponies he had been hoping to leave behind were coming up to the bakery, and they looked ready to do something about Spike.

"Hoo."

"What should we do, dear sister?"

"You fly down to the entrance and do your best to quell everypony. I will locate Olive Branch. If he is found to still be alive, then his whole plan will collapse in on itself."

"What is he hoping to accomplish from all this? Even with all this rabble, it's such a small part of Canterlot's population..."

"A mere distraction so he can slip out. I need to check the guard's barracks. He clearly had inside help."

Nodding, the two sisters went separate ways. Luna flew out to the entranceway. The Royal Guards, thankfully, had reacted quickly enough to set up a barricade. Wild ponies were pounding against their shields, but the guards were strong.

Wishing her sister had taken this duty instead, she was always better talking to ponies, Luna summoned her best Royal Canterlot Voice.

"Enough of this!"

Much to Luna's relief, there was a change. The pushing, brawling ponies stopped and looked up, a bit frightened at the sight of one of the Princesses still at full power.

"We demand to know the meaning of this! Why hast you intruded on the Royal Palace?"

"You killed Lord Olive Branch!" a particularly brave, or stupid, it could go either way with this crowd, pony yelled. "We're here to overthrow your twisted regime!"

"Are you now?" Luna said, quieting your voice. "Well, I must assure you that Olive Branch is still alive. He was a fool that tried to goad us into giving him information, and he failed. Now he's trying to run."

"You lie!"

"No, I speak the truth, Olive Branch lies," Luna said slowly, making sure she sounded like she was talking to a particularly slow foal.

"We will not stand for it!" the brave/stupid pony said, though it was clear the rest of the mob was beginning to doubt their commitment.

"Tell me, what do you hope to accomplish here today?" Luna asked. "You might have a large group, but you still only make up a fraction of Equestria's total population. If you do overthrow us, it will only result in you getting ripped to shreds by the next outraged group to storm this castle."

"Yes, well..."

"And furthermore, I could simply do this." She lit up her horn, and in a flash the entire crowd was covered in a dome of energy. The ponies trapped inside thrashed against it, though it seemed fruitless. Over the cries of protest, one of the guards spoke.

"Should we take them to the dungeon, your Highness?"

"No. My sister will be along with Olive Branch shortly, and I believe we can end this. This distraction might have provided enough cover for an intelligent pony to hide, but Olive Branch is far from intelligent."

“Then what shall we do?”

“Keep them confined here. Send more soldiers to search the hallways for any that slipped by. They may not be able to overthrow us, but they can still do damage.”

"Scootaloo. Come out from under there. Now."

Speedy's words rang in his daughter's ears like a death sentence. She carefully made her way out from under the covers and stared up at her incredibly angry father.

"Were you thinking of leaving?" he asked, with a clear threat in his voice.

"N-no.."

“I think you were. You thought you were going to leave me,” he said, his voice sounding like a growl.

Scootaloo gulped. “P-please, Daddy...”

“Hush.”

The filly stopped. The voice sounded soft, sincere. Her dad no longer looked angry. “I understand. Rainbow Dash confused you. It would be easy for her to do with a slow filly like you.”

“I... I’m not slow...”

“Scoots, I know you think you have things figured out, but you're just a foal. You have a lot to learn. But don’t worry, Daddy will make it all better. Once Rainbow Dash is gone...”

“But... you’re not going to...”

“I have to, she’s a bad pony.”

“But... she was teaching me to fly...”

“No she wasn’t!” he yelled. “She was leading you on, trying to get you to think she could help you. Trying to turn you against me. You’ll feel better once she’s gone.”

“But...”

“Enough! I’m your father. I know what’s best. Now, what do you say?”

Scootaloo was quiet for a moment.

“Scoots, rule number one on anything: you have to be bad before you can be good.”

“Kid, I’ve seen you do tricks on that scooter of yours that would make some ponies jealous. Where’d you get the idea you were clumsy?”

“Don’t let setbacks discourage you, kid. They’re temporary.”

“Every time I hear the word ‘can’t’ out of you, it’s ten push-ups. Period. That is the dirtiest word in the Equestrian language, squirt.”

“Well?”

“I mean that you keep going until you get it. As long as you’re not hurting anypony, you can do anything.”

"The point of this was to teach you that limits exist in your head.”

"Well, big or small, I told you not to let anypony tell you you can't do something.”

Scootaloo felt her muscles shake. Her brow furrowed. She gulped. She looked up at her father. She took a deep breath. And then, she said the four words that changed her life.

“I hate you, Daddy.” She made sure the last word sounded like it was being spat out.

Speedy Delivery’s eyes widened. “What?”

“I hate you! You’re a terrible pony! You’re doing horrible things! You have no right to treat me this way! Rainbow Dash didn’t steal me from you, she got me because she’s been a better parent than you or Mom! I don’t care what you say! I hate you, and I never want to live with you ever again!”

Scootaloo panted heavily, glaring at her father, who was shaking with surprise and rage. She felt good. She felt like she could conquer Equestria.

Then the adrenaline wore off, and she remembered she was a small filly going up against a big stallion.

“You... ungrateful... little...”

Terrified and crying anew, Scootaloo backed up, too scared to follow her brain’s commands to run. Her father stepped closer, lifting a hoof up...

“Scoots! Get out of the way!”

Scootaloo looked past her father. Speedy Delivery turned around.

Scootaloo saw what was coming and got out of the way. Speedy saw what was coming, but that happened a split-second too late to do anything about it.

Rainbow Dash had been hurt by Speedy's last blow, but not enough to be knocked out. When she got her senses together, she realized Speedy was no longer paying any attention to her. Her first thought was to jump up and pound him into the ground, but still dizzy she wasn't able to act right away. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise, because it gave her reasoning time to kick in and remember what her strengths were.

As soon as she got up, she flew back, and back, and back, until she was touching the wall of the house.

As Speedy turned around, she slammed into him with all the speed she could muster.

Even drugged and injured, it was plenty. Speedy was knocked off his hooves, over Scootaloo's bed, and through the opposing wall.

Out into the air, Speedy nearly hit the ground until his wings kicked in, causing him to regain altitude. He glared at Rainbow Dash. "You! You stole her from me!"

"Oh, quit your whining," Rainbow Dash snarked.

Speedy lunged at her, but Rainbow Dash was too quick. Her flying was uneven, but even impaired she was still too skilled. "Sorry, rules change. Out here I can move around, and I’m not about to let you get another cheap shot."

For a split second, Speedy looked unsure. But his anger and determination overrode his caution. He lunged at her.

She flew toward the ground. Speedy, surprised, looked down in time to see her come back up at him. Striking him in the stomach, hard, Rainbow Dash pushed Speedy further in the air. As the stallion struggled to regain his breath, Rainbow Dash pushed him higher, and higher, and higher.

This should be enough.

At this thought, Rainbow Dash pushed Speedy at an angle, until she was now on top of him. Then, she pushed down, hard.

Speedy realized what was going on far too late. At the fastest speed she could muster, Rainbow Dash slammed him into the roof of his house. He ended up going right through it, hitting the second story floor, which gave way to the ground floor, which gave way to the basement.

Speedy was unconscious. Laying in his basement, surrounded by debris, he could only moan as the world went black for him.

Rainbow Dash tried to catch her breath. She looked at the fallen pony a moment, half expecting him to jump up and continue the fight.

"Dash?" Soarin' cautious voice sounded. She jumped, looking for her coltfriend. He had apparently been on his way out of the basement when Rainbow Dash had crashed through, because he was at the top of the stairs, looking at her worriedly. "What happ... is Scootaloo okay?"

Remembrance hit her. She flew through the hole in the ceiling, with Soarin following right afterward.

The hole on the second story was in Speedy and Quick's bedroom, which Scootaloo had, cautiously, decided to investigate upon hearing the crash. As a result, she was near the rim, looking down, when Rainbow Dash flew out of it.

"Is... is..." she stuttered, not quite sure what to ask.

She wrapped her forelegs around the shaking filly. "Your dad is out cold, Scoots. I don't think he'll be getting up anytime soon. You're safe."

Scootaloo started crying, tears pouring freely. She was safe, her father was gone. She felt happy... didn’t she? Her father was in jail, and he deserved it, she had said so. But now... it was so confusing.

"Um... hate to break this up," Soarin said, "but maybe we better get out of here, in case there are more of these guys around?"

Both fillies tensed at this. Before Scootaloo could say anything, she was lifted by Rainbow Dash, who was keeping the filly secured in her forelegs. "You're right... let's get to Sugarcube Corner, the others should still be there."

Mrs. Cake was the first out the door, despite her husband's insistence to wait while Owlowiscious flew off to get the sheriff. "All of you, get away from my bakery."

"Give us the dragon," Rabble Rouser demanded.

"Maybe you didn't hear me," the mare said, as icily as possible. "Get. Away. From. My. Bakery."

"We're not leaving without that dragon!" the unicorn yelled, and several voices cheered their agreements.

"I think you will," Mrs. Cake said.

"Y-yeah," Mr. Cake added, though not sounding completely convinced.

Inkie and Blinkie were slipping out the back with Pound and Pumpkin, hoping not to be seen. They were, some members of the mob were circling around. But they were allowed to go. The group hated dragons, and allowing a foal to be harmed was not in their agenda.

"The two of you can't stop all of us!"

"Maybe not," Mrs. Cake answered, "but I think the sheriff, and the mayor, and every citizen of Ponyville who hears about this can. We already have word going to the authorities. And if Twilight gets back in time..."

"Twilight Sparkle can't come to her pet's rescue now. She's been detained."

"What?" Rarity demanded, bounding out. "I refuse to believe that you... you hooligans could incapacitate Twilight!"

"We have! She's not getting free."

"Actually, yes I am."

The crowd all turned in a simultaneous gape as Twilight Sparkle, with three earth ponies right behind her, stood. Not tall, like expecting a fight, but actually pretty casually.

"Y-you can't stop us! You're still just one unicorn!" Rabble Rouser declared. "We'll run right over you!" There was no agreement from the crowd on this one, many were clearly beginning to question their commitment to the cause.

"And there you go again," Twilight said, sounding surprisingly calm, walking forward and through the crowd as if on a casual stroll. "I have to applaud your bravery."

Rabble Rouser blinked, clearly unsure what to think of this. "Um, well... what?"

"It takes a special type of pony to do what you did," she declared, stepping in front of the bakery. All eyes were on her, even her friends looked at her oddly, not sure what she was up to. "Not many would have the nerve to attack Celestia's personal student. Then again, maybe you'll have a chance. I only know about half of of the combat spells ever invented." She was checking the underside of her hoof for dirt, as if having a casual conversation.

"Yes, well..."

"Would you like to hear about some of them?" she asked. "I think you'd want to know what you're going up against."

"That's quite alright..."

"Oh, I insist."

For the next fifteen minutes, Twilight held the crowds attention and horror as she described, in increasingly colorful detail, just what she could do to them with the combat spells she knew. Mr. and Mrs. Cake were glad the twins were sent away, while Fluttershy had darted back inside and under a table, whimpering, and Spike was looking from the inside, both horrified and strangely intrigued. Midway through, Chief Book 'Em showed up with Owlowiscious and two other police ponies, expecting to have to stop a riot, only to find that his arrival wasn't even noticed.

"And that's it for the first two dozen I know," Twilight said. "Would you like to know the next two dozen? I don't really think it will come up, using a city-leveling spell in a situation like this seems to be overkill, but it's nice to be prepared."

"N-no, we're fine, really," Rabble Rouser said, who unmistakably wished he were somewhere else right now.

She shrugged. "Suit yourself. Still, I must applaud your bravery. More cowardly ponies would fall to the ground right now and wait while the Chief of Police arrests them."

"Well, we’re not cowards," said Rabble Rouser, trying to get the gusto back in his voice. "We'll still stand tall! Right?"

He was answered by several thumps as the entire rest of his mob fell to their knees, doing the unspoken command. For the second time in as many visits to Ponyville, Rabble Rouser found himself standing alone.

"Y-you can't do this to me!" the unicorn said. "I've got..."

He was cut off by Applejack, who gave him a solid buck to the head, sending him to the ground.

"Aw, shut yer hole," the cowpony spat.

Twilight immediately ran inside the bakery and gathered Spike in a hug. "Oh my gosh, Spike," she whispered. "I was so worried about you when I heard they were on their way here." She kissed his face.

"I'm fine," he said, blushing a bit at the display of affection. "Really. I think I should send a letter to the Princess and tell her what happened."

"Good idea," she said. "I need to tell you everything. Those ponies captured us and..."

"Oh no!" Applejack said suddenly. "They said that they captured four of th' Elements! That means... Rainbow Dash! She's in trouble!"

"What!" Twilight yelled. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"I wasn't thinkin' of it!" the cowpony defended. "I was more worried when they said they’s gunna attack Spike! We need ta' find them before..."

The door to Sugarcube Corner opened again, and Rainbow Dash flew in, Scootaloo slung over her shoulder, with Soarin behind her.

"Twilight? What's going on? What's with the..."

Instantly she was nearly tackled by her five fellow Bearers as they all started shouting questions and concerns at once.

"Rainbow Dash, are you okay? Were you captured, too?"

"Darling, it's a relief to see you're okay. Are you hurt?"

"What in tarnation happened? Is Scoots okay?"

"Do you have any snacks?"

"Back off, back off," Rainbow Dash commanded. When it was followed, she sighed. "Okay... I think we both have some explaining to do."

Olive Branch poked his head in the courtyard. "The coast is clear," he said, and the ran across the lawn, ducking behind another shrubbery. They were close to the guards barracks now which was against the back of the palace walls, but they weren't worried. Their little distraction would keep the guards busy until further notice.

"This way," a whisper sounded. Two pegasus guards were waving at them, inviting them over. The trio dashed toward them, visibly relieved.

"So the plan didn't work, I take it?" one guard asked.

"No... but I'll figure it out. Celestia might not have had an answer to give me, but they're all other ways. Once I get to the Source, I can research there. Now, are you sure this is a way out?"

"Right through here," he said, motioning to the wall. "There’s an entrance they say some former captain with incredibly powerful magic made while Celestia was away. Guards use it to break curfew and sneak out, so we know Celestia doesn't know about it."

"Good. How does it open?"

The guard pressed his hoof against the wall. A stone pressed down, and a section of the wall slid up.

On the other side was an alicorn, who proceeded to lift the five now very frightened stallions into the air.

"You know, I find it beneficial to pretend I don't know certain things," Celestia said calmly. "Oh, and before I forget..." She levitated a horn ring onto Olive Branch.

The former leader gulped.

Sugarcube Corner was crowded, holding the six Bearers, the Pie family, the Cake family, Spike, Scootaloo, Chief Book 'Em, and Mayor Mare. Spike had just finished writing the last of what happened on the scroll he was using, along with a request to send a guard until. The Ponyville Jail wasn't big enough to hold forty people, it was hardly big enough to hold four, so they were being watched over by the citizens, lead by Soarin, until they could be escorted to Canterlot, the nearest city with a jail big enough.

As Spike sent the letter, the Mayor spoke to Rainbow Dash. "I take it you're going to want to take her for right now?" she asked, gesturing over to Scootaloo, whom Inkie and Blinkie had added to their babysitting roster. She was simply sitting, lost in thought, despite the two sisters' attempts at cheering her up.

"Well, yeah..." Rainbow Dash said slowly. "At least until we figure out what to do."

She nodded. "There's some paperwork to fill out... but I think it'll wait until morning. Take Scootaloo and go home, she deserves to rest."

She nodded and gave a quick thanks before flying over to Scootaloo, who perked up at seeing her. "Um, hey Rainbow Dash. Wh-what happened to my parents?"

"They've been arrested," she said, "along with their friends. They can't bother you anymore. Come on," she said, picking her up.

"Where are we going?"

"My house," she said. "You can stay with me until we figure things out."

"Really?" she said excitedly. "That's so cool! Thanks, Rainbow Dash!"

"No problem, squirt," she said as she flew out the door. By now the mob was all on their stomachs, their hooves handcuffed behind their backs. Soarin, who was supervising the situation, saw his marefriend leaving and flew over to her.

"You got permission to take her?"

She nodded. "Are you coming back to my house when you're done here?"

"I should. I'll need to do debriefing, so it might be awhile. Don't wait up."

She nodded, giving him a quick kiss.

"Ew," Scootaloo said, sticking out her tongue.

"Don't knock it 'till you've tried it, squirt," Rainbow Dash said playfully.

"I'll come by soon, kiddo, you just get some rest," the Wonderbolt said, playfully ruffling the filly's mane. She giggled.

Giving another quick kiss, Rainbow Dash flew off.

Luna was beginning to get tired of the constant cries of tyrant directed at her. She thought about bringing out the Royal Canterlot Voice, but decided it wouldn't be effective enough.

Something did silence them, though. A cry of "Let me go! Please, I'm sorry! I won't do it again, really! Please!"

The voice silenced as it was brought into the room, courtesy of Celestia. The pony looked at the crowd in horror, and they looked back in shock.

"As you can see," Celestia said in a clear, neutral voice, "Olive Branch deceived you. He lives, and he cares nothing of the revolution. This was nothing more than a means to his own selfish ends."

“Don’t listen to her! We can still...” Olive Branch’s muzzle was encased in magic, silencing him.

“No. This has gone on long enough,” Celestia said firmly. There was a silence as the shock continued. "The fighting is over. Luna, lower your shield."

The younger sister did so.

"If you are all outside the palace within five minutes, I'll pretend none of this ever happened, since fortunately for all of you, nopony was hurt. If you fail to do so, you'll be arrested and tried on conspiracy charges alongside Olive Branch. I'd also like to point out that today you've caused more damage to the palace than Spike ever did in the entire time he lived here, so I would suggest thinking twice before labeling him as the wild animal."

The crowd needed no second bidding. They left, and Olive Branch saw the last of his plans fall apart.

Rainbow Dash tucked the half-asleep Scootaloo into her guest bed. The days events had worn off, and her new situation had relieved her of a lot of fear, allowing for a good night's rest for the first time in a while. Rainbow Dash pulled the blanket up.

"Rainbow... what's going to happen to me now?"

"...I don't know," she admitted. "There's still a big mess to sort through. You can stay here until they figure it out. Right now, you should be getting some sleep."

"I know..."

"Besides the obvious, are you alright?"

"...I don't know," Scootaloo admitted. "I'm not sure how to..." A yawn cut her off. "...how to feel."

"I think sleep may help you figure things out," she said, stroking her mane. "We can talk in the morning. Until then rest up."

"Okay. G'night, Rainbow Dash."

"Good night, Scoots." She paused a minute, debating, before leaning over and kissing her on the forehead. Scootaloo smiled, even while drifting off to sleep.

Rainbow Dash looked at her. There was still a lot she didn't know, how big this whole conspiracy was, what was going to happen to Scootaloo, what was going to happen to Speedy and Quick, and so much more. Still, right now Scootaloo was safe and sound, Soarin would be home soon, and Twilight was working to wrap up the members here.

Something told her things would work out just fine.

Author's Note

There, no cliffhanger and Dash kicked flank. Happy?

Seriously though, this is the end of the fighting. Three more chapters at most and everything will be squared away.

Consequences

It was two hours before the mob was contained and Soarin was allowed to go, with the papers Rainbow Dash would need to sign in the morning. Tired, he flew up to her cloud house and entered. The only care he gave was making sure the custody papers would be put somewhere Rainbow Dash would see them.

He came to the hallway and had to stop a minute. Which one was hers, again? He carefully went up to the first door he saw and opened it slowly.

It was the guest room, with Scootaloo curled up under the covers, sleeping soundly. She looked relieved, not happy necessarily, but relieved. Tank was laying on the end of the bed, tucked in his shell, apparently thinking the newcomer needed his companionship more than his usual master.

He smiled at the sight, then closed the door quietly. He left silently, using his wings so as not to make a sound, went to the next door and opened it.

Rainbow Dash jumped a bit, but relaxed when she saw who it was. "Oh, you're here. Everything went okay?"

"Everything's fine," he said. He stood there awkwardly before Rainbow Dash identified his nervousness. She patted the bed next to her, giving him the invitation he was waiting for. He slid under the covers next to her.

Sorain, on the flight to Ponyville, had pictured a lot of swapped spit as the result of this. But too much had happened that night, and only a few kisses were exchanged before they settled down.

"I'm surprised you're still up," Soarin admitted as they settled down on the pillows. "I would have thought you'd be asleep."

"I've been thinking..."

"About what to do with Scootaloo?"

"Yeah." She was silent for a moment. "I can't imagine what this is like for her. Poor kid, she has no idea what's going to happen."

"And do you?"

Rainbow Dash was silent for a minute, but then said quietly, so Soarin had to strain to hear her, "I really want to be the one to take care of her."

"Great," Soarin said. "I thought you might. I bet knowing the Princess will speed up the process..."

"It's not that simple!" Rainbow Dash said. "Is it even a good idea?"

"Why wouldn't it be? From what I hear, you've been a better parent to Scootaloo than Speedy or Quick ever were."

"For two weeks," Rainbow Dash reminded sourly, "part-time. That's not the same. I'd have to spend a lot more time with her... I might have to give up being a Wonderbolt..."

"Why?"

Rainbow Dash looked at him like he was crazy. "Because I can't take care of a kid when I'm on tour nine months a year!"

"We spend a lot of time in Equestria. Ponyville is as close to the center of it as you can get without being in Canterlot. You could easily fly and visit. And she can travel with us during the summer months. I'm sure you have friends that can watch her during school hours."

"...You've been thinking about this."

He actually blushed. "Well... yeah. I was worried about the kid. After everything... and I knew you'd want to keep her..."

"So you started thinking about how I could take care of her..."

He sighed. "Well... how we can take care of her.”

She looked at him incredulously. "You want to help me take care of her?"

"Well... I was already in the middle of this whole thing. I know having kids after the first date is only supposed to happen when it gets crazy in the good way, but..."

"This is serious," she snapped. "What about me makes you want to do this with me?"

"Wish I knew," he snarked. But under his marefriend's gaze, he answered more seriously. "I guess part of it is like I said: after having to fight to make sure she’s okay, you feel kind of committed.”

“Can you afford to do it? It’s a full-time job.”

“Please see everything I said to you about this whole thing,” he pointed out. “I think we can make this work. You just need to chill.”

Rainbow Dash was about to say something, then stopped in realization. “You know, I’m always the one in my group of friends to take it easy. I guess... I guess you’re right. I’ve never let something being hard stop me from doing anything before.”

Soarin’ gave her a quick kiss. “I think you’re going to be a good mom.”

Luna didn’t brag very often, even though she often wanted to. It was unbecoming of somepony in her stature, and it was the mark of a weaker mind to do so.

However, after the last couple of weeks, Luna was enjoying a clear-cut victory, and she couldn’t help herself.

“It’s quite amusing how everything worked out,” she said, smiling a very unladylike smile. “With all this commotion and barbarism, the movement against my sister now looks bad. Everypony that was foolishly following you is abandoning the cause, and is back to trying to beg and scrape to avoid punishment, or else they see us as benevolent for showing them mercy. Now with the voices quiet, we can concentrate on finding the Changeling Queen with no further distractions. We've removed any objections on Spike being adopted, at least any that could stop us, we’ve managed to weed out the few unloyal guards in our ranks, and we also managed to save an abused filly.”

“I saved her,” Olive Branch snarled, but there was simply no way he could look intimidating now that he was locked in a jail cell deep in a dungeon.

“And I suppose you think that excuses you?” Luna glared at him.

Immediately he shrunk. “P-please,” he said timidly, “I turned in the abuser! Please don’t kill me!”

“Kill you? My dear, my sister abolished the death penalty centuries ago!”

“Don’t lie! You say that to appease the public, but I know! Nopony with as much power as you two is that selfless!” then he shrunk again. “I-I won’t tell, just please...”

“You’re convinced we think like you do, and yet you’re expecting me to show mercy. You’re a puzzle, you are. Well, at any rate, you’re likely thinking there's going to be a big show made out of your trials so we can make an example of you. Well, you’re wrong. That will be the one known as Rabble Rouser's position. See, one of my privileges is the sentencing of one criminal a year without the consent of a jury. I thought it would be decades before I used this privilege in this new peaceful Equestria, but I’m using one on you.”

His eyes widened. “P-please don’t hurt me!”

Suddenly, his hooves were held down by Luna’s magic. He struggled, but the Princess came near, her horn glowing.

“I’m not going to hurt you. Every bit of pain you’re about to feel is self-inflicted.”

“Wh-what are you doing?”

“This has become known as a ‘reformation spell’. It’s a bit of a misnomer. It merely enlightens the individual.”

Before Olive Branch could respond, Luna touched his forehead, causing his eyes to go wide and his pupils to shrink.

When she backed off, Olive Branch was silent for a moment. Then, he felt it.

He felt pain. He felt hundreds of ponies hitting and bucking him at once. He felt three teenage dragons clawing him, kicking him, knocking him around. He felt six ponies fighting him to save a baby dragon. He felt a massive hoof crush his nonexistent wing. He felt Rainbow Dash and Soarin hurting him, and he felt others hurting Rainbow Dash and Soarin. He felt Rabble Rouser and his ponies knocking him out four times. He felt Applejack knock him out. He felt it all.

As he lay on the floor of his cell, screaming in pain, Luna spoke in an eerie calm that was somehow still clear to him. “From now on, every ounce of pain your actions cause will be felt. You'll know, firsthoof, the consequences of your selfishness. Maybe that will open your eyes to all the suffering you’ve caused.”

She began walking toward the exit. “You’re lucky, I had to reduce your sentence to be allowed to do that. But you have twenty long years to think about what you’ve done, and what you’re feeling. I suggest you use it wisely.”

And then she was gone.

Twilight’s heart leapt. She was back.

Back in the white room with the single door. Back to a place she hadn’t been sure she could get before.

She flung the door open and ran inside, past the rows of books and chronicles, and to the tired-looking pony sitting, surrounded by books.

“You’re back... I had a feeling you might be tonight.”

“How’d I get back here?” she asked immediately.

The Keeper gave her a look. “Come on, you know it doesn’t work like that. You have to figure things out on your own.”

“Can’t you say something understandable for once?”

“Someth...”

“Don’t say it!” Twilight said angrily.

“Okay, here’s something: slow down, take a breath, and think.”

The unicorn did so. He mind wandered. “Today... the way I handled the mob... that had something to do with it, didn’t it?”

“Indeed, it did,” the Keeper said. “Now get a little deeper.”

She thought. “Well... Applejack stopped me from just running it. Like at the wedding...” Her eyes lit up. “When I learned to think instead of stressing out, it removed one of the roadblocks in my mind!”

“That’s correct.”

“So now I’m able to travel here whenever I want?” she asked hopefully.

“Not necessarily,” the Keeper sighed. “You’re not even close. You’ve learned to open up to your friends better, and you’ve learned not to panic. But learning these things and actually applying them are different matters entirely. And you still have not found the answer you seek.”

“I don’t suppose you could tell me anything else?”

“Oh, where would be the fun in that?” the Keeper smirked. “Besides, you’re an intelligent pony. I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”

Rainbow Dash awoke the next morning to find Soarin already awake. He was still lying there, just looking at her with a warm smile.

"You're up already?" she moaned.

"Uh... maybe you better look at the clock."

She did, and her eyes bulged. "Ten o'clock? Oh my gosh!" In a flash she was up. "I better check on Scootaloo!"

She was in front of her door before she knew it. Taking a deep breath, she opened it.

Scootaloo was laying there, wide awake, staring at the ceiling. She turned to face her mentor at hearing her come in, then responded with a mumbled, "G'morning."

"Scootaloo, good morning." She went to her bedside and lightly tussled her hair. "How long have you been awake?"

She looked at her bedside clock. "I think about two hours."

Soarin was with them now. "Why didn't you come wake us?"

"I... I didn't want to bother you..."

"Scoots," she sighed. She pulled her into a hug. "You're never bothering me. I care about you. I wouldn't have done all this for you if I didn't. Don't be afraid to come to me with anything, okay?"

"...Alright," she said after a moment.

"Good. Now, why don't we get you some breakfast? Then, we can have another flying lesson. I bet Soarin would love to see how far you've come. And then we need to make a trip to Sugarcube Corner. I think a few celebration cupcakes are in order. How's that sound?"

Scootaloo actually smiled. "That sounds great!"

Garble moaned as he pressed his bandage closer to his missing eye. The pain still hadn't stopped. He considered stopping in another town and extorting more of whatever the doctor had used when he had treated him, but he refused to let ponies near him again. He would not have even had the medical care he already had if Thrash and Mumble hadn't refused to go on until he got it. One stop in another small, isolated town and a few threats had been enough to get a doctor to ensure he wouldn't get an infection and dull the pain awhile, and that was enough, in his opinion.

They had finally gotten out of pony territory a few days ago. It had been a slow trip, only Mumble was still in full health, but they were finally at the large mountains that surrounded the territory.

A full-grown purple dragon stood guard at the stone gate that kept the lesser creatures out. He stood, unimpressed by the three who were approaching him. Then, they got close enough to see their faces.

"...Prince Garble?" the dragon roared with surprise. "What..."

"Let me in," he said.

"Your father is..."

"That's none of your business, now let me in!"

The adult dragon did as he was told, tapping on the stone barrier three times. Almost immediately it began rising. Garble waited for no more questions to be asked, he just went in. Still, something the gatekeeper said had sent a chill down his spine.

How was he going to explain to his father that he had lost to a group of ponies?

Speedy Delivery sat in the tiny stone-bricked cell he had been forced into. By the time he woke up, he was already in custody, with nopony willing to tell him where his daughter was or where he was being taken. He had been separated from his wife. He was alone.

How had it all gone wrong? Where had it all gone wrong? The movement was finished. Not only he, but Olive Branch and Rabble Rouser, were all jailed. It was over.

The door lock creaked open, and Quick Delivery was pulled in by two guards. She looked a mess, her mane clinging to her forehead with sweat, her body shaking wildly, and her eyes looking sunken.

"Get off of her!" he roared, beginning to charge at them. He stopped when he was obeyed, his wife let loose onto the floor. He ran up, looked her over, then back at his two captors. "What have you done to her?"

"Nothing," one of them said. "She did this to herself. She's experiencing withdrawal."

"They... they won't let me have..." she murmured. "I just need..."

"You're not getting any," the second guard said. "Not now, not for quite awhile."

"You're lying!" Speedy said. "You did something..."

"I'd stay quiet if I were you," Celestia strolled into the room. "You're in enough trouble as it is."

Both Speedy and Quick lost any defiance they had as they looked up at the Princess of the Sun with fear. She was levitating several papers around her, and currently had her muzzle up to a stack of them.

"You're facing some serious charges," she noted. "Treason, kidnapping, assault... I could lock the two of you up until the day you die."

She was silent for a moment as she let that sink in. "But I won't."

They both blinked. "You won't?" Speedy repeated, in complete disbelief.

"I will not," she repeated. "Provided, of course, you sign this." She levitated a parchment in front of the pair, with a quill to go with it. It read, simply, "WAIVER OF CUSTODY."

"You're asking us... to give up our child?"

"That's correct. No custody, no visitation, you both consent to be put under tracing spells that let us know if you even come within 150 meters of your child, and you make no claim of relation to her to anypony. Ever. It will be like you've never even had a child."

There was silence for a moment. "And if we sign this, you'll let us go?"

"No. You're still going to prison for kidnapping, assault, and child abuse. But it will only be a half-sentence, and it will be much more pleasant than what will happen if you're convicted of greater charges."

"Why do this?" Speedy demanded. "If you really have us so surely as you claim, then why let us bargain? Why not just lock us up?"

"Because that would require a long and difficult trial process," Celestia noted. "And word would get out on who Scootaloo is. It would be a black mark on her life to be associated with you, certainly if the abuse you gave her is lost amongst the reports of kidnapping and treason. On top of that, I have no interest in making a child testify in court when the events have scarred her enough already. If possible, I will spare her from that, even if it means letting you walk freely."

Celestia stayed quiet about her other reasons. How she knew of all the defenses he could attempt to play in court, how there was a possibility he could worm and lie his way to a lighter sentence. She couldn't risk that, not now.

"I never abused my daughter," Speedy said. "What makes you think I'll sign a document of lies?"

"Ignoring the obvious denial you are in, your first question upon seeing the document wasn't why you were being asked to give up your child, or outrage over the claim. It was how you benefited. You'll sign because you care about yourself."

"...And who's going to take care of her?"

"That is unknown at this time, but I assure you it will be in a loving home. Now, sign the paper."

There was silence.

“Could we ever see our daughter again? Ever?” It had been Quick’s first words since Celestia had entered.

“Possibly... if Scootaloo decides to give you a second chance. But that won’t be happening for at least two decades, once you’re out. Now then, will you sign?”

Silence again. Then, with a sigh that Celestia almost believed was regretful, Speedy took the quill in his teeth.

Life Goes On

Scootaloo's flying lessons had been wonderful. With Soarin with them, she had forgotten all about the pains of the last few days. Even the frustration of not being able to do a perfect takeoff from the ground had not diminished her mood.

Noon faded into late afternoon as the trio headed to Sugarcube Corner. The Pies and the Cakes had worked all day preparing cakes and pastries to celebrate, and Scootaloo was invited, just this once, to eat her fill of them.

"Just don't get too used to it," Rainbow Dash warned. "After today, you're going to be on an athlete's diet."

Scootaloo didn't answer for a moment, because her mouth was filled with half a cupcake. However, even after she gulped it down, she was still silent for a moment.

"Something wrong, squirt?"

"Rainbow... I was wondering... do you think it's right to just forget about my father?"

Rainbow Dash was shocked, but tried to keep from sounding it. "Wh-why do you say that? He hit you!"

"But he's still my dad..."

"No. That's not how it works, kid. A dad takes care of you. A dad wants what's best for you. Speedy Delivery wasn't a dad."

"But Pinkie made up with her dad, didn't she? That's what she said..."

Rainbow Dash was caught off guard. "Well, it's... different."

"How?"

"Uh... well..."

A hoof on her shoulder stopped her. It was Clyde, giving Rainbow a look that she needed a moment to decipher. He wanted to talk to her.

Clyde lent down to Scootaloo's eye level. "Listen... me and my daughter did reconcile, but it wasn't Pinkie who did the work that made it happen. And it shouldn't have been. I was the one that hurt Pinkie, and it was up to me to ask for forgiveness. And that should be your father's job as well. He might be able to redeem himself one day, but it will be his decision. You can't change anypony that doesn't want to be changed, understand?"

"I guess..." she trailed off. "Are you saying I should forgive him?"

"Well, forgiveness can be liberating. But you don't have to accept him back into your life. It'll be up to you to decide what will happen if he ever does come to you. I can't make that decision for you."

There was silence for a moment. "...Thanks, Mr. Clyde. I... I feel better."

"Glad I could help," he said, standing up. "If you don't mind, my daughter was telling me about how they defeated NightMare Moon." With a tip of the hat, he walked off.

"Scoots... I know this is hard for you, but... you shouldn't worry about your parents. You're still a foal, you shouldn't have to worry about things like that... not yet."

"...Do you know what's going to happen to me?"

After a moment, Rainbow Dash pulled her student into a hug. "Listen, squirt... I've been thinking it over, and... I want you to live with me, permanently. It'll take awhile to get everything straightened out, but I can afford it... Soarin's going to help, too, so you don’t need to worry about being a burden. So... if you want...”

A set of tiny forelegs wrapped around her neck, and a little muzzle stuck itself in her neck. As Rainbow Dash hugged back, tiny tears began to wet her mane. She soothingly rubbed her head, and let her take in all in.

“Rainbow... thank you.”

She just smiled. “My pleasure, squirt.”

Garble felt a long and powerful tail, the one belonging to his father, strike him in the chest, sending him flying back into the wall of his palace.

“You fool, you insolent little fool,” he growled. Still, it was enough to make Garble shiver, and he was grateful, for once, that his father had self control. King Dyne was a powerful dragon, over a thousand years old and still in his prime, and his roar would likely reduce the palace, such as it was, to rubble.

Of course, calling it a palace by pony standards, or indeed the standards of any other race, would be untrue. The only elegance was the king’s hoard, a collection of gold, gems, and other jewels that would fund a nation in and of itself. The actual building was crude stone, crudely carved and just big enough to allow dragons free access.

“D- Father,” Garble said, remembering at the last minute to use the proper honorific, “It wasn’t like that I only lost...”

The giant, oversized tail struck him again, his time pinning him. “Fool,” he growled again. “I don’t care if you lost.”

Garble just looked at his father in disbelief, so he continued. “The fact that you were attacking ponies at all is the problem. Do you realized what you nearly caused? Our treaty with Equestria? What if Celestia withdrew her support? Then what? We cannot all live in the same area...”

“But... Father...”

The tail pulled back and struck him again. “Silence. Speak when spoken to. Relations between other races have always been shaky. Eleven hundred years has not been enough to forgive the damage done. And when I have to deal with an insolent subject, that makes things worse. I’ve already had to deal with a dragon a year ago who tried settling in an unauthorized location. So tell me, why would you cross the continents just to bully a group of ponies?”

“Father, they broke the treaty first! Those ponies were present at the Migration!”

“What?”

Garble winced. It sounded like his father was getting angrier. “Yes, they were there... and they had a dragon! They’re keeping a baby dragon hostage!”

There was silence for a moment as Dyne was in a mixture of shock, anger, and pondering. “Go on...”

“At the Migration, there was a baby dragon. He said he came from a pony family. I was... I was going there to get him back!”

There was another moment of silence as Dyne pondered.

“Out of my sight.”

“But... the dragon...”

“Is not your concern any longer.”

“But...”

The tail struck him again. “Go! And I think you might want to reflect on your leadership abilities!”

Frightened, Garble fled the room.

Dyne sat atop his jewels, pondering. He turned to a guard. “Send for a messanger. I believe I need to request an audience with Princess Celestia.”

Twilight had been overjoyed when Spike had coughed up the papers needed to make the adoption official. With a sign and a quick copy spell, the papers were sent back to be filed, and it was official. Spike was legally her son.

Afterward, a trip to Sugarcube Corner was in order, as was a conversation with her friends. While Spike and the Cutie Mark Crusaders played, and Pinkie told her family of defeating Discord, Twilight and her friends talked.

“The papers have been signed, so Spike is mine now. I got word that Princess Celestia is back in good graces with the noble class, and they’re planning an overhaul of the Royal Guards. Hopefully, it will make the performance better.”

“So does this mean our problems are over?” Applejack asked.

“Not really... the changelings are still out there, remember?”

That shook nearly all of them. The wedding had been just days ago, but so much had happened since then.

Rainbow Dash spoke it. “Um, Twilight?”

“Yes?”

“Uh, I was wondering... could you send another request to Princess Celestia for me?”

Her five friends looked at her curiously. “Yes, I can do that. Why? What do you need?"

"I need... I need some adoption papers."

Her four friends looked at her like she had just sprouted an extra head.

"Rainbow Dash... are you planning to adopt Scootaloo?"

"Well... yeah. Is there a problem with that?"

Her friends were silent again. "Rainbow..." Rarity said slowly, "if you decide to do this, then of course we'll support you. But we want to make sure you know what you're getting yourself into. Taking care of a foal is a big responsibility..."

"I know," Rainbow Dash cut her off. "Me and Soarin already talked about it. We have everything figured..."

"Wait," Rarity said. "You and Soarin?"

Rainbow Dash blushed. "Uh..."

"Well, lookie who got a coltfriend out of all this," Applejack chuckled, relishing in an instance to ruffle her friend's feathers. "Ya already lookin' ta get Scoots a pa?"

"H-hey," Rainbow Dash said defensively, "I'm only going to be taking care of Scoots, not being a mom. And me and Soarin just started dating..."

"You're taking care of a foal together," Applejack pointed out.

"Oh my gosh!" Twilight said. "I heard that relationships that go that fast usually end bad! Maybe you better take it slow..."

"Darling, you must relax," Rarity said. "It's true love..."

"Rare, please don't turn it sappy," Rainbow Dash said quickly. "We're just dating..."

"And raising a foal together!"

"Well, yeah, but... look, can you get me the papers or not, Twilight?"

"I'll have Spike send for them when I get back home."

"So... that's it, right?" Applejack asked. "Spike's okay, Pinkie's okay, and Scootaloo is okay. That means all we gotta worry 'bout is them changelings?"

"That's right," Twilight nodded. "But we might not have to worry about that, either. Celestia says she's pretty close to finding them. Hopefully, they'll be in custody by the end of the week."

Celestia looked over the newest report, this one handwritten from Chief Thunderhooves. They had found where the changelings had been camped out, and it looked recently abandoned. They could count on seeing a hive within a few days.

Grinning in triumph, she lay the letter down and went back to her paperwork. Shining Armor would be arriving shortly, and she wanted a proposal for reform ready for him. Perhaps with better training and a more disciplined regiment, the guards would not perform so miserably next time. Having a shape-shifting foe might work to keep them on their hooves as well.

Sipping her tea, she only slightly looked up when Luna arrived, taking a seat across from her sister.

"You really should be getting more sleep," Celestia said.

"I had time to sleep on the moon, dear sister," Luna waved her hoof dismissively. "I've a thousand years of life to catch up on."

"Not much life around here," Celestia mumbled, reviewing the work. "My guards got soft in peace time. Over the last thousand years, things have been relatively quiet. Now Discord, the changelings, ...NightMare Moon," she winced, "all returning at once... and those dragons! If they told Dyne..."

"Dyne is a reasonable figure," Luna said. "Even if, among dragons, his tolerance is radical. I remember when he took the throne..."

"I'm not worried entirely about Dyne," Celestia stated. "But if he finds out about Spike, he will certainly send a summons, and that likely means other dragons will discover it. Even he cannot withstand such political pressure forever."

Luna nodded in understanding, looking over her sister's proposal. "And you told me I was too rough with the Lunar Guards."

Celestia sighed. "Yes, Luna, you were right." She smiled, despite herself. She knew as a filly, she would relish in the chance to get the better of her sister. "I guess that makes hundreds to one."

"Perhaps..." Luna said, playfulness still evident in her voice, "but I shall..."

They were interrupted by a messenger entering the room, flying up to the table with a message in his teeth. As Celestia took it, he noted. "It's from the outpost up north. They say it's urgent."

Celestia nodded, unrolling the parchment to read it. Luna waited patiently, at least until she saw her sister's eyes widen, and her jaw slack.

"Celestia?"

"...Looks like Princess Cadance's homecoming will be short-lived," she sighed, levitating the message to her sister. "A new wrinkle, it seems."

Luna took the message and read it over. She gaped. "The Crystal Empire..."

That night had been a peaceful one, the first complete one in a while.

In the Golden Oaks Library, Twilight slept on her bed, clutching her Smartypants doll close. She didn’t tell Spike, but she hoped it would shield her from nightmares that night. They had been decreasing in frequency, but she couldn’t afford them tonight. She had plans for the next few days, and she needed to be on full alert. She needed to get Scootaloo's adoption papers processed, as well as frame and hang Spike's. The dragon could use a new bed, too; his basket was starting to get too small. He still slept in it undisturbed, happy and relieved that the suffering his friends had endured was over. Meanwhile, in the rafters, Owlowiscious was preening Peewee, congratulating him on a good day of learning to fly.

Up high in her home, Rainbow Dash had tucked Scootaloo in for the night, kissing her forehead and reading her two chapters of Daring Do and the Griffin's Goblet, with a promise that it would be a bedtime tradition from now on. After it was read, Soarin came in and gave her a kiss goodnight as well. The two then closed the door and retreated to Rainbow Dash's bedroom. He had one more day of leave left, and he was determined to spend it with her.

In Sugarcube Corner, the Pies and the Cakes were still up and about, telling stories, singing songs, and mending ties. Pound and Pumpkin had taken to Inkie and Blinkie, and it looked, officially or not, that the two families would enter a merger of some kind.

Rarity had Sweetie that night, and in a rare occurrence they had fun, with Rarity letting her style her mane. The resulting bird’s-nest mane could easily be fixed, and they had a good laugh about it.

The Apple Family all settled in for the day's chores tomorrow, and Fluttershy took her sleep with Angel on her bed covers.

In Canterlot, Celestia responded to Dyne's request with a request to wait. The Crystal Empire remained a top priority, and Rabble Rouser's trial started tomorrow. He was looking at several life sentences.

The pony in question sat in his cell, waiting patiently for the guards that would never come. The inside ponies would either free him, or failing that slip him the dagger that would allow him to go out a martyr. Speedy Delivery sat in a cell with his wife, stewing from the injustice they had been put under. Quick, deprived of her alcohol, merely regretted her sobriety. Olive Branch lay in his own prison. The pain had stopped, but he still felt the phantom lingerings of it. True to Luna's word, he had a lot on his mind.

Fancypants kissed Fleur goodnight before they fell asleep, ready to travel to Ponyville the next day and pick up their order. They had a dinner date with her and Zecora, and they had questions to ask.

A few houses over, Vinyl Scratch and Octavia lay in bed after expressing their love. As the earth pony fell sound asleep, the unicorn looked at her sleeping form, thinking she looked more beautiful than ever with the moon lighting her.

Shining Armor and Cadance returned, only to be shoved in a convoy by the Princesses with instruction to scope out the Crystal Empire. It seemed the promised visit to Twilight would have to wait. Shining Armor went from disappointed to having a heart attack when he discovered that he was now an uncle. It was only after Celestia explained the adoption that they could be assured he wasn't going to go into Ponyville, brandishing an axe to use on some nonexistent stallion.

On the Pie Family rock farm, a lone farmhand took inventory, mumbling under her breath on how beneath her it was. She took a deep breath and reminded herself, once more, what she was working toward. It would all pay off, soon.

Out in the desert the buffalo and the guard unit made camp, toasting each other's good health and singing songs into the moon before the captain called lights out. The changelings would be found soon, and Equestria would be at peace.

Garble sat and moped in his room, angrily gnawing on jewels from his hoard while fuming at his father's dismissal. He began forming plans, each more improbable than the last, of his long overdue revenge. He knew Thrash and Mumble had likely received beatings from their parents as well, but perhaps they could be persuaded. Dyne himself was annoyed at the response from Celestia, but a promise to visit and explain as soon as it was feasible calmed him, much to his messenger's approval.

Up north, several ponies, their normally shining coats a dull grey, limped aimlessly around their once great kingdom, responding to little, even the guards from the nearby outpost who were attempting to get information out of them. They were simply out of touch of reality, rejecting it and its horrors.

And of Chrysalis herself, who had been in hiding since the Wedding, each night became fraught with nightmares. She knew her capture was imminent, and her punishment would be most cruel. As she sat, curled in her newest hideout, she began to wonder if freeing Discord wouldn't have been the better option.

Epilogue

Chrysalis awoke in a void. Large, black nothingness. She looked around in fear. She was supposed to be safe in an abandoned diamond dog mine with her soldiers, but here... where was here.

A disapproving *tsk tsk tsk* sounded, followed by a voice that turned her blood cold. "Chryssy, Chryssy, Chryssy, somechangeling's been a bad mare..."

Slowly, she turned her head, and was greeted by a horrifying sight.

"Now, did you forget all about me? Honestly, I taught you better than that."

With a frightened cry, Chrysalis scooted back, even though the logical part of her brain was telling her that trying to run from Discord was a foalish gesture that could never work.

"How could you? I could forgive stabbing me in the back and leaving me to rot, but... really? An invasion? You couldn't be more original? Honestly, I thought you were listening when I taught you about chaos. Shapeshifting infiltration and you decide to just rush them?" The spirit of disharmony put his face in his lion's paw. "Ah, well, you could still be of some use..."

"No!" Chrysalis said, finding her bravado. "I'm not your servant anymore! I will be the one conquering Equestria, me! On my terms! I have no interest in your plans..."

At that, Discord laughed, a truly jovial laugh, as if what Chrysalis said had been a particularly amusing joke. "My plans? My plans? Chryssy, look at me. Do I look like the kind of spirit that makes plans? Yeah, no. That requires order, strategy, a rhyme and reason, and that's not me. I'm just out to have my fun. As much as I'm allowed."

Chrysalis gaped at this. "You... work for somepony else?"

"Are you listening? Working for somepony is just as bad as having somepony work for you. That requires taking... ugh, orders." he spat. "No, I don't work for any being. I can, however, push things in the right direction if our purposes cross, and lo and behold, it has."

Chrysalis said nothing, so Discord snapped his fingers. A black feline appeared before him, who then reached into her mouth and pulled on her tongue, stretching it to an impossible length.

"Aw, cat got your tongue? Get it?"

"Yeth, yeth!" she screamed in terror. As harmless as this was, she knew it was a precursor to true abuse.

"Good. Now then, I need you to rendezvous with an acquaintance of mine. Once in contact, you'll be able to discuss freeing me."

Chrysalis blinked. "Freeing? But..."

"Oh, I'm still a statue," he explained. "I have limited powers to contact you. In your dreams, of course. When you awaken, you will find a portal in your little hiding place. Go through it, and you'll meet the pony you'll be working with."

"And why should I help you?" Chrysalis demanded. "Even if I do, life under you was no different than Tartarus! You can hardly do much worse to me if I don't cooperate!"

"...True," the draconequus admitted. "How about this, then: if you help me, I'll return you to normal And you'll be completely safe from my chaos."

"...What's the catch?"

"Trout," Discord exclaimed, pulling a fish on the end of the line he was now holding. His fishing cap almost obstructed his eyes.

"Don't play games! You manipulate, speak in half-truths!"

"I do," he admitted. "But really, what have you got to lose?"

There was silence for a moment.

"Fine. Where do you need me to go?"