Twilight and Applejack slept on the couch, swaddled together in a blank, Applejack’s face dried out from all the crying she did last night.

Shining Armor came to the couch and saw how cute they looked together, despite the less than ideal circumstances that brought them together like that.

“Twiley,” Shining Armor shook her awake. “Someone’s at the door for you.”

Twilight grunted as she opened her eyes.

“Says she’s your friend.”

“I have a lot of friends,” Twilight said.

Shining Armor laughed. “Yeah, I’m sure a social butterfly like you is the talk of the town.”

“Don’t underestimate me,” Twilight said, putting on her glasses. Applejack was woken up by the sound of their voices, so she joined them in going to the door.

Twilight opened, alarmed when the ‘friend’ on the other side was Sunset Shimmer. She looked tall, just a few inches away from being the same height as Miss Dagi. Shining Armor let out an appreciative and somewhat inappropriate wolf whistle to express his praise of her.

Sunset chuckled. “Thank you, Shining, you’re very kind.”

“You!” Applejack put up her fists.

“What do you want?” Twilight snapped.

“Can’t a friend just stop by to see how her friend is doing every once in a while?” Sunset asked.

“Not when they’re no longer friends,” Twilight said, narrowing her eyes.

“Ma cherie, please!” Sunset said. “I just wanted to check in on you! And … to invite you to the dance.” She produced a card and offered.

Twilight, knowing better, refused to touch it.

“Gee, Twiley, show some manners,” Shining Armor said, taking the card. Twilight kept her gaze on the invite.

“The dance is tonight,” Sunset said. “Show up in something nice, will you?” She gave Twilight a wink.
“Oh, and one more thing before I go …” Sunset said. Her eyes quavered and shook, as if she was truly sorry for something she’d done, like the real Sunset was somewhere, deep in there, swimming around in a pool of her own thoughts and had managed to wave at her friends.

“Yes?” Twilight said.

Sunset shook her head. When Twilight looked into her eyes again, whatever sympathy, whatever trace of the old Sunset Twilight thought she saw, was gone.

“Nothing, never mind,” Sunset said. “Show up to the dance, darling! There’s going to be a dance competition. The winner gets a kiss from Miss Dagi!”

Twilight stuck her tongue out in disgust.

Sunset spun on her heels and left, her skirt clinging tightly to her butt cheeks.

“So …” Shining Armor said. “Sunset, is she …?”

“Sunset is a lesbian,” Twilight said, “something that I’m sure Cadence will appreciate.”

At being reminded of his nominal girlfriend, Shining Armor blushed.

Twilight stormed back into the living room.

“Wait, Sunset told me she was bi?” Applejack expressed. She got back into the moment, shoving the thought aside and followed Twilight to the couch.

“Give me that,” Twilight said, running back to grab the invite. She proceeded to rip it up and toss its pieces on the floor.

“That was rude,” Shining Armor.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Twilight said.

“Eesh,” Shining Armor said. “Fine. If you’re going to be in such a mood, I’m gonna go to talk to Cadence instead. Come see me when you’re ready to talk.”

Applejack watched him go up the stairs, then placed a comforting hand on Twilight’s shoulder.

“The nerve,” Twilight said. “Showing up here like that.”

“I know, Twilight,” Applejack said. “But Twilight … that look on her face. Do you think the real Sunset is still in there somewhere? Do you think we could reach her?”

“We can’t take that chance,” Twilight said. “Even if it’s possible, We’ve seen what those teachers can if we give them so much as an inch. We need to figure out something else. Some other way to beat them. I don’t think the magic of friendship is going to cut it this time.”

“Oh, come on now, Twilight, surely it’s not that bad. Yeah, things are rough right now … but we don’t really have to give up on everything we believe in, right?” Applejack said. “I mean, sure, our friends are brainwashed, but the memories we made with them still count for something, and they’ll be our friends again when this is all over and we’ve got them beat.”

“Can we beat them?” Twilight said. Through the window, she saw a pair of girls walking down the street, chatting with each other and laughing, having a good time. Twilight was half tempted to march out and go talk to them, just for the sake of knowing there was someone, anyone other than her, Applejack and her brother who wasn’t totally under the teachers’ spell. Someone else …

“Wait, that’s it!” Twilight slammed a fist into her palm.

“What?”

“Come on,” Twilight said. “I have an idea. We may not have our best friends with us, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have friends at all.”

Applejack followed Twilight to the outside of a bar.

“Uh, Twilight? What are we doing here? How is that gonna help? Isn’t drinking and letting our guard the last thing we want to do right now?”

“Come on,” Twilight grabbed Applejack’s wrist and dragged her inside.

They went up to the bar table, where Rarity was polishing a mug. She was dressed skimpily, in tight shorts and a thin pink top that showed her midriff and cleavage.

“Rarity? What are you doing here?” Twilight asked.

“Oh, I work here now!” Rarity cheerfully answered.

“How? You’re not old enough to work here.”

“You’re only as old as you feel,” Rarity said. “The owner said that, too, but Miss Dagi put in a good word for me and he made an exception. I can’t say it’s the most glamorous job, but I get discounts on beer and I must be good at it, because I get decent tips.”

Applejack tried not to stare too much into Rarity’s cleavage. “Yeah, I’m sure that’s why. Because you do such good service.”

“Can I get you anything?” Rarity asked. “Some beer, perhaps? This American stuff tastes like water compared to the German brew, but one makes do with what one has, I suppose.”

“We’re good, thanks.”

“Oh, are you sure? I’m sure I could offer you a discount!” But they were already moving on. Rarity shrugged. “Oh well. More for me, I guess.”

“Twilight, where are we going?” Applejack asked, speaking a hushed whisper as they moved about the crowd.

“There,” Twilight said, pointing to a booth where there people wearing sweaters sat. They all had hoodies up to cover and obscure their faces.

Twilight led Applejack over, and they slid into the opposing side of the booth.

“Thanks again for agreeing to meet me here,” Twilight said.

“No problem,” the center figure said. “After all, what are friends for? It’s the least I can after you helped me save Camp Everfree.”

Applejack had to squint hard to do so, but with a little eyestrain she made out the faces under the hoods – Wallflower Blush, Gloriosa Daisy, and Valencia Vignette.

“Valen-”

“Shh!” Twilight slapped a hand over Applejack’s mouth. She gestured her head towards Rarity at the table. “The less she knows, the better. The entire point is to keep as many people as possible from finding out who’s helping us.”

“Right,” Applejack said. “What are y’all doing here?”

“Twilight sent us a message explaining everything,” Glorosia said.

“We’re so sorry what’s happened to you,” Wallflower said. “To your friends.”

“We’ll do anything and everything we can to help you,” Valencia added.

“Thank you,” Twilight said.

“Oh, by the way, Applejack, sorry about that time I put all of your friends into my phone," Valencia said.

“No problem. If we can all forgive Twilight for turning into a big purple demon, well, I’m sure there’s not much we can’t forgive.”

“Really?” Glorosia looked to Twilight. “You did that?”

“You’re one to talk,” Twilight replied back. “You turned into a plant monster.”

“Say,” Applejack interjected, “Do you think you could do that again, Twilight? Collect enough magic to turn into a demon again?”

“No,” Twilight said. “I did that with magic I absorbed from you, Sunset, and the others. I still don’t know much about how magic works in this world, or … any world, really, but I know the seven of us are special, somehow. I couldn’t get close to them.”

“Too bad we lost the Memory Stone,” Wallflower said. “Maybe we could use it on the Dazzlings and make them reform.”

“We wouldn’t do that, that’s creepy,” Applejack said. “Back me up on this, Twi.”

Twilight averted her eyes.

“Oh, come on, Twilight!”

“What do you want me to say, Applejack? We’re desperate. I’d take any advantage we could get at this point.”

“It is odd that seems like they’re the only people you’ve fought that didn’t immediately reform after,” Wallflower Blush said.

“Well, you’re all native to this area – and I think more importantly, you’re human. I’m human. They are … not. They’re from Equestria, like Sunset is, and they’re not even ponies. They’re like thousands of years old. They’ve had centuries to be used to being the way they are now. I think if they would have reformed, they would have done it by now.”

“Wow! Really?” Wallflower said.

“That’s what the others told me,” Twilight said. She glanced up over at Rarity again, concerned – nay, certain she was spying on them.

“Come on,” Twilight said. “We should go. We’ll have to meet in a different location next time.”

“Agreed.”

The five of them got up from the table. Twilight and Applejack made sure to leave first.

“Darlings!” Rarity called after them. “Are you sure you don’t want something? I’ve got all kinds of brews!” She poured herself a mug and took a sip, and stuck her tongue out in disgust. “Oh, bleh. This is terrible, I can see why they'd turn it donw.”

Twilight Sparkle shoved a spoonful of cereal into her mouth. She had woken up bright eyed and bushy tailed, full of motivation and confidence now that she had a plan, a team, friends behind her who would have her back.

She could do this.

She could turn this around.

There was a knock on the front door. Twilight, in a good mood, volunteered to answer it.

Her good mood was spoiled when she saw it was Sunset Shimmer dropping by again.

“What do you want want now?” Twilight said, her voice carrying more than a little edge to it.

“Hi, Twilight,” Sunset said apologetically. Her face was like a balloon - all the confidence and bluster she had yesterday had just deflated from it.

Sunset grabbed the beret from her off her head and held it in front of her chest. She stared at the hat, then at Twilight.

“Could we talk?”

Twilight, interested in Sunset’s change in demeanor, almost agreed and let her in before she caught it herself.

“Talk about what?” Twilight asked.

Sunset looked at the beret again. She twisted it around like a towel in her hands.

“Resisting.”

Twilight nodded, squinting. “Hang on a second. Shining Armor! Applejack!”

The two came running at the call of their names.

“What is it, Twiley?”

“What’s going on?”

“Sunset …” Twilight gestured to Sunset, who grinned and waved nervously. “Says she would like to talk. I would appreciate if you two would have my back and make sure she doesn’t try anything.”

“Can do,” Applejack said, pounding a fist into her palm to show her readiness to lay down a whuppin’.

“What happened between you two?” Shining Armor asked. “You used to be the best of friends.”

“I’ll explain,” Sunset said, cutting Twilight’s answer off. “But first, could I come inside? So we can sit down?”

“Mm.” Twilight kept her eyes sharply on Sunset, but gestured that she was welcome to step over the welcome mat and into the house - into her sanctuary.

“Thank you.”

They set up in the living room, Twilight, Shining, and Applejack sitting on a couch while Sunset sat on a chair borrowed from the kitchen on the other end of the coffee table. To Sunset, it felt like a tribunal.

“What do you want?” Applejack began the line of questioning.

“To help you fight back,” Sunset said. “I know I haven’t been the most … helpful, but you don’t know what it’s like.” Sunset gave a thousand-year stare at the floor. “It’s so hard to resist being under their control. It’s taking almost everything I have not to try and kiss all of you right now. Like you, Twilight. Your lips look so … full today.”

Sunset reached a hand out, and Applejack immediately grabbed towards the bat she brought by the couch just for this occasion. But Sunset caught herself and grabbed her wrist, forcing her hand back down.

“Sorry,” Sunset said.

“Why should we believe any of this?” Applejack asked. “How do we know you’re not just lying to lure us in a trap? If y’all could really resist them, why didn’t you do it sooner?”

“Because it’s hard!” Sunset snapped. “Applejack, look at me. Look me in the eyes. Do you think if there was any way I could have resisted sooner, I wouldn’t have done it? I wouldn’t have tried to rescue Rainbow Dash, or Rarity, or Fluttershy, or Pinkie? Do you think I - the real me wanted that for any of them!?”

Applejack eased off. “What do you think, Twilight?”

“I want to believe you, Sunset,” Twilight said. “I do. But it’s hard. So much has happened …”

“I know …” Sunset said. “And Twilight, Applejack, I am so, so sorry I couldn’t be of help sooner. But it’s taking so much out of me just to get this far and just … talk to you like you’re my friends. I don’t want it to go to waste. I don’t want it to be for nothing. So tell me, what can I do to help you?”

Twilight and Applejack looked to each other.

“We’ll need something … small,” Twilight said.

“Wouldn’t we want something larger?” Applejack asked. “You know, to prove her commitment?”

“No. If we give her too much, her … other self could run straight to Miss Dagi and tell her everything when she takes over again. We need something that she won’t remember when she turns back. Something that her other self couldn’t possibly do anything with. I’ve got it.”

Twilight got a notebook and a pencil. She folded up the note and placed inside of Sunset’s beret.

“There’s a note there,” Twilight said. “The … evil you almost never takes her beret off, but if you can remember this, you can check the note. I put it in code. Read it, and follow the instructions. Then, if you can do that, I think we have a chance.”

“Thank you,” Sunset took Twilight’s hand. “Twilight, it means a lot to me that you would trust me after everything. More than you could ever know.” She stood up, her height still enhanced so that she almost towered over Twilight, Twilight’s head just barely reaching up to her boobs. They both blushed.

“Hopefully we can get that fixed as well,” Sunset said, glancing down at her cleavage. “Then again, a perky bosom has its uses, doesn’t it, ma cheries?”

Twilight backed away and Sunset covered her mouth in shock and shame.

“I … I should go,” Sunset said. “I’m not sure how much longer I can keep this it up. I can already feel … her, feel the French struggling to break free. Bonjour, Twilight. I mean … goodbye.”

Sunset hurried out the door, closing it behind her in a rush. Not a moment too, as within seconds, they heard a loud, moaning gasp from outside with a strong French accent seeping through it.

“That was close,” Shining Armor said.

“What do you think, Applejack?” Twilight asked. “You’re the one with magical lie detecting powers. Can we trust her?”

“I think so,” Applejack said. “Nothing she said got so much as a blip on my radar. I think … I think she’s really in there, Twilight. I think she’s fighting back, like she says.”

“Wow,” Twilight said. She looked to the window of Sunset’s departing form. A tear escaped her eye, which she quickly wiped off. “That’s our Sunset. Fighting to the end, like always.”

“Yeah,” Applejack said. “So, what do you write in that note?”

“For her to stand on a corner wearing a different outfit and suck a lemon flavored lollipop,” Twilight said.

“Uh-huh,” Applejack accepted this, then blinked. “Wait, Sunset hates lemon-flavor. She told me that when Rainbow Dash tricked her into eating that pie with worms that one time. You remember that? She said, ‘I can live with the worms, Rainbow Dash, but not the lemon filling!’” Applejack laughed at the memory, then sighed at the bygone simpler times.

“That’s the point. If she’s willing to do something she hates for us, then we’ll know it’s really her and that she’s really trying.”

“Smart thinking, Twi,” Applejack. They high-fived.

“It’s what I’m here for,” Twilight said. “Now, back to our plan … we still need to figure out how we’re going to …” and she started whispering into Shining and Applejack’s ears, just in case someone might have been eavesdropping.

The day arrived. Twilight and Applejack snuck up on towards the school and hid behind a lamp post, looking for signs.

Sunset Shimmer stood by such a sign, looking cool, seductive, and sexy, the sunlight shining down and making it hard to ignore the hard shadows her own cleavage cast against itself. A lollipop stuck out from her mouth suggestively, her beret falling down and covering one of her eyes.

She gave a quick look around and saw Twilight and Applejack in their hiding place. Her eyes widened, and she rushed to take the lollipop out of her mouth and wave it to them like a flag – the half-eaten sphere at the tip was a dark yellow. Lemon, like they said.

Proving she wasn’t pretending, Sunset gave a shudder and scraped her finger across her tongue, trying to get the taste out.

Applejack and Twilight smiled to see their friend was back.

Twilight pulled a radio and gave a signal. “Okay, B-Team, you are clear to go.”

“Why are we the B-Team? Why can’t we be the A-Team?” Vignette whined.

A static came from the radio, and Glorosia spoke.

“B-Team, messaged confirmed and received, moving in.”

Glorosia Daisy rolled out from a bush nearby the school welcome sign, startling Sunset. Valencia, much less impressively, simply walked out from their cover.

Glorosia gave Sunset a thumbs-up. Sunset reached into her cleavage and pulled out a key that she dropped into Glorosia’s hands.

The B-Team went up to the school entrance, unlocked the door using Sunset’s key, and made their way inside.

“Remind me what we’re doing here again,” Valencia said, shuddering. “Something about this place is giving me the creeps.”

She wasn’t imagining it, either. Glorosia had been in the school a few times to promote Camp Everfree, and in none of those times did the school ever feel this … cold. It wasn’t even just the AC was on either – it was like the warmth had been sucked out of the place.

“Come on. We need to find the ventilation room.” Glorosia started moving, Wafllower following close behind her.

They arrived at an intersection. Glorosia consulted the map that Twilight given of the school’s schematics. Where she got it, Glorosia didn’t know and didn’t care.

“According to this, we should be going this way,” Glorosia pointed and made a left.

Footsteps echoed from the other end of the hall, making them halt.

“What do we do?” Wallflower asked.

“Hide!”

“Where?”

Glorosia grabbed Wallflower by the shoulders, busted into a locker, and somehow was able to cram the both of them inside.

They watched from inside of the locker as Adagio Dazzle made her way down the hall, joined by Rainbow Dash, dutifully attending her every word like they were a fine liquor for her and writing down on a clipboard.

“See if you can’t get the janitor back to the restrooms around this corner,” Adagio said. “He seems to have been slacking off on them as of late.”

“Maybe we should tease him with a reward, mistress,” Rainbow Dash suggested.

“Ha! Maybe. Then again, perhaps the reason he’s behind on his work is too much rewarding.”

At this, Rainbow Dash laughed.

Glorosia tried to quell the uneasy feeling in her stomach. Seeing Rainbow Dash dressed up so femininely was just plain wrong, even before getting to the part where she loved just hearing Adagio speak.

Adagio stopped moving and sniffed.

“Rainbow Dash, do you smell something?”

“No, ma’am, I don’t smell anything.”

Adagio spun on her heel like she was rehearsing for a ballet on an ice rink, and walked down the hallway. Her sniffer kept at it, the air filled with the sound of her sniffing exuberantly.

“There’s something in here, I’m sure of it,” Adagio said.

Wallflower Blush started on a panicked whine, but Gloriosa placed a hand over her mouth so they wouldn’t be detected.

“Now that you mention it, there’s … definitely something,” Rainbow Dash said. She joined Adagio in sniffing the air, trying to pinpoint the source of the scent.

Glorosia and Wallflower watched them through the slats in the locker, the two latex-clad women them roaming around with their backs hunched over, like zombies on the prowl for fresh brains.

Adagio got awful close to the locker they were in. Much, much too close to comfort. She pressed her nose up so close to the slats that Glorosia was so sure she didn’t bother need with her nose anymore and could just see them.

Adagio gave their locker one great big whiff. Then she pulled away, with a satisfied smile.

“Nothing here, it seems,” Adagio said. “I guess we’ll just have to look for that awful plant-based stench elsewhere?”

“Stench!?” Glorosia shouted, falling completely for the bait. She exchanged looks with Wallflower as she realized what she’d done. “Oh, f – ”

Adagio opened the locker door by ripping the poor door straight off its hinges, displaying a remarkable amount of strength for someone whose arms were so slender. She greeted the two of them with a great big grin.

“Found you,” Adagio said.

Wallflower removed Gloriosa’s hand from her mouth. “You … you knew we were here, didn’t you? You just wanted us to slip up and reveal ourselves so you could rub it in our faces.”

“I may have taken my sweet time in revealing you when I could have captured you much sooner, yes,” Adagio said. “Rainbow Dash, help me out with this, won’t you? You can have the tiny one.”

“Fat chance!” Glorosia jumped out of the locker, fists swinging, but all it took was Adagio to give her a rough shove in the stomach to throw her right back in.

Wallflower Blush got out of the locker and ran down the hallway as fast as she could. But even without whatever juice the Dazzlings were giving out to power up their servants, she would never been able to outrun Rainbow Dash, a natural athlete, so it didn’t long at all for Rainbow Dash to catch up, tackle Wallflower Blush, and started covering her face in smooches until she, like the rest of the victims, like most of the school, was brought to a soul-shattering climax that made her squirt out all her willpower and any thoughts of resisting her new mistresses.

“Evidently, your powers of observation fail you,” Adagio said, with a subtle nod towards the removed locker door. “Otherwise you would have realized there’s no hope for you now.”

“There’s still hope. Still time.”

“Not for you, I’m afraid.”

Glorosia made another lunge, and Adagio prepared to side-step it. She was surprised when Glorosia swerved mid-flight, bringing herself down to the floor.

The reason why became obvious as Glorosia pulled out a radio.

“Twilight! Mayday! Mayday! We’ve been blown!”

“Glorosia? What’s happening?”

Adagio slapped her hand over Glorosia’s mouth before Glorosia could say anything more. The French teacher placed a kiss on Glorosia’s forehead, and Glorosia proved extremely susceptible, her eyes glazing over and her grip on the radio relaxing as she gave in to the bliss.

Adagio chuckled at seeing her fall so easily, then picked up the radio.

“I’m sorry, Twilight, Glorosia can’t answer you right now – she’s currently in the middle of a French tutoring session.”

“Adagio! You … you … bitch!”

Adagio gave a hearty laugh at that.

“Is that the worst thing you can call me, Twilight? Here, why don’t you tell me where you are? I bet I could teach you some new words so you can make some stronger insults.”

The radio grew hot in Adagio’s palm. Catching on, she dropped it and watched as it sparked and fell to pieces, electricity hissing and crackling as the thing self-destructed.

“Oh, well, now, that’s clever,” Adagio said. “A remote self-destruct so my and my servants can’t use it to track you. I must admit, that’s better than I expected of you, Twilight Sparkle.”

Adagio raised up her heel-clad shoe and stomped on the wreckage, crushing and destroying it further for no other reason than because she could. Because it was in her power to do so.

“But it still won’t be enough.”

Applejack and Valencia Vignette crept quietly through the halls, trying to keep their feet as light off the ground as possible to avoid detection.

Their efforts were undermined a little when the radio Twilight entrusted to Applejack crackled with static.

“A.J here. What’s wrong, Twilight?”

“We have a problem. They know we’re here. They got Wallflower and Glorosia.”

“Oh no.” Applejack was the one who spoke, but both of their eyes shrunk to pinpricks of fear as they realized they were no longer safe.

“Do you want us to carry on with the plan, Twilight?”

“No, no, of course not. The plan might still work, but it’s not worth the risk. You two need to get out of there now!”

“Don’t have to tell us twice!” Vignette grabbed Applejack’s shoulder and headed backed the way they came. “Let’s get the heck out of here!”

Somewhere around them, they heard a winding noise, like old machinery someone was cranking to turn on.

All at once, the lights went dark, and projections of black and white film and television appeared all over the hallway walls. They covered every inch with scenes that shared a common element of a woman with thick lipstick on, either applying it or talking to a man in a sexually charged scene.

Applejack and Vignette were immediately disoriented. The dim lightning made it hard to be sure of their footsteps. Even the floor was covered with projections, making their spatial awareness that much harder.

“Which way do we go?” Vignette asked.

“Stay calm.” Applejack grabbed hold of Vignette’s wrist, giving it a tight squeeze to comfort her, and, if she was honest, herself, using the wrist like a stress ball. “Let’s just take it one step at a time.”

Applejack took a step forward, her feet landing on the forehead of the woman on the screen below her. But she felt solid ground beneath her, and that reassured her. The layout of the building hadn’t been changed, just obscured, so it would be easy for them to feel their way around – and to get out, if Applejack’s memory of the layout served her well.

“It’s fine,” Applejack said. “This is fine. I know where we’re going. We just have to keep calm and not be afraid. Follow my lead.”

Applejack led Vignette down the hall, and she was pretty sure she knew where she was going, when the scenes all flipped over and changed. Now they showed all those pretty ladies, pretty, buxom ladies wearing low-cut gowns or see-through night dresses pulling men in for a kiss. Someone turned the sound switch on, turning the volume and letting Applejack and Vignette every wet smack of their lips as they embraced their partners.

“Ugh.” Vignette had to cover her ears. “I never thought hearing people kissing could give me such a headache.”

“Yeah, messing with those folks will do that to ya,” Applejack rued. “Come on, I think we’re almost to the exit.”

A projection popped up right in front of them, startling them. It showed a woman reaching her arms out, her thick full lips puckered up for a kiss aimed directly at the viewer.

Applejack sighed with relief once she got over her fear. It was just a trick.

Until Rarity appeared, stepping out from the scene in the same pose as the woman in the film, as though she’d been playing her all along.

“Rarity!” Applejack shouted. Before she could throw a knuckle-duster at her former comrade, Rarity slapped her hands around Applejack’s cheeks and kissed her on the forehead.

“You can’t leave yet,” Rarity said. “The movie’s only just started!”

“Rarity!” Applejack protested, but the kiss was already getting to her. Her body went dull and limp in Rarity’s grasp.

Rarity plugged a nipple into Applejack’s mouth and began to feed her.

“That’s it,” Rarity encouraged her. “Just take a deep breath and suck.”

Applejack’s lips started moving, nursing at the deep well in front of her even while part of her mind – a fading, quieter part – shouted to resist. But it became quieter and quieter as her mind fogged up. It wasn’t even that she was getting drunk from the beer, but more like her mind was being … smothered, covered up with a foamy blanket, a curtain that made her see things the way Rarity – the way Adagio – wanted her to see things.

Vignette did the only sensible thing she could do in the situation – she ran. But she was waylaid when Juniper Montage jumped out and grabbed her, giving her a kiss on the cheek.

Vignette groaned. No wonder this corruption had been nearly unstoppable. It felt like her brain was now operating at half-speed – and that was just from one kiss.

“Did you like that?” Juniper asked, and Vignette could only give a confused groan in response, which made Juniper chuckle.

“I admit, I wasn’t too keen at myself, either, but then my mistress showed me how good it could feel. Let me do a favor and pass on that kindness.”

So, giving Vignette’s boob a squeeze, Juniper kissed her again, this time on the mouth. Vignette shuddered, her nipples twitching and threatening to leak milk, her cunt winking, leaking, inclined to join in on the squirt.

Juniper pulled Vignette forward, adjusting their pose so that matched the posture of the lovers on a nearby screen, the scene in the projection playing out like a shadow of Vignette and Juniper’s own make-out session.

Rarity let Applejack go, and Applejack’s swam with hypnotic spirals, her chest growing larger and heavier as the lactation spread from Rarity like a virus. Applejack dropped to the ground, moaning and playing with her chest to get the foamy beer to drip out. Rarity kneeled down by herself and gave Applejack a relaxing massage on the shoulders while she fondled her boobs.

“That’s it, darling, that’s it,” Rarity said before giving Applejack a kiss on the forehead. “Just give in.”

“Applejack?” Twilight said into the radio from her hiding place in one of the school’s outside corners. She hadn’t heard anything from her in far too long. “Applejack? Applejack! No.”

Twilight stumbled, losing her balance – losing her faith. She sank to the floor, wrapping her arms around her knees. Sunset Shimmer joined her on the ground and put a hand on Twilight’s shoulder for comfort.

“They got Applejack,” Twilight said, voice breaking, tears in her eyes. “They probably have Vignette, too. Oh, I should have known this was a bad idea. I should have known this plan was never going to work!” She buried her face into her palms. “I shouldn’t have asked Applejack to take this risk.”

“Applejack knew the risks,” Sunset said. “They all did. They chose to come here. They chose to come and take that risks because they believed in you, Twilight.” She grabbed Twilight’s chin and made Twilight look up at her. “They believed that whatever plan you came up with was going to be enough to beat the Dazzlings and save the school. And I’m sure the last thing they would want is for you to give up now while there’s still a chance – still hope.”

Twilight smiled. Her tears slowed to where she could easily wipe them away with a finger.

“So, uh … what is this plan, exactly?” Sunset asked. “You never told me.”

“Well, that was in case the spell broke and you ran screaming to Miss Dagi,” Twilight said. She stood up, full of newfound confidence and determination. She had to see this through. She must. She and Sunset may have been the only ones left, but all it would take was just one – one person brave enough to stand up this seemingly unstoppable, inevitable force of evil.

“I think this plan can still work, Sunset. Can you get me to the school bell undetected?”

“I most certainly can,” Sunset answered, getting up. “What are we doing there?”

“I’ll explain once we get there,” Twilight said. “Come on! We’ve got an evil plan to thwart.”

Sunset brought Twilight up to the school bell, guarding her on the way there.

Once they were out on the balcony, Twilight went up to the guardrail that kept maintenance workers from falling off and pulled a device out from her backpack. It looked a bit like an alarm clock with a soda bottle strapped to the side. She set the machine down on by the rail and inputted commands, the machine beeping and blooping with each press of the button.

“So, Twilight, what is the plan?” Sunset asked.

Twilight chuckled. “Well, you’ve got me this far, so I guess it’s safe to tell you. This machine will emit a high-pitched ring and eject a gas that will knock out everybody in and around the school. Except for us, because we’ll have these.” She pulled out some headphones for the noise and a mask for the gas. “Then, once everybody is unconscious, that should give us all the time we need to figure out a cure for the kisses.”

“I see, I see. Very interesting!”

“Here,” Twilight handed Sunset a pair of phones and a mask then put her own headphones on. “It’d be more effective if we had the copies Juniper and Glorosia had, but beggars can’t be chosen. Honestly, if this gets just half of the school populace under sleep, that’ll be way more manageable than Miss Dagi being able to send the whole student body at us.”

“Uh-huh, uh-huh.”

“I gotta say, Sunset, I’m impressed you’ve been resisting for as long as you have. Yesterday it looked like it was taking you a lot of effort.”

“Oh, yes. Resisting.”

Twilight wasn’t entirely sure why the way Sunset said that put a sinking, icy feeling into the pit of her stomach.

“Sunset?” Twilight asked in a nervous squeak.

Sunset reached her arm down over Twilight and picked up the machine.

“Sunset!”

Twilight spun around and tried to stop it, but before her horrified, helpless eyes, Sunset, with a terrifying inhuman strength, cracked the machine in two like an egg with naught but her bare hands.

“But … but Sunset … I – I thought you were resisting?” Twilight stammered, tears in her eyes. “You said you were resisting.”

“Oh, oui, oui, I did, no?” Sunset said, her French accent coming back thick and in full force. “Well, about that, Twilight, I … ah, how you say in ingles?”

Sunset gave a nonchalant shrug.

“I lied.”

“But … but the headaches!” Twilight tapped her forehead. “The pain! You were obviously in pain from resisting. How …?”

“That, my dear,” Adagio Dazzle said, stepping out from the school and onto the balcony, “is what we call acting.”

“You… ” Twilight balled up her fists in anger.

“I knew you were too stubborn to give up,” Adagio explained as he wrapped an arm around Sunset’s shoulders. “I knew you would come up with a plan. Maybe multiple ones. And if you kept trying, one of them just might work. So I had an idea. Sunset had been trying to resist recently. Trying to break out from her thrall.” She cupped Sunset’s cheek. “But she knows better now, doesn’t she?”

“Yes, mistress,” Sunset replied. “Oui, mi amor.” She pecked Adagio on the check.

“But it did give me some inspiration,” Adagio went on. “I could send her over to you and have her pretend like she was still resisting. And you and your friends are so big on forgiveness, I knew you would eat it right up, like the gullible saps you are. And you did! I almost couldn’t believe it. You walked right into our hands. Sunset told us exactly where you were the minute you went inside the school.”

“But the lollipop,” Twilight stammered, desperately clinging to some evidence, something that told her this wasn’t actually happening. “Sunset hates lemon. She can’t stand it.”

“Do you really think someone who, ah, loves me so very much wouldn’t be willing to suffer to make me happy?” Adagio asked, stroking Sunset’s hair.

Sunset pulled the mostly-eaten lollipop out of her mouth. “Besides, this is banana.” She tossed it aside.

“I ...” Twilight’s shoulders sagged. She didn’t know what to do now.

One idea occurred to her. One last desperate thing. Maybe she couldn’t fight off all the Dazzlings. Maybe she couldn’t save the day. But she could make it easier for the next person to stand up to them – give them a fighting chance.

She sprinted forward, lunging forward, making for Adagio’s waist. It would be a gamble, and she probably wouldn’t survive, but that was a risk she was willing to take – a price she was willing to pay. She wouldn’t free Sunset, but she was sure as hell would take Adagio down, tackling her over the guardrail and send the both of them tumbling over the roof and plummeting to their deaths.

But all it took was for Adagio to lean over a little, and Twilight’s head caught on her impressive, soft cleavage. Her head became wedged between Adagio’s boobs, and her feet dangled and flailed uselessly through the air as Adagio’s rack lifted her off the ground. She remained stuck there like an ornament as Adagio stood up straight.

Adagio grabbed Twilight’s shoulder, picking her up out of the cleavage and holding her.

“Nice try,” Adagio said before batting away Twilight’s headphones. Twilight swung a fist at her face, but Adagio caught it with her hand and Twilight felt her strength just ebb in Adagio’s grip, like a leech sucking out her blood.

Adagio puckered up, and Twilight tried to put space between them, but it was no good; Adagio’s grip was too strong. The kiss connected, the wet lips firmly attaching themselves to Twilight’s head. All at once, Twilight felt so, so drowsy, and all she wanted to do was take a nap. Her body went limp in Adagio’s hands.

Adagio moved in for a second kiss, but stopped.

“Actually, Sunset, why don’t you do the honors? I’m sure our dear little Twilight wouldn’t mind a few kisses from her best friend.”

Adagio handed Twilight off to Sunset like the mutual owners of a cat taking turns holding it. The thought to plead for Sunset not to go through with it crossed Twilight’s head, but her body felt so weak already it never left her mouth and manifested.

“Buenas noches, mi amiga mejor,” Sunset said before placing the wettest kiss she could manage on Twilight’s forehead.

Twilight’s vision dimmed. Her eyelids became heavy. Everything became fuzzy and disoriented, blurry.

Sunset had to kiss her a few more times before the warmth hit Twilight, and she felt an overpowering orgasm, liquid leaking all over the insides of her thighs as she drifted off to a deep slumber.

Author's Note

So I was/am a little concerned with the logic of Twilight trusting Sunset at all in this chapter, especially since she explicitly says they can't take that risk, but I really couldn't* figure out a better way to get the characters to where I wanted them to be, because I wanted the last scene to be Twilight with Adagio and Sunset on the tower.

Additionally, it was important to show Sunset resisting in a chapter before this one, just to plant the idea that it might be possible that she's telling the truth in the reader's mind, but I imagine anyone familiar with close reading or pattern recognition would infer that Sunset's not really on their side.

*was too lazy.

Translations:
Spanish:
Ingles = English.
Buenas noches, mi amgia mejor = good night, my best friend.

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