"You?! YOU did it?!" Rarity shrieked, eyes widening. Dash gulped.

"Sugarcube, Ah hate to say this, but its the honest truth," Applejack said solemnly. "Twilight is gonna make you regret this."

"She...she might yell a little." Dash stammered, though she knew that wasn't exactly true.

"Yell?!" Rarity exclaimed. "Darling, she will not just yell. She will end you! In the slowest, most painful way possible!"

Dash dropped to the floor, whimpering at the thought. Rarity was right. Twilight was going to put her through SO much pain!

"Fluttershy." She moaned, and her foalhood friend hurried to her side.

"Yes, Rainbow Dash?"

"When Twilight's done with me, can I come to you for my recovery?"

Fluttershy hugged her. "I'm sure Twilight won't hurt you, Rainbow Dash."

"Oh, Ah'm pretty sure she will." Applejack said. "Question is, how much?"

Dash groaned and looked over at Pinkie.

"Now would be a great time for a disappearing act, Pinks!" She said. "Can you smuggle me out of town?"

"Sure, if you want me to!" Pinkie said cheerfully.

"Rainbow Dash, you know very well there is no place in Equestria you can go that Twilight will not find you!" Rarity said.

Dash looked miserably at Fluttershy. "Guess its up to you to nurse me back to health." She said. Fluttershy hugged her.

"I'll take care of you, Rainbow Dash." She promised. "But I don't think Twilight will be all that bad."

"Um, Fluttershy? Ya take a good look outside the window lately?" Applejack inquired, eyebrow raised.

Fluttershy, who honestly had tried not to look, looked. "Oh...oh my." Her eyes dropped back to Dash. "I'm sorry, Dash." She rubbed her hoof gently over Dash's back.

"I wonder how much pain she's gonna put me through?" Dash said, groaning.

There was a flash, and Twilight stood in front of them, eyes blazing, looking very eerily in control of her emotions.

"I have a world of pain for you, Rainbow Dash." She said.

The others exchanged glances, wondering what was scarier: Rampaging Twilight, or Icily Calm Twilight. There was no way either of them was very good. Applejack moved to intercept her, knowing that she was taking her life into her own hooves by doing so.

"Now look, sugarcube." She said. "Ah know you're mad. But Dash here is your friend."

"She destroyed my books." Twilight said darkly. "I'm going to see that she's punished!"

"Wait!" Pinkie yelled, throwing herself on top of Dash in an effort to protect her. "Twilight, no! If you do that, you'll be a mean meany pants and that isn't you, Twilight! You can't hurt her!"

Twilight grinned almost wickedly. "After the pain and torment she put my poor books through, its only fitting she get the same thing."

"Now Twi," Applejack said firmly. "You ain't layin' one hoof on Dash!"

Twilight looked around and suddenly chuckled. Her demeanor changed instantly.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm not gonna hurt her. Much." Her horn lit up.

"Twilight Sparkle!!!" Celestia landed next to her former student. "What is the meaning of this?!"

Twilight gulped, her anger suddenly dissapating(mostly).

"I...I...it...well..." she stammered.

"Twilight, I know you are angry," Celestia said. "But that does not give you the right to destroy half of Ponyville! Or terrorise ponies. Or threaten your friends."

"I found the culprit!" Twilight burst out, as if that somehow made up for it all. Celestia's eyes narrowed.

"Did you?" She said. "Who?"

Twilight pointed a hoof at Dash, who cringed closer to Fluttershy. Celestia stepped towards her.

"Rainbow Dash." The severity in her tone made every pony in the room wince. "I hold you as responsible for the mess in Ponyville as Twilight is. She should not have destroyed it, but your prank led to it."

Twilight smiled smugly. "Now you're in big trouble!"

Dash couldn't handle the pressure. The stares. Twilight's smug smirk. With a shriek, she fled the bakery as fast as she could go. Celestia huffed and looked at the others.

"Will you try to find her? And bring her to the castle.Twilight..." her eyes narrowed. "You come with me to your castle. Right now!" She turned and flew off.

Twilight followed, positive she could convince her former teacher that destroying the town was ENTIRELY Dash's fault and not one bit her own.

Applejack turned. "Come on, ya'll." She said. "Lets go round up Rainbow Dash."

The group headed out to find thier friend, after leaving the twins with thier parents.
**********************************

When Celestia and Twilight arrived at the castle, Celestia went straight to the library. Twilight followed.

"So, it really was all Dash's fault." She said. "She wrecked my poor books. If I hadn't been in such a state of grief over them, I would never have destroyed anything. So she's the problem, not me."

Yes, Twilight! She can't refute that!

"Twilight, enough." Celestia's tone was firm and she turned around to look the younger princess in the eye. "I am disappointed in you."

Twilight's eye twitched. "But its Dash's fault!" She protested. "We should throw her in the dungeons! Banish her to the moon! Send her to Tartarus!"

Celestia sat on her rump and crossed her forelegs, her raised eyebrow and stern glare indicating she was not at all impressed.

"Rainbow Dash's actions may have contributed," she said firmly. "But you, Twilight, made the choice to lose your temper and destroy half the town. Due to her prank, Dash is, as I said already, partly responsible, and as such will be punished. Right along with you."

"Well, good. Glad to hear somepony is gonna pun..." Twilight's voice trailed off as Celestia's words sank in. "Wait...WHAT?!"

"You heard me." Celestia said calmly.

"But...but I'm a princess! You can't..." Twilight was at a loss.

"I assure you, Twilight, princesses can be punished too." Celestia said."Just because we are rulers does not mean we are above the rules. And as princesses, its even more important that we own up when we make a mistake and accept the consequences."

Twilight groaned loudly. This was NOT how this was supposed to go! But deep down she knew that Celestia was right. Dash had played a mean prank, and was partly to blame for her anger, but it had been Twilight, herself, who had made the decision to react as she did.

"Alright. I messed up." She said mournfully. "I have alot of apologies to make. Including to Dash. She looked absolutely petrified when I stormed into the bakery."

Celestia smiled. "Yes. Apologies are good, Twilight. But you are still not out of the woods yet."

Twilight groaned again at that statement.

**********************************

"Lemme go!" Dash struggled viciously against the rope that bound her. "Guys! Let me go!"

"Nope." Applejack said. "Celestia said bring you to Twilight's, so we're bringin' ya to Twilight's."

The small group was almost to the castle now. They entered without knocking and proceeded to the library, having heard voices. Celestia and Twilight looked up as Applejack and Pinkie Pie dropped thier captive to the floor. Fluttershy cowered behind Rarity.

"Rainbow Dash." Celestia said sternly. Dash panicked.

"Ok! Ok! It was stupid, I know!" She cried. "I never should have damaged Twi's books, or not confessed, or anything! I'm sorry!" She went limp and put her head down. "If you want to banish me to the moon, I deserve it."

"If she did, I'd be right alongside you." Twilight came and untied her. "I messed up, too, Dash. Only, much worse. You destroyed a few books. Me, I destroyed half the town." She sighed.

"As I was saying to Twilight before you came in," Celestia said,"you both messed up. Rainbow Dash, you are not responsible for how she chose to use her wrath, but you are responsible for provoking it to start with. So you are going to face punushment, as is she."

"Wait, you can punish a princess?!" Pinkie gasped in shock.

"Yes, Pinkie Pie. Even princesses sometimes require punishment." Celestia said. Her gaze went to the two miscreants.

"I'm sorry, Twi." Dash said. "I shouldn't have done it. Forgive me?"

"Only if you forgive me for terrorising you." Twilight replied.

"Deal!!"

They hugged each other fiercely, and then looked to Celestia.

So did everypony else.

"Please don't be too hard on them, Princess." Rarity said, worriedly.

Celestia smiled at her, then said calmly,"Twilight, Rainbow Dash. You two are hereby sentenced to clean up and rebuild this town. As well as making apologies to the townsponies."

They nodded in relief.

Celestia rose to leave, and added,"In future, may I suggest pranks that don't involve books?" Dash blushed.

"Princess," Twilight said suddenly. She leaned in and whispered to her.

Celestia laughed. "Alright. But not too much." She flew out the door.

Twilight turned towards Dash with a mischievous smirk, levitating a poetry book off a shelf.

"Twi, what are you doing?" Dash asked, nervously, as her friend approached.

"Oh, just handing out a little...poetic justice!" Twilight replied, before pouncing and proceeding to wallop her friend repeatedly on the flank, while the others stared in shock. "You beat up my books...now it's thier turn!"

"NOOOOOOO!!!!!"

Author's Note

Heh heh....I had fun with this one. I thought the punishment fit the crime perfectly....both for Twilight and for Dash.

The "poetic justice" thing?
Popped into my head and was too good not to use