Normal and Blank

Chapters

Fear
Anger
Hope
Magic
Justice
The Heart of the Matter
Doubt
Friendship in Every Color

Fear

Sunlight warmed the streets and avenues in, around, and above Ponyville, a wonderful side effect and indication of a job well done. Down below, ponies went about their daily lives. All the traffic headed every which way and games and fun in the streets were all so exciting. It was the excitement a certain black pegasus had hoped to join.

Thunderlane made his way to a home nearer to the edge of town. He landed with a strong, confident thud and strode up to the front door, knocking with one hoof.

“Yo! Caramel!” he called. “You still okay to go?”

From the inside, Thunderlane could hear a frenzied nothing.

“Uh, the rest of us are still going bowling if you’re still up for it!”

Again, no response.

Did he go out on his own? Was there another job?

“Big Mac’s going too! He said a couple of his sister’s friends agreed to cover him for the afternoon!”

No response, but Thunderlane could hear movement. The shuffling of hooves traversed the house.

Thunderlane was getting scared.

“Dude! Caramel! You okay? You’re not hurt, are you?” Thunderlane started flexing his forelegs subconsciously, readying to do something, anything to make sure his friend was okay. “Caramel! You’re freakin’ me out! I can hear you! I’m gonna break the door down!” The hoof steps were the only answer. “I’m comin’ in! Three…”

The door opened. Thunderlane recoiled in shock. It took a moment to recover

The stallion before him was clearly Caramel, but… washed out. Everything was grey. His eyes, his mane, his tail, they were all the same shade of sterile grey. His face, slack and unfeeling. He didn’t seem sad, just… calm. It was like someone doing a task just because it needed doing. The expression bore no pain or frustration, or joy for that matter.

“C…Cara… mel?”

“You called? You do not have to break my door down,” Caramel answered, listless.

“Y… you didn’t get back to me yesterday. You had me worried. Is everything alright?” Thunderlane prodded.

“Everything is fine. I did not mean to worry you.”

“I know, I know. You look a little… off, though. You feeling okay?”

“I feel fine.”

“You still wanna head out? We’ll be bowling later, but the guys are getting pizza first.”

“I’m sorry, but I have work to do.”

As Caramel turned to close the door, Thunderlane caught a glimpse of his perfectly blank flank.

What the…

If the situation weren’t already outright freaky, it was an emergency now. Something bad was going on with Caramel, and Thunderlane would rather be sent to the moon than remain idle for this. Thunderlane hadn’t even spoken with Caramel yesterday… but Flitter had spoken with him immediately before departure…

Flitter might know something.

Thunderlane needed first to tell the guys an emergency came up. They’d understand.

Hang on, buddy. Hang on…

* * * * * * *

The warm sun lifted Twilight’s spirits from her annoyance. Her complete lack of direction and goals still weighed heavily on her mind, though now the thoughts were less harsh and angry about it.

I still need to figure it out, though…

Accompanied by her entourage of four big and armored stallions, the procession received greetings of low bows and reverent blessings all along the street.

I didn’t realize just how annoying this could be…

The constant kneeling and prostration wore on her. Twilight never received preferential treatment before, even when she was Princess Celestia’s personal protégé, and she very much preferred being like everypony else.

I’m their princess… but I was their friend first. Why did they forget? Is it my status? My crown? If I covered my wings and took off the crown would they still care? I just wish I could bridge that gap, but how? Should I write a book? Maybe an editorial. How would I present it? Could I start a new paper or would I be able to work into the ones that already run?

“Princess?”

The Foal Free Press might be too childish, but am I being too judgmental by calling it childish? Ponyville Times, maybe? Wouldn’t that limit my audience to just Ponyville?

“Your Highness?”

What about pamphlets or leaflets? No, that would make me like those Jehoova Witnesses…

“Princess Twilight!”

Twilight snapped from her musings to find herself at Sugarcube Corner and that one of her guards was averting his eyes.

“Pardon me, your majesty. I did not mean to raise my voice.”

“What? Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t realize we were here,” Twilight said. The guard still couldn’t lift his gaze.

Okay, how am I supposed to feel about this? He’s a stallion, he’s supposed be able to deal with this, and he’s a member of the Royal Guard so he should be ashamed of raising his voice to a princess. Then again, he is another pony, same as me.

“Um, pardon me,” said another guard.

“Augh! Sorrysorrysorry,“ Twilight blurted.

“Yo! Twi!”

All of the guards locked into a braced stance at the first loud sound. In this case, the sky blue pegasus Rainbow Dash and the young orange filly Scootaloo.

“At ease, she’s an Element Bearer,” Twilight informed, causing the stallions to return to their positions at her sides. “Nice to see you, Rainbow! I see your team has done another fine job,” Twilight said, motioning to the sky.

“Yeah, about that…” Rainbow’s brow furrowed with concern. “One of my team is acting a little… weird…”

“Weird?” Twilight asked. “Weird how?”

“Well… uhm… You see Derpy was… well the thing is…” Rainbow took a deep breath and exhaled. “Derpy was doing work. She did it right.”

“Isn’t that what you’ve been wanting for years?” Twilight asked.

“Well yes, but not exactly… not like this…” Rainbow stumbled. “She was… she wasn’t herself.”

“Look, Rainbow. You know her the best of all of us. That makes you the best pony to help her if she’s having problems,” Twilight explained. “But in order for me to get involved, I’m gonna need a little more to go on than just ‘she’s acting weird.’”

“Yeah but… she’s not…” Rainbow floundered and grasped for the words before accepting defeat and slouching. “Alright. Talk to you later, princess.”

Scootaloo had looked confused the whole exchange, but had remained quiet. With Rainbow Dash turning to leave, Scootaloo began tugging at Dash’s mane and saying something, no doubt asking what was wrong with Derpy. That last word though…

Princess…

Why had it sounded so bitter? Was Twilight just imagining it or was Rainbow Dash really resentful of her friend?

Should I have been a princess or a friend for that? I’m sure Dash can handle it, but did I handle that wrong? Whatever the problem was, it was really eating at her…

Twilight simply watched her friend walk away, wrestling with herself over running to catch Dash and find out exactly what the issue with Derpy was, but eventually decided it could wait. Twilight addressed her guards.

“Come on. I’m in the mood for something sweet.”

* * * * * * *

Applejack and Big Macintosh stared at the young grey stallion working in the apple orchard. He had answered to the name Caramel, but looked nothing like the pony they knew. Still, he did Caramel’s work on Caramel’s path to earn Caramel’s money.

But just what in the hay is wrong?

Pulling in his last cart full of apples, Caramel stopped before the Apple siblings and set the cart on its front legs.

“I’ve finished collecting my apples,” he reported dutifully.

“Eeyup,” Big Macintosh answered, still eyeing his friend.

“I’ve got yer pay all set, Caramel,” Applejack said, trying to sound chipper in blind hopes of eliciting any reaction from the pony before her.

She lifted a sack full of bits and dropped it into Caramel’s saddle bags while Big Mac disconnected the cart’s harness. Applejack helped Caramel put on his saddle bags, all the while noticing just how weird this felt. The feeling was one of being alone, like she could see, hear, and touch the pony right in front of her, but she couldn’t feel anypony there.

“So, ya gonna head over to the Carrots’ place? I’m sure they could use some help,” Applejack cheerfully suggested.

“Yes.”

Okay, this passed freaky a while ago. What’s yer deal?

“Well, I guess we’ll see ya ‘round!”

“Good day.”

With a farewell so bland it would offend even the Mayor, Caramel set off back down the dirt road while Applejack and her brother stared dumbfounded.

“He was grey, wasn’t he?

“Eeyup.”

“He didn’t have a cutie mark, did he?”

“Nope.”

“You scared too?”

“Eeyup.”

“Pinkie should be here soon. Ya can go into town ta meet yer friends when she gets here.”

“…”

“Yer gonna follow him, aren’t you?”

“Eeyup.”

“Alraht. When Pinkie gets her, ya can head out. I wanna check something with him first.”

“Eeyup.”

Applejack trotted after Caramel, only to find he’d made surprising progress toward the Carrots’ farm.

“This is the only ‘work’ he could be talking about on his day off!”

The statement caught Applejack by surprise. A stallion nearby sounded angry.

“I haven’t seen him yet. Do you think he could be finished already?”

“If he did, he’s the fastest worker in all Equestria.”

Applejack ran toward the conversation, rounding a bend in the road that lead down an incline where she found two pegasi AJ recognized as members of the weather team, Flitter and Thunderlane. Flitter responded first.

“Oh! Hey Applejack, have you seen-“

“Caramel?” Applejack finished. Both pegasi perked up at the apparently favorable answer.

“You’ve seen him?” Thunderlane asked. “Was he-“

“Grey?” Applejack finished again. The two noticeably slumped from a mix of disappointment and fear.

“Yeah…” they both said together.

“I’ll go get Big Mac. Let’s go to the hospital n’see what Dr. Stable has to say. Somethin’s wrong and we don’t like it.”

* * * * * * *

“He was all grey an’ his cutie mark was gone!”

Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle sat on the front steps of Town Hall, fervently discussing with nervous excitement the scariest thing Applebloom had ever seen.

“It was the scariest thing ah’ve ever seen!”

“Can cutie marks even disappear?” Sweetie Belle asked.

“Something bad must’ve happened!” Scootaloo said.

“Yeah, he finally took the hint.”

The three young fillies looked up to see the offensive sneer of Diamond Tiara with the best friend money could buy, Silver Spoon.

“The hay you talking about?” Scootaloo demanded.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Diamond Tiara taunted. “Nopony wanted him around. Now he’s being the most useful he’s ever been!”

“That’s not a nice thing t’say!” Applebloom defended. “This is serious!”

“Right, I am soo sorry.” Diamond Tiara’s voice flowed with sarcasm. “Just like that waste-of-a-mailmare. On the bright side, she’s finally doing something right!”

The three fillies could do nothing but bare their teeth in seething rage, or at least they could do nothing they’d be able to stop.

“Maybe the three of you could find out what happened,” she suggested. “Maybe then you could do something useful.”

Laughing between each other, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon departed, leaving Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle to boil in their anger and indignation.

“She might have a point,” Sweetie Belle chimed up, drawing confused glares from her friends. “If we did find out what was going on, we might be able to help.”

Applebloom and Scootaloo exchanged glances, calmly mulling over the idea before bubbling over with excitement.

“That’s a great idea!” Applebloom cheered.

“Yeah, we’ll follow Caramel and Derpy and find out what’s making them do this!” Scootaloo said. “I say it’s pod ponies!”

“Cutie Mark Crusader… uh…” Sweetie Bell stopped. “What would we call this?”

“Day Savers?” Applebloom suggested.

“Private Investigators?” Scootaloo said.

“Whatever, we’ll find a name later!” Applebloom said.

“Cutie Mark Crusaders, go! Yay!” They all cheered in unison.

* * * * * * *

“There ain’t no doubt, Twi. He looked just like we did when Discord got us.”

The revelation gave Twilight pause. Rainbow Dash hadn’t mentioned anything concrete with Derpy, but with a second pony now acting strangely the odds of the two sharing symptoms were almost one hundred percent.

Luna’s moon shone through the windows and candles lit the main room of the Golden Oak library, where Twilight convened with Applejack, Big Macintosh, Thunderlane, and Flitter with a compliment of the night guards on standby. Flitter had been silent since entering and had barely been able to even open her eyes. Twilight thought she might be crying, but couldn’t be sure.

“But you said he had no cutie mark, correct?” Twilight asked.

“No, he didn’t,” Thunderlane answered.

“What did Dr. Stable say?” Twilight asked.

“He just said it was like no sickness he’d ever seen. It’s gotta be magic, or a curse, or something,” Thunderlane said.

“I’ll contact the princesses and ask if Discord is still behaving himself. There’s a chance this could be one of his pranks, or worse, a plan,” Twilight said.

“Ah don’t think so,” Applejack suggested. “When we fought Discord the first time, he wanted to see ponies squirm. We tried everything to get a reaction outta Caramel. He never even got annoyed.”

“It’s possible Discord might do this to be watching us squirm,” Twilight proposed.

“Twilight,” Applejack interjected. Twilight stopped at the forceful answer from the farmer. “Please just… look into it.”

Applejack’s eyes felt wider than usual, like she really didn’t know what to do next.

Twilight nodded.

“Alright. I’ll examine him myself in the morning,” Twilight promised.

The visitors silently nodded and made their way toward the door. Before leaving, Flitter managed to open her eyes and look at the new princess of Ponyville. Her eyes were misty and red. Her brow and lip muscles were tensed. She had in fact been crying and was still clearly fighting the tears. The look bore another emotion beneath, though, one that took Twilight a second to place.

It was anger. Flitter’s look held contempt for her princess, but it also swirled with some other feelings that made the expression murky. Fear, indignation, guilt, blame. Flitter followed her friends into the streets and the door closed behind her.

Maybe I have changed… Maybe the crown has affected me… Maybe I’m not thinking about this the right way. It’s not like I’m running a whole country, I do have the time to spend on the problem…

…

Maybe I’m thinking more than I’m feeling…

Twilight silently marched to her bed room, lost in her thoughts, not even aware of the guards asking if she was alright.

* * * * * * *

The sky blazed with the color of another spectacular sunset. Reds and oranges flowed and burned through the sky above the farms just outside Ponyville. The workers and residents finished up their chores, putting away their tools and heading in for nice night’s sleep. On a hill nearby, unaffiliated any farm or crop, two young fillies sat, watching the beauty of the heavenly dance.

“The sunset’s beautiful tonight.”

“Yeah.”

“You ever wonder where we’re going?”

“Sometimes.”

“My dad started Barnyard Bargains, and yours got Moon Silver going. But those were sorta… chance.”

“I know.”

“What if, you know… What if my grandpa didn’t sell the first zap apple jam? What if your dad sold the tiara to just another random somepony, instead of the Duchess? Would we still know each other?

“I don’t know.”

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon watched the sunset like they always did. Talked like they always did, and just relaxed they always did. Well, okay, they might not always do that, but up her nopony was around to get in the way. When it was just Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, the pressures were as absent as the other ponies of the town.

The hill, this hill, was their hill. Everypony knew of its existence but nopony acknowledge its significance. When stargazing, everypony went to the open fields. Lovers went out to the lighter forests, and bird watchers could go just about anywhere. But up here, this one hill could look upon the sky and couldn’t see anything else. No farms, no town, nothing. The perfect place to be alone and collect one’s thoughts existed only because nopony cared about it.

“I know I’m still way too young to be thinking about this, but I don’t even know what I want to do when I grow up,” Diamond Tiara said.

“Me either,” said Silver Spoon.

“What do you think about your cutie mark?” asked Tiara.

“What do mean? Like, do I like having a spoon on my flank?”

“Well, maybe. But like, what does yours mean?”

“I think mine means I’m good with the finer things. Upper class, you know?”

“But how is mine any different?” Tiara said. “Sometimes I feel like mine means I’m just here to make someone else look good.”

Silver Spoon didn’t respond, she just let the silence flow in.

“I think we should get going. Don’t want to be out here when the sun sets,” Tiara said. “Come on, my dad said you can spend the night, if it’s okay with your dad.”

Silver Spoon stretched, standing up in a fashion similar to jelly.

“Okay.”

The two youngsters began the scenic walk back to town along the rolling dirt paths, watching the stars spark to life overhead. Despite the relaxing sounds of night wildlife and the breathtaking and gorgeous transition from day to night, the silence between the two friends bore something… else… There was some pervasive overall feeling Tiara could not quite explain. The closest way she could think to describe it was knowing something was wrong or out of place.

Silver hasn’t been saying much lately…

“Hey, Silv? You okay?”

“Hm? What?”

“You’ve been really quiet lately. Are you doing okay?”

“Oh, yeah. I’m fine, I’m doing fine,” Silver Spoon’s nervous smile did not convince Diamond Tiara. The smile was weak and still had a tinge of sadness, although a small one. No doubt, something was bugging Silver Spoon.

She’ll tell me when she’s ready.

The two continued in that same uncomfortable silence for several unsettling minutes. The silence was practically tangible, something was not right with her friend. Diamond Tiara bumped into Silver Spoon.

“Tag! You’re it!”

Diamond Tiara galloped away from “it” who in turn lit up with a more pronounced smile than earlier, and gave chase.

For a brief time of indeterminate length to those present, the night air carried the happy cries of two children just having fun, lost in the carefree bliss of simply being children. The two dodged, ducked, dashed, and dove, laughing all the while, resting where necessary, running where useful. As the excitement rose so too did their creativity, weaving between the trees of the forest, and bobbing behind rocks.

Diamond Tiara crouched, playfully growling at the tree line where her prey had disappeared. She stalked and prowled in search of she-who-was-not-it, growing steadily more anxious as the realization hit her she could hear nothing but the sounds of the crickets, and even those had faded some.

“Silver Spoon?”

Silence.

“Silv? Come on, now, you’re scaring me.”

Silence.

“Silver Spoon? Are you alright? Please, say something!”

Silence.

Panic setting in, Diamond Tiara ran into the trees. Adrenaline burned her veins, her heart pounded in her ears, her muscles twitched and quivered. The cooling air stung her eyes and sweat dampened her coat as she searching high and low for the only one in all of Ponyville to whom she could connect.

“SILVER! SILVER SPOON! PLEASE, SAY SOMETHING!” Tiara screamed into the chill night air, voice fraying from harsh overuse. “SILVER SPOON! PLEASE DON’T LEAVE ME!”

There’s still enough light to search! Maybe if I get to one of the farms, they could get a search party!

Diamond Tiara galloped toward an opening in the trees through which she could see the path. As she drew near, relief found her when she saw the friend she’d lost waiting on the path.

“Oh, Silver Spoon! I’m so happy I… fou…”

It was the feeling of dread, the absolute horror when something bad had already happened and it was far too late to do anything about it. Silver Spoon’s coat lacked any type of shine, her eyes calm, face slack, and posture eased, and cutie mark conspicuously absent.

“Silver?” Diamond Tiara’s voice quivered, her eyes wide and shivering with abject terror.

“I am fine. Sorry to worry you.”

“W-w-who a-are you?”

“I am Silver Spoon. I believe we should be going.”

Diamond Tiara knew of the scary movies older ponies watched, the movies where a monster chased victims through woods or cemeteries or old factories and abandoned hospitals. The confined spaces made the fear of an ambush ever present. The movies never mentioned anything about just how frightening wide open spaces could be. The lack of cover or obstacles meant anything could be watching from anywhere and you could never see them. The unobstructed gentle hills in every direction reminded Tiara just how alone she was right now and just how far she had to run before finding help. The trees behind her stood as just another spot the danger could be hiding. It could be right behind her and she’d never see it coming.

Not-Silver-Spoon stood there, just as she had when Diamond Tiara had first emerged from the forest. The way she stood out in the open, not even trying to hide was creepy to say the least. The fear she now held toward her friend was far too much for Diamond Tiara to handle.

With fear gumming up her thoughts, she ran. She didn’t know where she was headed, she just ran.

* * * * * * *

“Twilight! Twilight! Wake up, we got a problem! OW!”

Twilight jumped up from her troubled sleep, face meeting the floor in the process.

“Get off me! Let go, this is an emergency! I have to talk to Twilight!”

Regally stumbling down the stairs, Twilight found four of her guards had wrestled Rainbow Dash to the floor where she remained pinned.

“Let her up. She’s okay,” Twilight yawned.

The guards begrudgingly obeyed, maintaining their focus on the visitor. Rainbow stood, shaking herself and turning to Twilight.

“Twilight! We have a problem!” Rainbow Dash shouted.

“Is it about Derpy?” Twilight asked.

“Yeah! We gotta get to Fluttershy’s place!” Rainbow said.

“Shouldn’t we go to Derpy’s-“

“NO!”

The interruption took Twilight by surprise.

“We can’t go to Derpy’s house, not until you see something else first!” Rainbow Dash barked. The look in her eye was an angrily helpless, pleading urgency. It was a look one did not often see on the blue pegasus.

“Alright,” Twilight agreed. “Everypony get close.”

Rainbow Dash’s sigh of relief comforted Twilight to some extent while she and the guards gathered around the princess. Twilight’s horn glowed with crackling purple light as a blinding flash ignited, engulfing the six ponies.

When the light died down, the group stood outside Fluttershy’s quaint cottage. Fireflies danced in the night air and crickets sang from the grass.

A filly cried inside.

The first sound that registered with Twilight’s ears was the distraught wailing of a terrified little filly from inside. The lights were on.

Twilight exchanged glances with Rainbow Dash, the weight of the situation finally hitting her.

“Guards! Stand watch outside! Make sure nopony comes in!” Twilight ordered over her shoulder while she and Rainbow Dash ran inside.

Inside, Twilight beheld Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie trying to comfort a crying unicorn filly. Pinkie was not pulling her usual antics to cheer the young one up. Instead, she only helped Fluttershy cradle the little one as she cried and bawled, clinging to the older mares for dear life.

When the shock of the scene wore off, Twilight realized the child’s cries formed words.

“I want my momma back! I want my momma back!”

Anger

A veritable orchestra of crickets filled the woods surrounding Sweet Apple Acres. The sun just nestled below the horizon painting the sky in fading pinks and oranges. Out amid the thinly packed trees stood a clubhouse built upon a platform supported by four sturdy legs and a tree. The two-story architecture belied the young fillies who had built it and who were only now lighting their lamps out of necessity.

Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle sat in the main and only room of the Cutie Mark Crusaders Clubhouse (yay) with pieces of paper scattered upon the floor, each sheet bearing an insane number of notes, not all of which were very focused (Sweetie Bell threw out the term “organized chaos”). A map of Ponyville hung on the wall with little red and blue pins stuck into arbitrary points around town.

“Caramel just seemed ta be goin’ to usual places,” Applebloom said. “Market, hardware store, bank, the same kinda places he’d normally go.”

“Really? This is normal for him?” Scootaloo exclaimed. “He doesn’t go anywhere fun? He’s gotta be the most boring stallion in town.”

“Well, he normally goes out with some of the other stallions,” Sweetie Belle indicated, garnering quizzically raised eyebrows from her fellow crusaders. “What? That’s what the other adults said when they were following him.”

“That’s… a really good observation,” Applebloom complimented.

“The world isn’t about to end, is it?” Scootaloo jested.

“Hey, I make good observations!” Sweetie Belle protested. “Like with Derpy, she also didn’t pick up her usual order from Sugarcube Corner!”

“That’s right, she only bought one muffin, and it wasn’t even her favorite kind,” Scootaloo said.

“It looks like somethin’s takin’ away their personalities,” Applebloom observed. “They’re not doin’ things that aren’t needed.”

“Who doesn’t need to have fun?” Sweetie Bell asked. The question brought a nervous silence to the clubhouse.

Knock knock knock

The three young fillies jumped, with Applebloom yelping only slightly louder than Sweetie Belle. The three exchanged wary glances.

“Who could that be?” Applebloom whispered.

“What if it’s the thing that’s causing all this?” Scootaloo whispered her response.

“Who’s there?” Sweetie Belle asked loudly of the visitor, eliciting shocked and horrified looks from her compatriots. “What?”

“It’s um… It’s me…” came the weak and worried response. “It’s, ahem… it’s Diamond Tiara…”

“What’s she doin’ here?” Applebloom whispered angrily.

“What are you doing out here?” Sweetie Belle called, approaching the window, again receiving indignant looks from the others. Upon reaching the window, Sweetie’s demeanor changed. She tapped on the window to get Tiara’s attention. “What’s wrong?”

“I just… can I come in? Please?” Diamond Tiara’s voice was barely audible inside the clubhouse, but Applebloom could tell their visitor was either crying or about to start.

Sweetie Belle opened the door and ushered the young pink filly with her namesake diamond tiara atop her head into the CMC clubhouse. Her gaze hung low and her legs and lip trembled, and misty tears welled in the corners of her eyes. The four stood in awkward silence, none of them sure how to proceed.

“Diamond Tiara?” Applebloom asked. “What’re ya doin’ all th’way out here?”

“Yeah! Can’t you be a snob somewhere else?” Scootaloo stabbed. “We’re trying to help ponies, and that’s a little more important.”

Tiara’s eyes clenched shut, squeezing liquid sorrow into a more freely flowing rivulet.

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle both shot mean looks at the pegasus, who in turn huffed and turned away.

“What’s wrong?” Sweetie Belle asked softly.

It took Diamond Tiara a few seconds to stem the tide before she could answer.

“It’s… It’s Silver Spoon…” she choked through tightened throat and reddened eyes. “She turned grey…”

“Isn’t she grey already?” Scootaloo jabbed again.

“Wait, did anything disappear?” Applebloom prompted.

Diamond Tiara nodded weakly.

“Her cutie mark.”

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle gasped while Scootaloo softened up enough to turn around to face her tormentor.

“Did she act different?” Sweetie Belle asked.

“She was…” Tiara fumbled for the words. “Blank… she acted… grey…”

“When did this happen?” Applebloom asked.

“About an hour ago…” Diamond Tiara’s throat tightened around her voice. “We were walking around the comma…”

The three other fillies looked to each other for confirmation that her statement made no sense.

“It’s a trail we walk…” Diamond Tiara explained, noting their confusion. “We start at her house and walk around the town. We come out to the farms and head back… ending at… my house… we called it that because it sorta looks like a comma from above…”

“That’s a tradition for you,” Sweetie Belle stated.

"W-we’ve done it since we w-were lit-tle…” sobs racked Tiara’s chest and throat. “E-ev-ver since we were allowed out on our ow-ho-ho-hownnn…”

Diamond Tiara reduced to a weeping, quivering mess right before the CMC. Normally, they would have kicked her out by now. The urge to drag the wealthiest bully in town to the Everfree and leave her there still itched at their minds. Something was not normal, though. Something about how she fell apart discussing the habits old friends intimately shared struck the girls as unusual. No, unusual was wrong. This was wrong. The whole situation was wrong. Something that could take a pony from their own bodies was terrifying, and the CMC wouldn’t dare abandon anyp- anyone victimized by such a horrifying thing.

As long as she wasn’t lying.

“She’s making this up,” Scootaloo accused. “You heard how she talked about Derpy and Caramel, and now she’s saying it happened to Silver Spoon? She’s just trying to humiliate us again.”

She’s certainly done that before.

Diamond Tiara’s track record was muddy with a dash of raw sewage, and that was being nice about it. Everything from property damage to blackmail with photographs taken by an unwitting stalker, clearly nothing was below Diamond Tiara, not even exploitation of a crisis.

“Ah’m sorry,” Applebloom agreed, albeit shaky in conviction. “Ah just don’t know if we can trust her.”

Diamond Tiara’s eyes widened like a lost little foal as the tears welled and fell. Her stance hunched and her head bowed in defeat. From quivering lip and clenching chest issued quiet, stifled sobs. She turned toward the door like the gallows awaited her on the other side, dragging her hooves across the wooden floor.

Sweetie Belle touched Diamond Tiara’s foreleg, stopping her.

The two stood looking at each other for a time, neither filly saying a word. Applebloom noticed Sweetie’s eyes scanned all of Tiara’s face, all the while holding the arches of empathy in her brow and mouth. Sweetie Belle pulled Diamond Tiara into a full hug which, though momentarily stunned, Tiara returned, silently crying into Sweetie Belle’s shoulder.

Some minutes passed before Tiara had calmed and Sweetie spoke.

“She’s not lying.”

“What?” Scootaloo shouted indignantly. “How do you know?”

“Rarity’s my sister,” Sweetie Belle explained. “She’s said things she didn’t mean and made promises she never kept. I know what a lie feels like. But sometimes, she was honest. Sometimes, she kept her promises. I know how strange that sounds, but Diamond Tiara doesn’t feel like a lie right now.”

“Yer right, that does sound strange,” Applebloom said. “And ah totally understand.”

Scootaloo’s pure shock and disbelief burned in her eyes as she gave Applebloom the are you kidding me stare.

“Scoots, please,” Applebloom begged. “You’ll just have to trust us.”

“I promise she’s telling the truth,” Sweetie Belle reassured.

“Ugh! Fine,” Scootaloo groaned her concession. “But if she’s lying, you each owe me a milkshake!”

“Wait! This ain’t our usual crusadin,” Applebloom said. “We really should go tell Twilight.”

“Rainbow Dash talked to her earlier,” Scootaloo explained. “She said she needed more proof of something weird before she could do anything.”

“Then let’s go find some!” Sweetie Belle chimed.

Diamond Tiara smiled weakly but with a relieved hopefulness that said all that needed saying given the situation. Even so, she still voiced her appreciation all the same as the group embarked.

“Thank you.”

* * * * * * *

Twilight stared. The paralytic realization of the situation that her own inaction had caused locked her in place, lost in the pleading cries of a terrified child. For the first time since her coronation, Twilight saw just how much and how little had really changed; the responsibility of protecting her subjects and the new access to the magic to do so being all that had changed. In the end, she was still the same unicorn who loved books, cherished her friends, and cared for the well-being of others.

She just needed to lift the crown from her eyes.

Twilight hesitantly stepped closer, causing both Pinkie and Fluttershy to look up for any kind of help or instruction.

“It’s okay, Dinky,” Fluttershy comforted. “Twilight’s here.”

“We went right for the best,” Pinkie Pie said with uncharacteristic sobriety. “We got the best Princess for the job.” The little one looked up, her crying lessened. “I told you we were serious about finding your momma.”

“Hello…” Twilight began, but faltered off when she heard just how stupidly formal that sounded. In a situation like this, she needed to be more personable and sensitive.

Sensitive…

Twilight decided it best to throw deliberation to the winds and let her feelings guide her.

Drawing closer, she knelt down to bring her face to the same level as the young filly.

“My name is Twilight Sparkle,” she introduced, her voice maternally soft. “What’s yours?”

“D-d-dinky d-doo,” answered the little filly.

“Pleased to meet you, Dinky,” Twilight said. “Would you please tell me what happened to your mother?”

“S-she came h-home from-m work y-yest-terday,” the foal explained, still stuttering through her sobbing. “B-but she was wrong. Mommy’s eyes aren’t i-in straight, but they w-were yesterday. Her cutie mark was g-gone. She only brought one muffin.”

“How many does mommy normally get?” Twilight questioned.

“T-two,” Dinky explained. “O-one for me, one for h-her. We eat together.”

“How was she acting?” Twilight pressed.

“She was calm,” Dinky said. “Like she didn’t care…”

Twilight drew a blank. How was anypony supposed to respond to that? How could anything make that better? Though her mind was lost, her heart knew exactly where it was supposed to be. She took the crying Dinky Doo into a motherly embrace, stroking the back of the little filly’s head and easing her with quiet reassurances.

“Your mother does care. Every mother does,” Twilight said. “Whatever’s wrong with her, I promise, I’ll find what it is and bring your mommy back safely.”

Dinky Doo sniffled, wide eyes projecting a smile of hope.

“Really?” she said.

“I’m a mare of my word,” Twilight said. “You’ve got a princess helping you and mommy. I’ll get the whole army if I need to make sure she’s safe.”

The little one erupted, clinging to Twilight with tightest hug she could muster. “Thank you, thank you, princess!” Twilight hadn’t noticed at first, but there wasn’t a dry eye in the house, nor in the armor for that matter.

* * * * * * *

“I’ve got it right here, signed and stamped.”

“Could she tell the difference?”

“There’s nothing to tell. This is a legit work order for a legit work request.”

“Thank you. I’ll need a couple minutes; you can give it to her when I’m done.”

“Sure thing, princess.”

Twilight turned away from the older white and grey gentlecolt wearing the blue uniform of post office manager. Twilight nodded to guards as she entered the break room, just as Derpy punched back in from break.

“Good afternoon, Derpy,” Twilight greeted.

“Good afternoon, Princess Twilight,” Derpy said, bowing before royalty. Twilight noted the lack of surprise and nervousness she knew ponies had at a surprise visit from a princess. The parasprite catastrophe still haunted Roseluck’s nightmares.

The sight of the now solid grey mare screamed something was indeed wrong. The bleaching of her mane and tail somehow didn’t stand out as much as her demeanor. The pegasus behaved flat and calm, simultaneously bored and boring. She spoke and moved with the same energy and manner as being wide awake but none of the spunk and electricity of being conscious. Her trademark skewed eyes now flat and straight with no trace of her usual kindness or curiosity. Twilight prided herself in being able to articulate any feeling or situation but somehow her vocabulary failed her; but she owed it to the mother and her daughter she could have helped to try. An old romance cliché often described a lover’s eyes as being pools one could lose oneself in. Looking deep into her patient’s eyes, Twilight saw only an empty and stripped rock quarry.

Whoever this is, it isn’t Derpy.

Twilight cleared her throat.

“Derpy, I have a special job for you,” Twilight said. “I’ve put in the order and your boss should be here in a few minutes with the finished invoice.” Derpy nodded her comprehension. Such an understated response left an awkward pause. “How have you been doing, if you don’t mind my asking?”

“I have been fine,” Derpy said. “The bills have been paid.

The bills have been paid? Who talks like that? Why would that be important?

“I’m guessing usual expenses? Rent, utilities, those sorts of things?” Twilight asked.

“Yes. They can pile up,” Derpy said.

Something so mundane is worth mentioning, but why?

“With the weather lately there’s a higher mold and pollen count than normal. Have you been having allergies?” Twilight tested, she had a hunch.

“No, I have had no such allergies,” Derpy said.

“With the weather lately there’s a higher mold and pollen count than normal. Have you been having allergies?” Twilight said.

“No, I do not have allergies at this time,” Derpy said, not batting an eye at the deliberate repetition of a question.

“With the weather lately there’s a higher mold and pollen count than normal. Have you been having allergies?” Twilight asked for a third time.

“No, The pollen has not given trouble yet,” Derpy stated.

She’s not even annoyed. She just… responds.

“Derpy, how has Dinky been doing lately?” Twilight asked.

“She has been okay. She ran out last night, but she will be fine,” Derpy said.

“How was she when she left?” Twilight asked, astonished at how nonchalant Derpy was over her daughter running away and just how little significance the sentence seemed to hold.

“I could not tell,” Derpy said.

“What facial expression did she have?” Twilight asked.

“She was crying,” Derpy said.

“Could you tell how she was feeling?” Twilight asked.

“No I could not,” Derpy said.

She could see her own daughter was crying, but can’t associate an emotion or mood with it.

The last breakthrough left just one final thing to check. Twilight was going to hate herself for this and would likely be hated for it as well.

“Derpy, you are an unskilled waste of flesh,” Twilight said, the wrenching guilt squeezing at her head.

“Okay,” Her answer was flat. No anger, no frustration, not even mild annoyance. She was simply calm, taking it all in stride.

“We have an important job for you,” Twilight said, louder than was necessary, glancing over toward the door to make sure the manager got the message. “I am going to give a speech in one week and I need you to make sure each and every house in Hoofington and Mareseilles gets a flier with the information. The job is going to take a long time, but I’ve organized a hefty bonus with your boss. Do you think you’re up to the task?”

“Yes I am, princess,” Derpy said. The manager entered with the work order, followed by Twilight’s guards who brought crates of freshly printed leaflets.

“Ah, perfect timing!” Twilight said. “The guards will carry the crates to the local post offices and you will pass them out. Are you set?”

“Yes I am, princess,” Derpy gave her answer and the team set out. Between travel distance and number of houses, even Rainbow Dash wouldn’t be able to do this until evening. Twilight went to meet with the others and saw Rainbow Dash galloping toward her in rage. Twilight barely had time motion to her guards to hold their positions before a hoof struck her in the jaw.

“How dare you say that! I never thought you were so snobby!” Dash roared, drawing nervous stares from everypony nearby and confusing the guards. Twilight’s magic restrained the furious pegasus after the second blow, holding her in mid air to calm down.

“Rainbow Dash, please listen to me,” Twilight’s eyes misted over, partially because of the hit, mostly out of guilt. “I didn’t want to insult her like that, but I had to test something.”

“What could you possibly be testing by calling her a waste of flesh?” Dash snorted like a bull.

“Did you notice how little she reacted?”

Rainbow Dash’ face glowed with the wide-eyed look of enlightening realization. Her muscles relaxed and her huffing slowed to a heavy breath.

“Did you notice how she didn’t even get irritated when I asked the same question worded the same way three times in a row?”

Rainbow’s breathing slowed to normal. Twilight’s magic dissipated, releasing Dash from the restraint.

“You were right, something happened to Derpy. I should have listened to you in the first place,” Twilight said. “Now I know whatever happened affected more than just her behavior. She seemed unable to connect with other ponies on emotional levels. Even Discord didn’t do that and I don’t think he even could.”

“So what do we do now?” Rainbow asked.

“I was going to use this time to talk to Derpy’s co-workers and all of Derpy’s friends, but now I think this is more personal in nature. There might be something she doesn’t tell others. We need to know what that is.”

“No,” Rainbow Dash refused. “I’m not snooping around her house.”

“Rainbow Dash, you know I wouldn’t even suggest if it wasn’t an emergency,” Twilight coaxed. “I’m convinced there’s something she doesn’t feel she can trust anypony to tell them and it may be what’s causing this.”

“What couldn’t she tell us?” Rainbow asked.

“Do you know where Dinky came from?”

The dead silence filled volumes.

“Okay, let’s go…” said Rainbow Dash

* * * * * * *

“Mommy gave me a key to get into the house if I ever came home and she wasn’t here.”

“May we please use it?”

“Okay, Miss Fluttershy.”

“Okay, the two of you, take up your positions, and try to look a little less… militant.”

The team going into the home of Derpy needed to remain small for the sake of secrecy. A high traffic market on street level meant there would be many eyes that might notice things out of the ordinary, such as a princess with a full contingent of armed guards entering and snooping around the home of a seemingly random pegasus mare. Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Dinky Doo, and one earth pony guard accompanied Twilight into Derpy’s apartment while two more unicorn guards took post across the street at a nearby café. The plan was for everyone with a royal appearance to try and cover it up to avoid raising suspicion. For Twilight, it was a simple matter of changing mane style and wearing a hat and long coat. The bluish grey of Twilight’s garb made her look almost like a repair mare at a glance fixing a utility problem in one of the apartments.

The guards only needed to remove their armor… for Twilight to realize just how out of place they looked. The military training resulted in a buff physique and strong muscle tone that inherently drew attention, whether they wanted it or not. The guard who would be entering the apartment wore a grey coverall jumpsuit that was strangely easy to find in a town with no industrial sector. Twilight merely requisitioned unused utility apparel from the Ponyville dam, taking only a few in the less common sizes to fit the guards.

The two who would be waiting across the street took a table, each looking past the other to watch down the street. Nothing could make those two look less like guards, though Pinkie Pie’s joke about a candy swirl sombrero sounded like a good start. The grey jumpsuits would have to do along with a backstory about just getting off work.

The team ascended the stairs and found their way to apartment 4, the home of the first patient. Dinky inserted the key and opened the door.

“Okay, everypony, be careful. I’m sure Derpy would not be happy with us snooping like this, so don’t go digging,” Twilight instructed. A nod of agreement passed among the group while they entered and the guard took post at the door. Twilight stopped, lowering her voice. “Hey, you were the one who yelled at me earlier, right?” The guard’s eyes widened in shock and shame before Twilight held up a hoof to stop him. “Listen, I want to know it’s alright. I’m sorry for putting you in that position. But if it wasn’t for you, I probably would have walked right out of Ponyville,” she said. Her speech seemed to be working, helping him return to a less tense state. “What's your name?”

“My name is Stone Wall,” the earth guard answered, more than a little bewildered.

“Stone Wall, I hereby order you to do whatever it takes to bring me back if I zone out like that again, especially if I’m about to miss something important, like an appointment,” Twilight said.

“Yes, your highness!” he said, smiling and stomping a hoof in salute.

Satisfied and positively beaming, Twilight entered the apartment, leaving the gua- Stone Wall to his job.

Inside, Twilight found a mostly neat and clean apartment. It was furnished with softer hues of blues and greys and had all the necessities: kitchen, main living room, two bedrooms, a laundry room, and a bathroom. Rainbow was examining the living room while Pinkie Pie went through the kitchen. Both appeared to grasp the weight of the situation as neither seemed too energetic or goofy, for a change.

“I’ve got some book cases over here,” Rainbow called. “Got a few book series, some picture books and… what is this? Is this an album?”

Twilight levitated the bound collection over to her and scanned through the pages. The photographs showed various things of no discernible connection, at least not readily apparent. The photographs consisted of forests, plains, meadows, mountains, aerial views of towns, low angles of buildings, even a few pictures of ordinary ponies going about their daily lives and different animals caught seemingly unawares doing their usual things. A picture of a manticore taken from above looked like the beast had no idea it was being observed, or even how close the observer was. Similarly, several bears and even a hydra had been photographed from a frightening proximity.

The last quarter of the book contained pictures of athletic events. The pictures bore an expert quality and captured beautiful details. A Wonderbolt beat his wings at the lowest point of a dive. A minotaur heaved a huge javelin, striking the perfect stance for a throw. A young earth pony in gymnast attire launched herself into a forward flip, the moment captured as her body, mane, and tail formed a spiral in the air. In each case the amount of detail was astonishing, from the shine of the equipment to the individual beads of sweat in their coats and on their brows.

“She wants to be a photographer.”

“What?” Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash said in unison, Pinkie Pie pulling her head from a cupboard.

“Derpy took all these pictures, look at the paper,” Twilight said, excited in her discovery. “She developed these herself. It’s the only explanation for why she has pictures of these specific things.”

“If she wants to be a photographer, why isn’t she one now?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“I’m guessing for the same reason she’s taking care of a unicorn filly,” Twilight said, lowering her voice. “Speaking of which, where are Fluttershy and Dinky?”

“Fluttershy thought Dinky shouldn’t hear what we might find,” Rainbow said.

“It might hurt her,” Pinkie Pie finished.

Twilight only nodded. Heading into the kitchen, Twilight found a tiled floor with moderate wear and tear. In fact, everything in the kitchen had clear signs of use from nicks in the wood to dents in the counter. The few appliances that were present were only the most necessary: microwave, refrigerator and a toaster. The cupboards and drawers had full sets of dishes and silverware but not quite enough to fill the spaces. The refrigerator looked stocked but still had a good amount of empty space on the shelves.

“Utilitarian,” Twilight said. “She has only what they need. I’m going to check the bedroom.”

Twilight made her way down the hall passing Dinky’s room where Dinky showed Fluttershy her toys and games. Twilight paused. The young filly’s room had full furnishings and many toys. Nothing huge, but to see such a stocked room after two that were so bare struck the princess as important.

Entering the master bedroom, Twilight found a few wall hangings around a bed with a simple wooden frame. The walls were painted a bluish-purple with worn brown carpeting. A golden glimmer on the night stand caught Twilight’s eye. Going over to investigate, Twilight moved her head as close to the round object as she could. Twilight gasped, using her magic to lift the golden hoop up and maneuver it front of her eyes, inspecting every detail.

The door swung open.

“Twilight? Are you okay?” Pinkie Pie said as she and Rainbow Dash entered. “We heard you gasp…”

“Twilight?” Rainbow said. “Is that…”

“A wedding ring.”

Silence fell upon the three friends. None of them knew exactly how they should react to the revelation.

Twilight noticed an inscription along the inside of the ring:

You’re already perfect

“Rainbow, did Derpy ever mention being married?”

“No.”

“Did she ever mention being engaged?”

“Never.”

“Girls,” Twilight said, voice stern and solid. “I take back what I said earlier. We’re going to go digging now. There is something Derpy never told anypony, and I think it has to do with her current state.”

Twilight expected some sort of protest. All she got was a silent delay before her friends complied, the three of them searching through drawers, the closet, even under the bed.

“I found something,” Rainbow said, clearing random items and clothing from around a trunk. With a click, the trunk opened.

Photographs, medals, love letters, every relic of a beautiful romance lay before them. Right on top, so the owner wouldn’t have to search, was a framed photograph of Derpy, wearing a wedding dress and a smile of divine bliss.

Standing beside her in the picture, in full ceremonial uniform with a chest full of medals, was a unicorn stallion with white mane and blue coat.

The three stood in awe. How could this be the Derpy they know? Why hadn’t she told them any of this?

“All of my medals and ribbons pale before the honor of your loving attention. I would give all of them up and go through Tartarus and back just for the radiant beauty of your smile,” Rainbow said, reading one of the letters. Pinkie Pie blinked away a tear.

Twilight’s lavender magic moved the items around with gentle care as though they were holy artifacts. She sifted through letters and photographs before coming to the husband’s medals. She lifted them up and examined them one at a time.

“Medal of valor, medal of strength,” Twilight recited, going through the six medals, stopping at the last, stunned by the words. “Medal of Nobility,” Twilight said as she processed just what this meant and how to convey it to Pinkie and Rainbow. “It’s one of the highest honors given to members of the Royal Guard. It’s given to those who fell doing something of extreme honor and bravery above and beyond the call of duty.”

Twilight set everything back the way it was. Tears misted her eyes as she closed the trunk, unable to cover it with the junk that had been there before. Rainbow turned away heading into the main bedroom, keeping her back to Twilight and Pinkie. No matter how she tried to hide it, the gasping movement in Rainbow’s shoulders told Twilight her friend was crying.

“Why,” said Rainbow Dash, her voice cracking. “Why didn’t she tell us?”

“I can’t answer that,” Twilight said, still trying to cope with the revelation. “You’ll have to ask her.”

“Twilight?” Rainbow asked, pausing through the welling tears. “Could you promise me the chance to ask her?”

“I’ll do everything,” Twilight said. The words carried a comforting warmth and determination. A sensation she hadn’t felt since her own reports on friendship undid the corruption of Discord.

“She’s not the only one. Applejack told me.”

“No she isn’t.”

“We need to help him too. I’m in.”

With a nod, the three departed, picking up Fluttershy and Dinky Doo on the way. Fluttershy picked the little filly up and put her on her back. Still misty-eyed, Dash turned to the little unicorn on Fluttershy’s back.

“Dinky?” Rainbow Dash said. “You’ve got the best mom in the world.”

“I know.”

Hope

“Thank you for the notice, your highness. I must be on my way.”

Twilight bid Caramel farewell, concluding the second interview for the day and kicking off the second investigation. As the young worker departed down the road, Twilight joined with her team, now including Applejack, Big Macintosh, Thunderlane and Flitter with Fluttershy taking care of Dinky at her cottage.

“He has all the same behavior and reactions. It’s definitely the same thing,” Twilight announced.

“Great, where does that lead us?” Applejack said.

“Somewhere private to discuss,” Twilight said, nodding toward her library “Pinkie Pie, I need you to follow him. Pay attention to how he acts and speaks. Report back to me later.”

“I’m on it,” she said with a salute and set out.

“Please, everypony. Come inside,” Twilight beckoned the others to join her in her library. Locking the doors and drawing the curtains for privacy, she lead the others to a table where her notes from the cases so far lay open and organized. “I need to know what happened before Caramel ended up like this. Derpy too. Rainbow, did anything specific happen before you saw her like this? Anything emotional?”

“Well, yeah. I sorta, kinda…” Rainbow struggled for moment before giving up and speaking straight. “I yelled at her.”

“What about?” Twilight questioned.

“She made a mistake on weather shift,” Rainbow said.

“What happened afterward?”

“She… um…” Rainbow’s eyes widened. “She left. She never finished her shift. She just went home.”

“I don’t think she went straight home. If you were a sing- were in her position, would you be able to go straight home after being yelled at by your boss?” Twilight said. “She may have ducked out somewhere to calm down,” she turned to Applejack, Flitter, and Thunderlane. “Tell me about Caramel. What sort of stallion is he?”

“Uh, well. He’s, um. Hard working, laid back, he likes relaxing and taking it easy,” Thunderlane said. “He’s never really one for partying, though. He gets nervous.”

"Does he get nervous anywhere else?” Twilight asked.

“No, not that I can think of,” Thunderlane said.

“Yes he does.”

Everyone turned toward Flitter who, for the longest time, had remained quiet. Her eyes and lip still held that guilty sadness that had become characteristic of her over the past couple days.

“When?” Twilight asked, sensing this would be a delicate subject for the mare.

“When we last saw him… normal… he asked me out,” Flitter explained. “He was shy and real timid.”

“Please, tell me what happened,” Twilight asked, her demeanor softening further.

“I… I insulted him,” Flitter stifled a sob. “I told him I was single, not desperate.”

“Has Caramel ever had a marefriend?” Twilight asked Thunderlane.

“Uhh no, I don’t think,” he said. “We’ve known each other since we were foals and I don’t think he has. Not that he wasn’t trying.”

“How often did he try?” Twilight pressed.

“He wasn’t like the standard guy. He’d take his time and work up to it,” Thunderlane said. “He had to know her before he asked, though. That was his thing. He watched too many movies. Had this sappy idea of how mares worked.”

“He respected us and you call that ‘sappy?’” Flitter interrupted, a harsh judgment thick in her voice. “He’s hard-working and kind, do you know how many mares would kill for a stallion like him?”

“Excuse me,” Applejack tried to stop the approaching argument.

“Not you, apparently!” Thunderlane stabbed back. Flitter recoiled from the venomous accusation.

“I was joking, I thought he was trying to be like you,” Flitter sniffled. “You were showing off and being all macho, I thought he was just acting. Like he was just trying to be your opposite so he could take the mares who said no to you. Wingpony, isn’t that what you call it?”

“Oh you’ve got a lot to learn about stallions!” Thunderlane started in but was stopped by the hoof placed to his chest. Twilight had physically stepped between the two combatants and halted the verbal altercation before it came to blows.

“Calm down. Both of you. You are adults, act like it,” she scolded. “I understand you both are worried about Caramel but blaming each other isn’t going to help. Besides, I think I’ve heard enough.”

“You have?” Rainbow Dash said in surprise.

“I believe whatever happened is somehow linked to what they were feeling,” Twilight said. “More specifically negative emotions. Derpy is holding three jobs to take care of a young filly all by herself. She’s stretched pretty thin as it is. If she got in trouble at even one of those jobs she’d be in no emotional state to think clearly, even more so if she really was at fault. She might blame herself for the whole situation.”

“I… wow…” Rainbow stammered.

“If Caramel has that ‘sappy’ view on romance then he’s probably looking for more than just a good time,” Twilight said, shifting gears. “Caramel was probably looking for the emotional kind of love. If every single mare he’s ever asked out said no then he has to think there’s something wrong with him. If you say he gets nervous then it sounds like he just has no idea how to talk to mares and might even be intimidated by them. In any case, he still has low self esteem and a bad personal image, just like Derpy. I think this condition is linked specifically with depression or self-hate, I just don’t know how.”

The room stood in stunned silence. Nopony seemed able to respond. Twilight couldn’t blame them as she did just tell them their best friends suffered from crippling depression and they either simply didn’t see it or unwittingly contributed.

“So, what do we do from here?” Applejack broke the silence.

“I… I really don’t know,” Twilight said, here momentum stopped by a brick wall. “I don’t know if this is some antithesis to the magic of harmony or if it’s some sort of corruption or even if it’s some outside force that did this. I guess I could run a thorough analysis of Derpy and Caramel looking for any and all magic to try and find out what’s going on.”

“If you need ‘em, we’ll go find ‘em,” Applejack said. “You need to check ‘em together or separate?”

“I’ll need to check them individually, just to isolate who it is I’m detecting,” Twilight said.

“Sure thing, sugar cube,” Applejack responded, heading for the door. “Come on, we’ve got friends to save.”

Flitter moved one hoof toward the door, hesitated, and ran back to Twilight. The young pegasus knelt down into a low, respectful bow and when she rose, smiled at Twilight with misty eyes. “Thank you, princess.”

“Please, just call me Twilight. Your friend needs your help,” Twilight smiled.

“Uh, Twi? We’ve got visitors,” Rainbow Dash called.

Five new silhouettes blocked Twilight’s door. One was much taller than the others.

* * * * * * *

“So do we just walk in?” Sweetie Belle asked.

“We could always say we’re trying to set up a surprise or something,” Applebloom suggested.

“I say we just ask to talk to her,” Scootaloo said.

“We need proof, what good would talking to her do?” Sweetie Belle asked.

“You still don’t believe her, do you?” Applebloom asked.

“No, I don’t,” Scootaloo said.

The four young fillies hid in the bushes outside one of the nicest homes in town. The white siding and blue roof bore the general shape and color of a large cake from a distance. About half the windows burned with lights from inside, revealing two adult figures inside who appeared to be talking. Applebloom noticed none of the upstairs windows were lit and that both voices appeared to be male.

“Come on!” Applebloom said. “Let’s see if we can hear what they’re sayin’.”

She lead the group into the shadow of one side of the front and crept closer to the window, each step shorter and softer than the last. All four inched as close to the window as they could, moving their ears closer for the best muffled sound.

“I’ve never seen anything like this in all my years. Now we have multiple cases in a two-day span. All I’m certain of is that it’s magical in nature. I’ll send message to Canterlot first thing in the morning. If it happened before, they’ll be able to help.”

“What if they don’t know?”

“Any information they might have will be helpful.”

“No textbook knew anything about the Cutie Pox, and those were less than helpful.”

“Mr. Smith, I understand you’re concerned for your daughter, but right now all we can do is look for information, however scarce it may be.”

“I’ll talk to that zebra out in the Everfree. She must know something.”

“That is not a bad idea. Let me know what she says. I’d like to talk with her as well.”

Hoofsteps passed the window and the door opened up. Doctor Stable exited onto the walk looking back to an exhausted grey earth stallion with sweat dampening his disheveled black mane. His cutie mark, a blue stone set into a silver amulet, shone beneath his unbuttoned shirt.

“You said there are others. Are they doing any better?”

“Mr. Smith, you know as much as I do on the matter.” The doctor began to turn away, but stopped to look back. “I should also mention Princess Twilight herself is investigating.” He turned again, this time leaving into the night. The stallion remained on his own front step, his brow furrowed with helpless distress. What seemed like ages passed before he committed to returning to his house, shutting the door.

“Who is that?” Scootaloo whispered.

“That’s Silver Spoon’s father, Silver Smith,” Diamond Tiara whispered back.

“Sounds like he’s taking this as hard as everypony else,” Applebloom said.

“Looks like Dr. Stable just made a house call. Silver Spoon has to be inside,” Diamond Tiara said. “What do we do now?”

Knock, knock, knock.

The sound shattered the nighttime quiet, causing three of the fillies to jump a good foot in the air. When they craned their heads to the front door, Sweetie Belle smiled back at their humorous display.

“What?” she said shrugging her shoulders with an innocent smile. Rather than argue, the group learned Sweetie’s logic was comparable to Pinkie Pie’s and simply joined her at the front step. When the door opened, Mr. Smith looked unsure what to think of the youngsters.

“Hello, Mr. Smith,” Sweetie Belle greeted with a muted smile. “Is Silver Spoon available?”

“I don’t- I’m,” Mr. Smith struggled to think. “She’s not feeling very-“

“We know about her condition,” Applebloom said. “We came to see if she was alright.”

“And to keep her company,” Scootaloo contributed.

“Oh.” He assessed the children, going back and forth with relative unease. “Alright. I’ll… I’ll let you in. I don’t know how much you can do. She’s asleep. She just… laid down and went to sleep.”

“Was she feeling sick?” Applebloom asked.

“No, she just... stated she was going to sleep,” Mr. Smith explained, motioning into the living room. “Weirdest part was that she didn’t even go to her room, let alone a bed. She’s on the couch.”

“That’s good. We wanted to set up a surprise for her to cheer her up. If she’s down here then we can set it up in her room for when she wakes up,” Applebloom said, looking over her shoulder to the rest, winking hard several times. “Right, girls?”

“Oh yeah! Right!” Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo parroted. Mr. Smith was unconvinced.

“Well, alright. You can go to her room. But don’t mess anything up. And don’t disturb her. She needs her sleep,” something about how he said that almost felt like he encouraged or knew what was happening. “I have to visit Spoon’s aunt. I’ll be back in about twenty minutes. I’d like to speak with you when I get back.” With that, he left the four kids alone, closing the door behind him.

“Come on, we might be able to find something in her room. I’ll bet it’s a cursed object, just like in the stories!” Applebloom said, running upstairs along with Scootaloo. Diamond Tiara, stopped halfway up, causing the Applebloom to go back and check. “You okay?”

“He’s lying,” she stated. “Silver Spoon’s aunt lives in Canterlot and her mother is staying with her while she’s there on business. I don’t know where he’s going, but it’s not to visit her aunt.”

"Do you think he could've done something to Silver Spoon?" Applebloom asked.

"No... I mean- I don't know..." Diamond Tiara said.

"Uh, guys?" Scootaloo said, waving a hoof to indicate Sweetie Belle who had in turn been trying to get their attention. She was inspecting a lump beneath the blanket on the couch. Everyone crept toward the couch, taking their time with delicate, measured steps. There before them rested the prone form of Silver Spoon.

To call this peaceful would have been inaccurate. To call it calm would have inadequate. To call it serene would have been simply wrong. The dream Silver Spoon now occupied was void of any sense of calm or peace and sorely lacked the excitement and energy of a good dream. It held neither security nor danger, joy nor pain, love nor hate. The little grey filly rested in the emptiest most inorganic sense of the word.

This feels all... wrong...

Scootaloo nudged the others, motioning for them to head upstairs. Another procession of delicate steps lead them away from their subject and up to the second floor. Diamond Tiara hesitated before following suit.

The children convened outside the door bearing a wooden sign reading "Spoon's Room" and lowered their voices, hoping they wouldn't carry too far.

"Tiara, I was... I was wrong. I'm sorry," Scootaloo said the words Applebloom felt positive she'd never say to their long-time tormentor. Tiara nodded her acceptance. The haunted look in her eyes said all that needed saying. The four entered Silver Spoon's room.

If clutter could have order, the bed room of Silver Spoon must be the only example. Stuff was everywhere but it was all so neatly organized that it looked like everything had, and already occupied, its place. A collection of high-end dolls sat arranged in perfect order by size over in a small alcove upon a cushioned seat set into the wall on the left. An ornate and polished wood vanity took the corner just to the right of the door upon entering with the accompanying mirror framed in gold and red. In the left corner behind the door stood an undersized bookcase. Applebloom could tell it was undersized thanks to the stacks and rows of books that lined the carpeted floor, leaned against walls, and completely covered the floor around the display of dolls. On the right wall was a similar seat in the wall as the other side, but this one framed a window instead of a wall. It was also empty of any and all obstructions.

Of all the items and decorations that shared the room, the bed dominated it. The huge bed looked like it was sized for an adult, not a small filly. The thick mattress raised the bed too high for anypony of Silver Spoon's height to easily climb in. Applebloom guessed that's what the wooden stepstool was for. The thick, puffy blankets practically smothered the whole bed but couldn't quite contain the oversized pillows. The entire set was made of a combination of velvet, silk, and lace, making the whole thing feel like it wasn't meant to be slept in but gawked at and appreciated from a respectable distance.

"Wow..." Diamond Tiara said.

"Haven't you ever been in her room before?" Scootaloo asked with disbelief.

"No, I haven't," Tiara said. "I normally pick her up and we end at my house," she said, a look of guilt crossed her face. "I barely spend any time here at all."

"Geeze, what kind of frien-," Scootaloo tried to accused but received a sharp bump from both her friends in rapid succession.

"Let's look around," Applebloom said.

With such little room to move about they all stuck close together, almost never leaving each other's personal space.

"How does she live like this?" Sweetie Belle asked, barely able to lift her hoof over a fold in the enormous blanket. "There's no room for anything!"

"Why does she need such a high bed?" Scootaloo asked.

"Why does her makeup table have pens?" Applebloom's comment drew the attention of the amateur investigators. "Isn't this where you're supposed to get ready in the morning? Who would keep quills, pens and ink here?"

"She might have kept a diary," Tiara said, hope perking up her voice. " It's the only writing I can think of she might be doing in her room. Other than homework, but we usually do that at my place."

"Keep your eyes open, then," Scootaloo said.

"Why are her dolls so dusty?" Sweetie Belle said, climbing onto the bed and looking at the arranged dolls. "I thought she might play with them. Even the ponies who collect them dust them off once in a while."

"I'm not sure those are hers," Tiara said. "Silver Spoon never liked dolls."

"Hey, nice view!" Scootaloo had climbed into the window seat which fit the perfect shape of a pony trying to curl up and just relax. "I can see straight out to the lake from here!"

"There's ink stains on the cushions," Applebloom noted. "Ah think she might like to write here sometimes."

"Hey, these books look weird!" Sweetie Belle called out from the other side of the bed. "The Complete Poems and Tales of Edgar Allan Pony, I Have No Snout and I Must Whinny by Harlan Fillyson, I've never heard of any of these books!"

"Hey, they do look more... depressing than the stuff I read," Tiara said. "These all look older, too."

Applebloom began looking through the books on a small shelf under the nightstand. Every one of them was dark or scary with a nice big 'Adult Readers' warning for 'Violence and Mature Themes' on the cover. One was about some young fillies and colts who got lost in the Everfree Forest. Another was about some accident in Cloudsdale that poisoned hundreds of animals and ponies making them turn evil. Still another was about a baker that used pony flesh in their goods. One was even about an artificial life form that tried to replace all life on the planet with copies of itself. That last one had a bookmark about halfway through and was resting atop the nightstand.

Examining the nightstand from the low angle allowed Applebloom to see a pretty blue book with ornate silver along the spine and corners of its covers.

"Girls! I think I found it!" She called. Sweetie Belle, already on top of the bed crawled over to the pillow and dug beneath for the treasure.

"Wow, Silver Spoon's diary is really pretty!" she exclaimed.

"Well, read it," Scootaloo said.

"I don't think we should. I mean remember Gabby Gums? I got in a lot of trouble for reading Rarity's diary," Sweetie Belle objected.

"That wasn't the same thing," Applebloom said. "We did that was for our cutie marks. We're doing this because ponies are in danger."

"Wouldn't she get mad if she found out we read her diary?" Sweetie Belle said.

"I think she'd be happy we did if we got her back," Diamond Tiara said. Sweetie Belle opened the cover, still visibly unsure of the invasion of privacy. "Let's agree to keep this between us. Please?" Tiara interrupted. The others agreed. The book opened.

"Entry 1," Sweetie Belle read aloud. "Today I got my cutie mark! I'm so happy! I couldn't wait to show it to Diamond Tiara! Mommy and Daddy were really happy too but not as much as I thought they should be. There is going to be a party and everything! Daddy got me a diary so I could write all my adventures now that I know who I am!" Sweetie Belle looked up, the happy mood of the first entry seemed to ease her concerns about privacy.

"Entry 2," she continued. "The party was great and I love the presents I got! So many ponies were there but only the other fillies and colts paid attention to me. The adults all talk about boring stuff anyway but why aren't they paying attention to me? This is my party. I still have my friends so I'm alright! Mommy and Daddy couldn't make it." Sweetie's glance shared everyone's worries. Silver Spoon's own parents missed her cutie mark party? Something important must have come up.

"Entry 3. My best friend Diamond Tiara made this new game today. When playing hoofball you try and hit other ponies with the ball but you can't get caught doing it or you lose. It's really fun but the other ponies don't seem to like it. They must be sore losers." Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and Scootaloo turned to scrutinize Diamond Tiara.

"We were young," she defended. "I didn't think we were hurting anypony."

"Entry 4," Sweetie Belle continued. "One of the colts in class got mad at me for the hoofball game and kicked the ball at me. It broke my glasses and gave me a bloody nose. He got in trouble but I don't know why. We were doing the same thing and we didn't get in trouble. But if we weren't doing it first he wouldn't do it either. Was this our fault?"

"May 16. It's been a while since I touched this old thing. It got shuffled to the back of my closet and I only found it because Dad's making me clean out my room. He says he's got some surprise for me if I clean out my room but I just think he's bargaining. Diamond Tiara's dad built a whole new extension onto their house for her but she knew about that for a couple months before it happened. I don't know what my dad has in mind, but I just hope it's nothing too much." Sweetie Belle turned the book around to show the others. "It looks like a few years passed. Look at her writing." Flipping between the different entries, it was clear the penmanship had improved with smoother strokes but the letters and spacing were still uneven, on top of odd grammar and punctuation.

"May 21. Why did my dad have to do that? What was he thinking? He got me a new bed! A huge bed! I don't want this ugly, poofy thing, I want MY bed back! He said 'you need a big bed for a big girl' but I'm not big yet! I don't want something this big! He even removed my closet to make room for it. That wasn't a big enough hint there was something wrong with it? Nopony's any help at all. They all act like I should be happy he did this for me. It's not my room anymore."

"June 2. Diamond Tiara got her cutie mark. They had a party. I'm still mad about my room, but I've gotten good at hiding it. I can at least pretend to be having fun for my best friend. This is her day after all."

"July 5. Diamond Tiara took me on a trip on her dad's sailboat. When I say she took me I mean I didn't especially want to go but I went anyway. She's having fun so I guess I am too."

"January 18. Wow, six months since my last entry. Felt like more. My mom and dad got me these dolls for Hearth's Warming. I hate them. The dolls that is. They got me the whole set of series 4 of the 'Classic Mare' line but I never wanted them. I never liked dolls and now these things are staring at me every night when I go to sleep. Something I forgot to mention when it happened, Twilight Sparkle moved into the Golden Oaks library in town. She's the personal student of Princess Celestia herself. She's a real book worm and total egghead, but she did beat Nightmare Moon, so she must be cool. I found a book lying around here called Cold Winter and I was curious. All I can say is it spoke to me. Something about the writing and the characters just felt real, way more than the trash I have to read for school. Mom says a little filly like me shouldn't be reading things like this and that I'm not old enough to understand it. I understand plenty and I wish they'd stop treating me like I'm stupid. Or do they think I should be stupid? I've been sneaking over to the library anyway and seeing what other books there are. Twilight looks like any other mare I've seen but I somehow imagined somepony who glowed with raw magic or was real tall like the princess, but no. She wasn't any less impressive, though, and she was nice to boot. She recommended the Daring Do books so I picked up the first volume. I'll start reading it today."

"January 28. It has nothing to do with my cutie mark, but I think I found my calling! I hate reading the stuff they give us in class so I thought I hated reading itself. After the first night I made it halfway through the first Daring Do book without realizing it! I have never found a story this engrossing (ten days later and I'm six books in)! I have to read more, and I'm even thinking I want to try writing!"

"February 4. My parents don't like my new interest. They say it's not 'ladylike.' Maybe I don't want to be ladylike, did they ever think of that? Maybe I just want to be a kid! I did something I've never done before: I asked for something. I asked if I could get a bookcase in my room. They said there was no room to put it. I said that was their fault. They said you're grounded. Fine. I'll use my allowance to buy my own bookcase and put it together myself. I'd like to see them stop me."

"February 19. I question my friendship with Diamond Tiara. She was my first friend and she continues to be my only friend but I can't help but think that's not my fault. I'm hanging out with a bully, I can't lie about that, but I wonder how many other friends I could have if I didn't associate with her. She makes fun of these three other fillies because they don't have their cutie marks yet but I don't understand why. A year ago that was us! We were trying to find our cutie marks, too! We didn't know what our futures held and we wanted to know who we were supposed to be... Or at least who the universe thought we were supposed to be. I don't even know what my cutie mark means. I was so sure when it happened but I don't know what specifically was going on that triggered it, therefore I don't know what my special talent is. Funny, the adults normally never think of children having these questions, but we do. There aren't any more kids in town for me to introduce myself to and all the others know me as Tiara's sidekick and get scared. I guess I'll have to stay with her, then. I'm so sorry to everypony I make fun of. I'm sorry for all the friends I could have made."

A silent look exchanged between everyone present. A side of Silver Spoon none of them knew existed had been revealed through the bound pages in front of them and none of them, neither friend nor victim, had any clue how this could be.

Sweetie Belle continued.

"March 21. My book collection outgrew my bookcase a while ago. I've taken to sorting them on my floor since my parents won't get rid of this stupid bed. 'A girl like you shouldn't be reading.' What do they know. Do they ever care what I like? Did they ever care what was important to me? Did anypony ever care? Those three other fillies still searching for their cutie marks are Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. To help them get their marks, they formed a club called the Cutie Mark Crusaders, complete with clubhouse, symbols, and they even have capes. We're still giving them a hard time and I really want to just stop it, but every time I'm about to open my mouth to confront Diamond Tiara about it my spine vanishes. I lose all nerve and just go along with it. I become the ultimate yes-mare. Maybe she'll out grow it on her own. Do I even have any friends? She does things and I just tag along. I'm not sure if I want to go with her or if I just convince myself I want to for the sake of keeping her."

Scootaloo raised her eyebrows at Diamond Tiara, saying 'did you hear that' with accusatory silence. Tiara's tears once more choked her vision, fueled by the animosity her best friend held toward her and felt too afraid to talk to her about it.

Returning their attention toward the reader, they all noticed Sweetie Belle's expression had changed to one of deep concern and fear. She studied the page like the entry was in some foreign language, seemingly unable to decipher the words. Slowly and with great care, she read.

"I hate myself."

Everyone's jaws dropped. Diamond Tiara, Scootaloo and Applebloom stood stunned by the passage.

"That's all it says," Sweetie Belle said. "No date, no month, nothing."

Unable to speak, the four sat in silence, digesting what they'd learned of their friend and enemy. An indeterminate period of time passed, after which Applebloom spoke.

"I think we've got enough to get Twilight involved. Let's go."

Nodding in agreement, the fillies turned toward the door only to find it blocked by the frame of Mr. Silver Smith. His face streaked with tears and his eyes hurt and scared.

"I had no idea," he struggled through his tightened throat. "I didn't know she felt that way. What have I done to my baby girl?" The grown stallion crumbled before the girls, his head dropping as he began weeping. "I'm a terrible father."

Diamond Tiara stepped forward, placing a hoof on his foreleg in an attempt to calm him.

"None of us knew she felt like this. I'm her best friend and she was afraid to tell me. She was afraid of me," she said.

"She may be in trouble, and we may not have been very nice, but she needs us now," Scootaloo said.

"We won't be failing her as long as we're still tryin' to help," Applebloom said.

"Right!" Sweetie Belle said. "What? I couldn't say anything new."

Silver Smith smiled down at the four girls eager and willing to help his daughter.

"Thank you girls," he said. "Come on. Let's go see Princess Twilight."

* * * * * * *

Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Diamond Tiara, and Silver Smith entered the library one at a time, a solemn silence held among them. It was with purpose that they approached their princess, bowed and presented the diary of a young filly who felt more than she shared.

Twilight accepted the journal and looked at the first couple pages before speaking to the newcomers.

"Who is it?" she asked.

"My daughter," Silver Smith said.

"And my friend," Diamond Tiara replied. "Silver Spoon."

"I'll need to examine this. Everypony stay here. This might take a while," Twilight announced. With a grateful nod that itself was more of a bow, the princess departed into the next room with the diary.

The minutes ticked by while Twilight learned about the little filly she'd helped in her own library but somehow never met. The concerned friends and family of the three victims thus far remained unable to do anything until they had some more concrete direction to focus their energy.

Rainbow Dash paced back and forth, flapping her wings at sporadic intervals.

Applejack, Flitter, and Thunderlane exchanged looks of silent forgiveness.

Big Macintosh stared into space, lost in deep and thoughtful analysis.

Applebloom, Diamond Tiara, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Silver Smith could only huddle in silence, awaiting news of their friend and daughter.

More than half an hour passed before Twilight re-emerged with book in tow.

"Bring all three of them here. I'll need you all as well," she said. "I have a plan."

Magic

A nervous silence hung above everypony in the main room of the library. The guards occupied posts all around the perimeter of the room while the patients sat in the center, surrounded by their loved ones. Those unaffected by whatever vile magic had befallen the three could do little more than stare at the shells of Derpy, Caramel, and Diamond Tiara.

The obedience the three displayed chilled the very air and Applejack swore darkened the candles in the room. Not a word was spoken, not a peep was made.

The door at the top of the stairs opened and Princess Twilight Sparkle emerged, descending the stairs with a page of parchment levitating at her side.

"Thank you all for coming. Your friends all need you here," she addressed the townsponies.

"What's wrong with them, Twi?" Applejack asked.

"I have no idea," Twilight replied.

"WHAT?" Rainbow shouted. "How do you still not know? Why are we here if we don't know what we're supposed to be doing?"

"We do," Twilight answered. The collective confusion settled Rainbow down and hushed everyone else. Twilight took a breath. "I don't know specifically what is wrong, but I know how to approach it. I know whatever's wrong is suppressing their core personalities and preventing them from being who they are. It may be trying to do something permanent, but we're not going to let it."

"Okay, so what exactly are we gonna do?" Thunderlane asked.

"If I can point to one lesson I've learned since coming to Ponyville as being the most important thing I've ever learned, it's that friendship can do anything," Twilight said. She saw the pride she felt with the statement ignite in each of the ponies. "Friends can make the world exciting and beautiful and help you through the most difficult and harrowing ordeals. Our friends help make us who we are. If the thing that's doing this to our friends is affecting who they are at heart, then we need something even more powerful to help them back."

"What can we do?" Flitter said, hope returning to her voice.

"I'm not their friend," Twilight stated. "I know of them, but I don't know them. You do. You who got scared when you knew something was wrong. Who pushed to help and to get others to help. You were worried the way only friends worry. I may be their princess, but the rest of you are their friends." Twilight held up the parchment for all to see. "I became a princess when I completed a spell and wrote new magic. I now understand just how important the magic was. This is that spell. With all of you here I believe it will help us save your friends. But it needs the rest of you for it to work. Will you stay?"

A chorus of affirmative shouts answered back, the energy of which burned with its own light, even granting a comforting warmth to everyone present. Twilight found it peculiar just how tangible the feeling was.

Wait, I really can feel this! Just what in Tartarus are we dealing with?

Whatever the reason, the fact the energy emerged at this particular time in this particular way came as a good omen to the princess and her subjects. The as-of-yet unexplored spell would be needing it.

"Good. Now gather around your friends. Think of everything they mean to you and everything you'd lose if they left. Think of all the good times and remember every way they impacted your lives," Twilight said, instructing the others who followed suit, each with a Look of determination. Unfurling the parchment, Twilight spoke. "From all of us together, together we are friends." The lights dimmed and the air swirled. Each pony glowed with their own magic. "With the marks of our destinies made one, there is magic without end."

In a thunderous, crackling boom, everything went very bright, and Reality melted around them.

* * * * * * *

"Where are we?"

"Is anypony hurt?"

"What in Tartarus is THAT!"

A swirling blackness stirred all around them in an endless mass of what could only be described as un-matter. The space was not empty nor did it have any real matter occupying it, like the physics of the place could not make up its mind as to what it should or should not be. They could feel no ground beneath them, but they could stand. They felt no air around them, but they could breathe. The space provided no source of light, yet everything was clearly visible.

It was with the last observation that Twilight saw it.

A pulsing, tumorous mass of greys and purples hung in the void. The thing flowed like a liquid, looked like a gas, and had the slimy texture of a solid.

Describing this can wait until we've saved the victims, and until I get headache medication.

"Look! Right there!" Flitter shouted, pointing near the edge of the blob.

Twilight just barely made out the shape of an unconscious pony partially submerged in the matter with only the head, a foreleg and part of a wing above the surface.

"Quick! Now's your chance!" Twilight shouted. "There's not a moment to lose! It'll probably try and fight back! I'll keep it off you. Go!" At once, the group descended upon the growth, searching for their friends. The first one reached, the one they could already see, was Derpy.

The captive mare's limp body made no attempt against the slime around her, though by the look on her face, she was having a nightmare. Thunderlane and Applejack reached her first, grabbing hold and pulling with every ounce of strength in their bodies to no avail. The rolling fluid refused to yield and never reacted to their efforts like any liquid should. Rainbow Dash and Sweetie Belle joined in the effort, making just as little progress as the other two.

"What gives!" Thunderlane said. "What are we supposed to do?"

"Derpy! Can you hear me?" Applejack said. "Derpy, we need you to wake up! Tell us you're okay."

The mare remained unmoved.

"Derpy! Wake up!" Rainbow Dash yelled. "Come on, this isn't the weather mare I know! You'd get up and go at the job with everything you've got! You're gonna let this thing stop you?"

Derpy didn't even twitch.

The nothingness around them pulsed and undulated, a low, barely audible humming noise came in short waves before dying out.

It's laughing at us!

Despite having no clue how or why she arrived at that conclusion, Twilight got the distinct sense of being mocked, as if their pain amused the void around them. The others felt it, too. She could see the desperation in Dash's face, the anger in Thunderlane's, the fear in the little fillies, and the hate in the faces of Silver Smith and Flitter.

"Derpy, I'm..." Dash fumbled.

"Momma?"

The tiny voice shone through the void like a beacon, soft and warm. Turning her head, Twilight saw the young Dinky flailing in her attempts to figure out how to move in such an illogical condition. The little filly gently landed beside her mother.

"Momma?" She pleaded, nudging Derpy's prone form. "Momma? Wake up, we're here to rescue you!" Derpy stirred like someone poked her in her sleep. "Momma, I got the princess! She can help, but she says we gotta be the ones to do it." Still nothing. "Momma... please... I love you..."

Twilight's eyes moistened from the display and a few sniffling noses told her the others reacted similarly.

This was supposed to work! She was supposed to come back! This was supposed to be the cure! That mare gave everything for her daughter and her daughter's love isn't good enough? What are we dealing with?

The realization bit like a rusted sawblade. All of her training and lessons, all of her schooling, all of the books in three different libraries and there was no inkling of a direction to take. Twilight scanned over each and every fact she remembered from everything, and still the pain of helplessness ate at her.

I feel so lost... The others are in danger, too. By the sisters, what have I done?

The rhythmic non-laugh echoed again, this time over a sobbing daughter and heads bowed low in defeat.

"I'm sorry," Rainbow Dash choked out. "I'm sorry I never took the time to know you. I'm sorry I treated you the way I did. I had no idea what you were going through. I know you did this all for your daughter, and I know it couldn't have been easy, not with a boss like me." She chuckled. Twilight couldn't tell if it was bragging or self-deprecation. "But you did. You got guts. I wish I could be half the mare you are."

Dash's eyes opened wide, a grand, cosmic epiphany dawning on her. A faint glowing glimmer in her eyes seemed to disturb Derpy's slumber.

"You did this for your daughter," she said. "Everything you did, you did for your baby!" Grabbing Derpy in a hug like a hoofball coach, Dash got in front of Derpy and tilted her head so they were face-to-face. Derpy vocalized an incomprehensible grumbling. "Derpy! I need you to listen to me. I'm sorry I said all those things, and I'll do whatever I need to do to make it up to you, but right now, your daughter needs you! I know you're not fighting this because you think she's better off without you, but that is a lie."

Derpy's eyes opened, wearily looking back at Dash.

"Momma! Please!" Dinky shouted.

"Din...ky..." Derpy said weakly.

"I know what it's like to look at yourself in the mirror and hate who you see, but I see a mare who gets up every morning to face the world because her baby girl needs her to!" Twilight noted the quality of Rainbow Dash's lecturing skills.

"If you needed help, all you had to do was ask." Fluttershy drifted over.

"It takes a village to raise a foal, and we happen to live in a great one!" Pinkie Pie said.

Color returned to Derpy's eyes accompanied by a hopeful glint. The mass around her dried and cracked. The presence around them grew apprehensive.

"What happened was wrong, but I can't let it go without making it right," Dash smiled. "If there's one thing I've learned in all my years its that you can always count on a friend." Dash offered her hoof the trapped pegasus.

Derpy shoved and pushed against the drying shadows around her, the matter flaking and crumbling away. She clawed and kicked with every muscle in her body, forcing her way from her prison and grabbing onto Rainbow Dash's outstretched hoof. Dinky, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy all grabbed hold and together pulled Derpy free of her prison.

No sooner had they done this than Derpy, Rainbow Dash, Dinky, Pinkie, and Fluttershy all vanished without a trace. The malignant being around them roared in rage.

"I think it's going to fight back," Twilight said. "Quick, find the other two!"

The group split, each searching a different portion of the tumor. The portion Derpy had occupied dried and crumbled into a substance somewhere between smoke and sand which disappeared into the aether. Assuming the other two were also on the surface cut down the area they needed to search.

It also means the thing has less of itself to defend.

A blast of wind scattered everyone further, sending Twilight tumbling through space and nearly colliding with a solidified piece of the mass that had reformed into a type of boulder. Twilight whirled around in time to dodge another flying rock and see several more careening toward her friends as if deliberately seeking them out.

Twilight's violet magic blasted away at the rocks, shattering the smaller ones and whittling away the boulders. Tiny bits and pieces plinked harmlessly off her coat as she hunted. She then noticed some of the fragments began coalescing again into larger pieces.

"We found him!" Applejack yelled.

The rocks all took immediate turns, veering toward the search team.

"I'm not done with you!" Twilight shouted, her offensive magic forming a veritable storm of a ferocity the young mare had never before mustered.

I hope they can make it quick.

* * * * * * *

Applejack, Big Macintosh, Flitter and Thunderlane fell to the surface beside the sick Caramel. Part of his front foreleg stuck up out of the tar like he'd lost consciousness trying to escape. His muted colors and sorrowful slumber made visible his exhausted and defeated mental state.

"Caramel!" Applejack said. "Caramel, buddy, can you hear me?"

"Come on, dude, we all came to get you, and we are NOT leaving without you!" Thunderlane said.

"Caramel. I'm sorry for what I said," Flitter said.

"Wait, wait, remember what Twilight said," Applejack said. "Caramel, I know you've had some... feelings you weren't quite comfortable talkin' to us about, and I wanted to let you know you can talk to us because we'd understand better than you'd think."

Alright, so this whole pep talk thing ain't exactly my specialty.

"You're a hard worker, strong stallion, and a kind-hearted guy. It's always a pleasure havin' you at the farm."

No response.

Oh for Pete's sake!

Big Macintosh worked his way forward, bowing to look at his friend.

"Caramel," he said. "I know you can hear me in there. We've all got problems to deal with and sometimes the best way we can is to talk about it with our friends. I've never really been one for words, but that don't mean I can't understand what you're going through. I've found all problems are easier to deal with if you got different perspectives and you got four of 'em right here. We want to help you, and all you have to do is talk to us."

Caramel grunted.

Applejack felt a soothing warmth emanating from her friend.

"Yeah," she started. "We're always there for you. We're there for each other. We can get through any problem so long as we don't let the problem get between us." Macintosh nodded his approval.

Caramel's eyes opened, his body pushing back against the grogginess and muck.

"If you need help, I can give you advice," Flitter said.

"If you need confidence, I think I might know how to help," Thunderlane said. "What do you say?"

With a great heave, Caramel forced his way from the gelatinous snare and into the embrace of his friends. The matter dried and crumbled around him and the group vanished from the void.

* * * * * * *

Oh dear...

The screeching rumble shook Twilight to her bones and chilled her very soul. Whatever the thing was grew furious with the loss of another victim and another chunk of its mass; all that remained was a fragment about the size of Town Hall. There was, however another development that scared her and the remaining ponies.

The darkness was attacking.

Barely perceptible against the undefined backdrop the blackened nothingness curved and hooked into blades, swelled into hammers and maces, and sharpened into arrows and spears. A bladed shadow cut a gash into Twilight's side, running the entire length of her body. She barely had a moment to scream her pain when a spear point pierced her wing, rending the flesh and feathers and straining the bone beneath. She wouldn't realize until later that her wing's flapping is what blocked a straight shot to her chest.

"Run! Hurry!" is all she could scream to the others as she continued to defend herself. A flash of purple magic seared away a cruelly jagged tendril and a secondary sweep broke several more blades arcing out of the void. She barely parried a blade that danced like a bolt of electricity before several arrows stuck into her right thigh. Amid the chaos and her own screams of pain, she heard panic.

In a desperate bid, Twilight dashed in the one direction that wasn't attacking her and saw the others attempting to flee a gaping maw opening, lashing out with a nightmarish tongue-like gnarled tree roots.

A flash of magic and she teleported into the jaws and summoned the greatest blast of offensive magic she'd ever mustered, breaking the jaws and dismissing them back into the emptiness. She turned to the others.

"Find her! NOW!"

The fillies and the stallion didn't even acknowledge the order and took off toward the last chunk. An arrow caught Sweetie Belle in her lower back, high enough that it may have hit something vital. She squealed in pain but continued on, Diamond helping her along the way.

Does anatomy even matter in a place like this?

Three hooks lashed from the void and dug into Silver Smith's back, dragging him from the foals. Scootaloo and Applebloom leapt onto his back and used their tiny bodies to wedge between the hooks and pry them from his flesh. They slid out and made for another grab when Twilight grabbed them with her magic, pulling them away. The hooks kicked back, flying straight at her and striking her in the eye and head with the blunt curves. Something round impacted the back of her head and the world dimmed and blurred then went horrifyingly quiet.

* * * * * * *

The seconds dragged like stone slabs as Twilight stumbled her way back to consciousness. The pain burned into her being, drawing her attention to the hooks piercing the flesh of her legs, suspending her like some macabre work of art.

Her eyelids strained to open and while she could not see it, she knew the core of the beast, the thing that had taken three innocents into its nightmare, loomed before her, eyeing her with sadistic glee and hunger.

The hooks began tugging on Twilight's limbs, igniting her body with agony and tearing a scream from her throat. Acting of its own accord, her mind conjured the image of the five ponies who were still in the nightmare as well. Her magic swelled inside her skull and she barely managed to form a teleportation spell. Pain obscured Twilight's thoughts, sending her into a dizzying stupor, causing her to miss the whole execution of the teleportation.

"Twilight! You're okay!"

The young voice acted as a lighthouse, guiding her back to the present and helping remain awake.

"Well, she's alive, anyway."

"Quick, get her over here!"

Twilight felt hooves grapple onto her and bring her into a sort of floating stance. A gentle warming sensation pulsed in her chest waking her up and washing away the pain from the holes in her flesh.

"Oh my. I... wow."

Her vision cleared and her attention sharpened. Confident she could now "stand" on her own hooves, Twilight opened her eyes to see the four young fillies and the one stallion staring, mouths agape in awe and concern.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"We're fine, but are you?" Silver Smith said. "Two seconds ago, you were a bloody mess."

Twilight gave herself a quick examination and found that while there was in fact blood in her coat, the corresponding wounds were absent. She thought for a moment.

"When the thing caught me, I thought of you and my magic did the rest on its own," she said. "I think your concern for my safety healed me. Keep each other in your thoughts and go save Diamond Tiara." A distant roar. "I'll protect you! Go!"

The group descended to the last bit of rock where the last captive could be seen in her induced coma. Twilight turned to face the great horror, bracing herself and focusing all her attention into her magic. A blaze of bright prismatic energy erupted from her horn and tore into the darkness forming a shield in the space around them.

I can hold the shield while they rescue her. At least, I hope I can.

* * * * * * *

Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Diamond Tiara, and Silver Smith landed on the last chunk of solid shadow, the small, unconscious filly's head and shoulders stuck from the surface, drooped forward in sorrow.

"By Celestia," Silver Smith said. "What have I done?"

"It wasn't just you," Sweetie Belle said. "We all did this."

"Then let's undo this," Diamond tiara said.

The group clustered around the trapped child in something resembling a group hug. With no communication between each other, they fell silent, considering how best to proceed.

"Silver? Sweety?" Silver Smith called gently. "I'm sorry. My baby, please. I love you." He choked on his own regret and sadness, collapsing into a quiet sobbing fit.

"Silvey?" Diamond Tiara asked meekly. "I had no idea you felt the way you did." She sniffled. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you." She too began to cry.

"If I learned anything it's that you can't judge something by the outside," Applebloom said. "Everypony thought Zecora was evil until they got to know her. I should've known there might be more to your story than just what we saw."

Silver groaned.

"I never wanted to hurt you, but I never thought about your feelings." Tiara struggled to find her voice, but the words were there. "If you can, please forgive me. I'll never boss you around again. You're not a servant and I should never have treated you like one. You're my friend and I'll do anything to prove it you."

Silver's mouth moved as if trying to form words.

"I never thought I'd see the day when I'd be trying so hard to save you, but now that I am, I kinda like it," Sweetie Belle said. "We read your diary. I know it was wrong, but we were desperate to get you back and needed answers. Those aren't the kind of things you should keep bottled up. If you need to talk, I'd be glad to listen."

"Rainbow always said to face your fears or they won't go away," Scootaloo said, selecting her words with care. "Maybe that also means being nice to others, even if we might not want to be."

Slowly, Silver's eyes opened.

"Honey," Silver Smith finally spoke. "I was so caught up in my own image of a family, I forced my own life on you. You hated those dolls, and I think I understand why. I was treating you like a doll and trying to make you who I wanted you to be. You're growing up, and it's time I let you be yourself. If you want the dolls gone, they're gone. If you want a place for books, we can get them their own special place. If you want to keep them to yourself, that's perfectly fine. If you want them on display, I'll be proud of your interests. If it would be okay with you, perhaps we could even read to each other. I'd like to know more about my own daughter." She looked him straight in the eyes. "Let's go home, honey."

Silver Spoon pushed and kicked, straining against the rocky prison around her. The others fit their hooves wherever they could find to get a grip and pulled. Scootaloo dug at the material that loosened and swept it away.

The presence around them roared, shaking them to their souls.

Silver's tiny body slipped free and in an instant, they were gone.

* * * * * * *

Twilight strained against the might of the force, her own magic shield buckling under it's wrath. Sweat flowed from her brow and her head spun, trying to maintain the only defense between her and her friends, and a messy, furious death.

The rigid form of the shield bent and deformed against the stress with bits breaking off and vanishing. A great fissure snaked its way across the barrier and began to rend to last remaining protection.

Races with little to no magic do not understand, or are even aware, of just what happens when an active spell is broken through sheer magical force. An active spell is a sustained thought inside the caster's head. Unlike a counter spell which unweaves the magic in a fluid motion, magic force breaks the magic, and therefore, the thought inside the opponent's head. The effect is comparable to a metal spike, piercing the skull and splitting it outward, at least that is how it feels. Twilight understood that with firsthand experience now as the thing crumpled her shield and tore it away from her.

The splitting agony made her vision blur and her head swim. Keeping the image of the remaining ponies in her mind, the new princess trudged through the smothering nausea to remain conscious. Just as her thoughts became coherent again, she realized consciousness may not be a good thing when she felt the claws and blades closing around her and pressing into her flesh.

I don't know what to do... please... help...

Through the encroaching darkness, a fleeting spark of hope flickered once and disappeared. The magic hiccup, though brief, was all the indication she needed.

They're out... they're safe...

Still unsure how to identify one part of the non-entity from any other, somehow she just knew the portion of it that settled before her was the thing's face. The anger radiated from it as palpably as the heat of a furnace. The choking rage burned from every direction, seemingly on purpose, showing her she was trapped. It observed her for a moment before drawing her closer to it's abyssal maw.

Twilight liked to think of herself as a mare of logic and facts, but when things are grim, she could no longer bring herself to question the nature or reasoning of miracles. Somehow, through some inexplicable cosmic intervention, she knew where it's eye was. More importantly, she could think straight enough to formulate a spell.

Putting every last ounce of willpower and strength into a singular spell, she lashed out with a lance of pure magic, stabbing into the thing's eye, and piercing into it's very mind. For an instant, right before everything went black, she knew as it knew, and it knew where it was.

* * * * * * *

Groaning filled the room, signaling the return of the expedition, colors and cutie marks accompanying them. The guards took up positions around the ponies and examined them for any injuries or abnormalities. The patients coughed and stumbled, several needing to sit down due to swimming heads and spinning rooms, and the guards were unsure if they were supposed to approach Rainbow Dash.

Once they had begun to stabilize and acquire their bearings, two large group hugs formed, welcoming recovered families and new friends back into the realm of consciousness. Caramel smothered beneath gargantuan bear hugs from four different ponies, one of whom was probably breaking ribs in the process.

Silver Smith and Diamond Tiara clutched their daughter and friend, visibly never wanting to let go. The Crusaders cautiously stepped up and were welcomed into the tear-filled embrace with hugs and expressions that mirrored the whispers of gratitude and apology.

"Momma?"

The tiny unicorn filly, still shaken after the ordeal, tried to identify her mother at a safe distance, but only barely holding herself back.

"Dinky?" the mare responded.

Dinky rushed at her mother, leaping into what would have been a full-bodied tackle on anypony her own size. Derpy caught her daughter, tears streaming down both their faces.

"Don't ever leave me again!" Dinky sobbed.

"I won't, Muffin. I promise."

Not even the rigorous training of the royal guards was enough preparation for the reunion as eyes misted over all throughout the room. After several seconds, Rainbow Dash walked forward.

"I'm s-" she choked on her own throat. "I'm sorry for what I said. Why didn't you tell us?" Derpy opened her eyes and looked up to her employer.

"It's not easy, raising a child," she spoke with the wisdom of sleepless nights and empty pantries. "Doing it alone just makes it..." She didn't know how to finish the sentence.

"We know about your husband," Pinkie Pie said. "If it takes a village to raise a child, then you live in the right one. If you need help, I'll gladly watch Dinky for you."

"I can help watch her, too," Fluttershy said. "I think somepony in town might be open to a roommate. I'm sure that should make things easier."

"If nothing else, we can build you a house of your very own!" Rainbow Dash said. "No rent, no mortgage. I'm sure the paperwork would be a nightmare, though." The joke was met with exhausted chuckling.

"Thank you," Derpy said, tearing up again. "Thank you all so much." She broke once more.

"Princess?" Stonewall and one other guard had been helping Twilight recover apart from the others. Her progress, though slow, looked like it was picking up. "Your Highness, are you alright?" Twilight's eyes opened, adjusted for a moment, looked around, then she leapt to her hooves.

"It's in the Everfree! We have to hurry!"

Justice

"Grab the Elements!" Twilight commanded. "I don't know how useful they'll be directly, but if you get in trouble, whisper 'help' and the rest of us will teleport straight to you."
Twilight explained with the hurried energy she only used in dire emergencies. The others fell silent in accordance. “It knows I saw it! We need to hurry!”

“What are we looking for?” Applejack said.

“I have no idea, but I know where it is now and that’s all the lead we have at the moment,” Twilight said.

“Princess, what do you want us to do?” Stonewall asked.

“All guards stay here,” Twilight ordered, taking out a parchment and quill and writing a letter. “Along with the rest of you. It knows it got you once, it may try a second time. We need to keep that from happening.” She rolled up the letter which levitated over to Rainbow Dash. “Rainbow, I don’t have Spike right now, so I need you to deliver this to Princess Luna. She’ll still be awake and she can get Celestia, too. Be sure to show it to a guard first, they should take you straight to her.” Rainbow tried to interrupt. “I know you want to stay and help but you’re the fastest of all of us, and right now, we need to alert the other princesses of what’s going on and you’re the best one for the job.” Though uneasy, Rainbow complied. “Everypony, move out!”

Twilight had never seen a general behave in a field situation, but Stonewall thought she made a convincing one.

* * * * * * *

A chorus of crickets and the occasional frog croak lit up the late night soundscape beyond Fluttershy’s cottage. A clean and even dirt path deviated from the main road, leading into the choking foliage and festering swamps of the Everfree Forest. A scattered arrangement of hoof clops galloped up the path, vanishing into the oppressive darkness. Each of the four explorers clutched a small travel lantern, their only guidance in the tar blackness.

“Everypony, keep alert! I have no idea where it is!” Twilight said.

“Do you even know what ‘it’ is?” Applejack asked.

“Not in the slightest,” Twilight answered.

“I say we stay together,” Fluttershy suggested. “Please?”

“I’m gonna agree with Fluttershy on this one,” said Pinkie, hunkering down and scanning the tress, teeth chattering and muscles trembling. “I don’t think giggling’s going to work on these ghosties.”

“I have no idea what we’re up against, so we need to be careful. But we may need to split into groups,” Twilight said. “It’s the best way to cover ground and track this thing. Remember, say ‘help’ if you find it.”

The others were not so pleased with the command, but given the situation, could think of nothing more effective. Catching the thing, whatever it was, took precedent. With solemn and stoic acceptance, the group parted ways into the darkness.

Twilight and Pinkie Pie stuck together while Applejack and Fluttershy went another. Twilight’s gallop slowed to a canter, punctuated with brief but regular pauses while she listened, straining to hear anything beyond the sounds of the forest night. Pinkie Pie stuck close to Twilight, seemingly unfocused on the search for the creature.

“Stay alert, Pinkie,” Twilight said. “We won’t help anyone if it gets past us.”

“Sorry, Twilight.”

The voice halted Twilight in her tracks. It sounded scared, lost, but mostly deeply concerned, none of which were common from the bubbly pink party horse. Twilight turned to her friend.

“Pinkie? Is something wrong?” Twilight asked.

She’s never sounded this scared.

“Well, no…” Pinkie’s feeble and shaky answer was unconvincing. “Yes. Something’s wrong.”

This has to be serious.

“You know the Pinkie sense?” Pinkie asked.

As if I could forget the radar-like, intuition-powered sixth sense. Never did find an explanation.

“Yeah, why?” Twilight answered. “Are you feeling it right now?”

“I’m not sure,” Pinkie said.

Not sure? Now I know this is bad!

“I have this feeling,” Pinkie said. “Something’s different about this one. It’s not the usual Pinkie sense, either. It’s more like a really, REALLY bad feeling…” She shifted her shoulders. “We shouldn’t be here.”

“It’s going to be alright, Pinkie,” Twilight said, reaching a hoof out to comfort her friend. “We’re going to catch this thing and then we’ll celebrate back in Ponyville. You’ll see.”

“I don’t know if I can believe you, Twilight,” Pinkie said, making a visible effort to look hopeful. “But I’ll try.”

“Thanks,” Twilight said. The doubts nagged when she realized she hadn’t convinced herself. “Come on. We have to keep moving.”

The two continued their hunt. They both scanned the trees, but Twilight now saw what made Pinkie Pie so nervous, at least part of it. The sounds of crickets deadened the sense of hearing of anyone in the forest. Twilight estimated her hearing range had diminished down to less than twenty meters, maybe less. Certainly she wouldn’t be able to hear past the tree line.

The tree line… Where’d it go?

A slow, creeping fear tickled up her spine when Twilight realized the trees were no longer visible. Despite her illumination spell and the trees staying right where they were, the clearing looked like it expanded into nothingness.

“Pinkie,” Twilight called. “stay on guard.”

No answer.

“Pinkie?”

Silence.

Icy terror paralyzed Twilight mid-step. Pinkie was nowhere in the clearing. No trees could be seen, either. The bow on top, the single thing that made everything else infinitely worse was the biting, smothering silence that suddenly filled the forest.

Twilight had never felt more alone.

“Help,” she whispered, eyes growing wide and breath catching in her chest.

“Help,” she repeated, out loud this time but the quiver of fear still present. She focused for a moment, forcing her illumination spell to burn as bright as she could possibly make it. Despite the exertion, her circle of light expanded no further, as if the darkness pushed back.

“Help!” she screamed into the oppressive night, eyes stinging against the chilly night air. Sweat dampened her coat, inviting the cold to stab and bite at her flesh. “Help! Help! Please, Help! Pinkie Pie! Applejack! Fluttershy! Rarity! Rainbow Dash! Spike! Help me! Please!” Tears streamed down her face as she ran, shouting in every direction. The tendrils of despair tightened around her heart. She discharged magic blasts with little heed to where she aimed. Slowly, her energy drained and fear crept into her mind, mutilating every thought, making her crumble, wheeping like a foal, “Somepony… help me… please…”

I failed…

The realization fell upon her like a rockslide. She had no idea what to do or where to go. She had no one to talk to and assess the situation and no one to offer insight or advice. She’d give the horn off her head to be back in her warm bed at her library, to hear Spike’s loud snoring and the hooting of Owloicious. She wanted to read and write letters to and from the princesses. She wanted to have tea with her parents and brother. She wanted to feel safe and comforted.

She wanted to know where her friends were.

Her friends. Those five eccentric and vibrant ponies who brought joy to each day and made the sun itself shine a little more brightly. A nagging fear tugged at her mind, growing more stubborn and aggressive by the second.

I brought them here. I brought them to it. It has them. I’m sorry…

Hoofsteps emerged from the darkness, faint at first, but becoming more defined as the source drew near. Twilight raised her head to face the new arrival, putting a spotlight out to no avail; the darkness hung like a curtain, halting all light across its threshold. Two legs of pony origin stopped just at the edge of vision.

“Miss Sparkle…” a hissing, oily voice called, choking the air with each syllable. “I had hoped you’d last a little longer this time.”

This time?

“Your experience with my substance has grown since last we met,” the thing jeered. “You handled that talentless performer with great form.”

Performer? Does he mean Trixie?

“Who are you?” Twilight finally asked.

“Well, now! Isn’t that the question of the hour!” said the thing. The voice sounded more definitively masculine that time and strangely proud of itself. Twilight also noted the origin of the voice seemed to move despite no matching shift in posture could be detected on the mysterious stallion. “You’re a clever girl, dear. Figure me out.”

“I don’t have time for this!" Twilight shot back, force growing in her voice. The threat was a bluff, but maybe she could goad it into letting something slip. “My friends will be here, soon!”

The stallion did not respond right away. It stood there for a moment, then it’s legs and shoulder twisted like he was grabbing something from his side, or maybe back. The tinking of metal pierced the dead silence as a golden band spattered with mud fell on the dirt in front of her. The centerpiece of the jewelry made her freeze, eyes going wide.

A blue crystal shaped like a balloon.

Pinkie…

He reached back and pulled another dirtied golden band, this one with an orange crystal in the shape of an apple.

No…

Another one fell with a pink butterfly.

No, please…

A purple diamond.

I’m so sorry…

A red lightning bolt.

That one stayed behind… He got to the survivors…

Finally, a scroll fell on the ground, bent and partially crumpled.

“No…”

“Nopony’s coming to help you, princess,” he said, words like a twisting knife. “We have all the time in the world. Just you, and me. Now, then. Who am I?”

Twilight’s mind raced, stumbling every so often over a morbid thought of her friends. His showcase of the Elements of Harmony stood out to her. Something about the relics seemed illogical, but Twilight would have to come back to that.

“I know your substance… Trixie was of your substance…” Twilight spoke aloud, listing the pieces to better understand what she had. “You hoped I’d last longer this time… We met before and I lost to you. A part of you was in or on Trixie when she came back. You trap ponies in their worst negative thoughts and attitudes.”

As her brain worked, Twilight’s voice gained strength and her head rose, the flicker of defiance burned in her eye.

“There was only one time I’ve ever felt exactly like that,” she said and lifted her gaze to stare the stallion where his eyes should be in under the veil of shadow. “And that was when I tried to enter your treasure room.”

She got to her hooves, standing and staring her opponent in the eyes. She may not have been able to see them, but she could feel exactly where they were.

“King Sombra.”

Raucous laughter erupted from the shadow-veiled stallion.

“Wonderful job, Twilight Sparkle! Wonderful, indeed!” he roared his approval. “I’d expect no less from Celestia’s most trusted pupil!”

“How are you even out here?” Twilight asked. “The crystal heart shattered you, I saw it.”

“Exactly, my girl! It did!” Sombra said, his jovial demeanor unsettling in the circumstances. “And what does that tell you?”

“It tells me I’m not dealing with all of you. I’m dealing with one part of you, but which part is it?” Twilight thought for a moment. “Your vocabulary has grown since last we met.”

“Oh, thank you for noticing!” he said. “You haven’t the faintest how dreadful it was to think such complex thoughts and not be able to speak enough words to string into a complete sentence.”

“One gives up things on the path to power.”

The air chilled.

“What do you know of power?” Sombra demanded. “How hard did you work? What did you sacrifice? You were given your wings and your title by somepony else who didn’t earn it either.”

“How do you decide what earns power?” Twilight stabbed back. “Maybe the power we have is not the power you want! Then again, if it is the kind of power you’re after, and you think you need to sacrifice and suffer for it, maybe there’s a reason you don’t already have it!”

A blast of energy knocked her to the ground, the resulting wind spilling into the darkness.

“I know what I must do, and I know you can’t stand up against me!” Sombra shouted down at her.

Twilight steadied herself, caught her breath, then spoke.

“You relied on fear to beat me last time.” Her voice was calm as she articulated her thoughts, twisting and working them like a scalpel into Sombra’s chest. “I have no reason to believe you wouldn’t be doing that right now. You made a big mistake, though. The Element of Generosity has mud on it.” She looked up at the darkness where Sombra stood. “Why would that be? Rarity’s out of town, so she couldn't have brought it out here for it to get dirty.” Sombra backed out of sight, movements skittish and apprehensive. “I have nothing to fear but Fear, himself!”

A blinding lavender light exploded from her horn and burned into the night, sending the shadows scattering and fully illuminating the clearing. She stood and watched the Elements and crumpled scroll vanish in whirling whisps of oily smoke.

Illusions.

Magic coursing through her bones and veins shone from her eyes and horn like a pastel sun in the grim night of the Everfree. For the first time, she beheld her adversary. Clearly, this was itself another victim.

The pony who stood before her was a red Pegasus stallion with light brown mane and tail and a black quill for a cutie mark. His eyes were closed as though sleepwalking and his wings fully opened but dragged limply upon the ground. Over his muzzle floated a black cloud, clinging to the face but clearly not anchored to it. The cloud appeared to have teeth, viciously sharp and predatory that moved independently of the rest of the head. It bore the downward curve of fear.

“Sombra,” Twilight said, voice booming in the cold night. “Let him go.”

“You’re too late for him, princess!” he snarled. “You saved the others, but this one’s mine!”

Ordinarily, this would be where the hero said something snappy and heroic before making the next move. Having read many such adventure and action books, Twilight understood this trope made for good reading and gave stories a cinematic quality. This was not one of her books and doing so just seemed out of place, here.

Instead, Twilight rushed the shadow king, charging with every ounce of strength in her muscles, and stabbing the mouth on the shadows. With the action, she shouted the same spell that earned her wings in the first place.

“All of us together! Together, we are friends!”

The Heart of the Matter

Twilight found herself in a realm that defied rational logic, formed instead from raw emotion and twisted dark magic. Knowing full well such a world awaited her, she was still in stunned awe and fear at just how menacing this ill-defined space seemed to be.

A blackened shadow permeated the dimension with pulses of sickly red flowing along branching and jagged lines, comparable in both timing and shape to a heart and arteries. Green and blue flames sparked into brief existence before fizzling back to nothingness. All of it appeared tied to one rhythm, one beat, as if inside a single organ of a larger creature. The muffled quality of all noise, including the flowing of an unseen crackling fluid, created an uneasy, threatened, and claustrophobic sensation.

At the center of the semi-real circulatory system, floated a gigantic skull of pony structure. Beads of swirling blue and green fire flickered and burned deep inside the cavernous pits of the eyes. A black ichor flowed from the eyes, nose, and from between the sharpened and carnivorous teeth. A curved metallic spike with a deadened grey color and texture protruded from the forehead. Smaller formations of bone encircled the crown of the skull, a grim and profane imitation of the sign of royalty.

Twilight glimpsed something in the mouth of the wraith, more specifically, in its tongue. The tongue lashed and writhed, pointed and cruel. Embedded in the flesh near the organ’s base, precariously close to where the esophagus would be on any logical animal, was an unconscious red Pegasus with a brown mane.

One more time, with feeling!

With not another moment of hesitation, Twilight struck once more into the breach.

The gilded image of her friends and family solidified in her mind, shielding her from the malice around her as it began to stir. A shrieking gale burst from the skull monster, a voice rumbled low, mixed with the skittering scratches of nails on steel.

"Failure..." It said. "Not enough... You were never enough..."

The accusations failed to find their mark.

"You couldn't be more wrong!" Twilight declared. "The events of the past few days have proven to me that I can do this, and that I am ready!" Confidence and warmth glowed from her in a bright, iridescent nova. Thoughts of her friends, family, every last blessing in her life, burned like a beacon against the smothering black. "I put forth my best to help ponies I'd never met, or ever really thought about! I took the time to learn about them and who they are! That is exactly the kind of attention any ruler should have toward their subjects! But I also saw others doing the same thing themselves! I saw them losing sleep to help others in need, and I saw them be everything I should have been from the beginning! I do not rule over them, but beside them! Ponies, including the princesses, rule their land, not their neighbors! I know I will never be alone in taking care of the land, or the people who live here! We will face whatever threats face our country and our world together! And right now, the biggest threat is you!"

The full spectrum of light burst forth from her, carving through the space between her and her foe. The skull lashed out with black tendrils of liquid shadow from it's jaws, but the appendages dried and crumbled against the light Twilight emitted. The jaws snapped shut, prompting Twilight to add her own magic to her force and smash her way in. A screech of agony erupted as tooth and bone gave way in a gruesome shower. Pain pulsed in Twilight's ears.

The captive lay before her, head drooped forward like a broken lamp, one wing hung limp but unbound. She dove for her subject, not to pull him free by force, but to get close enough to talk. The pink flesh of the tongue surged upward like it was made of a liquid or slime, ensnaring her, too. The hind part of her body submerged into the flesh, leaving her head, wings, and forelegs free. She also found herself face-to-face with the stallion.

"Hello," she said. Admittedly not the most creative ways to combat hungry malice, but it was a start. He stirred. "I'm here to take you home."

"Home..." he said weakly. Twilight saw his brow bend into a bitter frown.

"Yes, you have a home," Twilight said. "I would like to help you get back."

"No home..." he said. "Not welcome."

"That's not true," she said. "You have people who love you, and want you back."

"Love me..." he replied, the bitterness mixing with anger.

"Friends and family are there for you," she said. "If I've learned anything, it's that friends and family can be complicated, but they're always there." He didn't respond, but his anger became less hard.

Something shimmered at the edge of Twilight's vision. Something else had come into the tongue matter with them.

"Whatever you're feeling, whatever you're thinking, there is hope," Twilight said, suppressing the nervousness as best she could.

A thought popped into her head. It was illogical, but not irrational. She could neither explain the rationale behind it, nor why she felt so strongly this was the appropriate response, but she decided to go with her gut.

Twilight reached up and touched a hoof to the stallion's chest, causing him to lift his head, blink wearily at her, and stare.

The presence came closer.

"You are important to someone," she said through a warm smile. "The Princess of Friendship and all the Elements of Harmony came here to save you. The other princesses are on their way. Does that sound like something we'd do if nothing was important?"

His eyes opened more, his head lifted straighter. He looked back at Twilight, the glimmer of hope entered his eyes. He reached out to her.

The presence became agitated, closing in faster.

"Do you want to come back with me?" she asked. He nodded weakly, the hope being joined by a misty smile.

The thing approached, snapping non-existent jaws and screaming a silent roar.

Twilight and the stallion pulled each other into an embrace, each prizing the other free from their gelatinous confines. A radiant light poured outward from them, causing the tongue thing to dry and crumble. The fires inside the empty eye sockets flickered and snuffed, signalling the rest of the skull to crack and rupture, crumbling into nothing but the dust of a desperately forgotten nightmare.

* * * * * * *

Twilight's eyes opened to a beautiful starlit night in the Everfree. The sweet, fresh air filled her lungs and nostrils with each deep and gasping breath. The electricity in her muscles steadily faded, easing her eyes back into focus. Before her, the red pegasus stallion lay on the ground, groaning and clutching his head.

Twilight stepped closer, making sure to step plainly into his field of vision. He looked up, eyes seeming to finally focus on the Princess of Friendship.

"My name is Twilight Sparkle," she said, smiling and reaching a hoof down. "What's yours?"

Doubt

Author's Note

This story has been in the works for YEARS. It is set after the Season 3 conclusion, but before the Equestria Girls movie. Yeah, it's been around for THAT long... It's finally finished, but I just need to get into the swing of posting again. Also, the Season 7 finale made me angry for this story. You'll see why...

Doubt

The quill’s point hovered and danced over the page, unable to make contact with the parchment stretched upon the table. The violet glow waved and maneuvered the writing utensil in no organized or coherent manner in direct reflection of its wielder’s thoughts.

Twilight Sparkle, with her newly acquired status as Princess and newly acquired race as Alicorn faced the toughest task she’d ever encountered: getting started. The former unicorn’s reputation as the single most obsessively-organized creature in the world didn’t carry over into something about which she knew nothing. When she was only a scholar and librarian, she knew all the facts to organize into a thesis that must have slaughtered acres of forest. As a student, she knew exactly what needed to be written and how to word it. As a friend, she knew what to say in what order to help, and what to say in what ways to be the best friend her friends needed (though letting slip word of Spike’s crush on Rarity still remained a black mark on her otherwise perfect record, relatively speaking, of course).

She was a princess now, and the blank parchment showed just how much she knew of being one.

What am I even supposed to be doing?

Celestia, Luna, and Cadance had much more experience due in no small part to their longer-than-usual lives. They each took the reigns of different countries and handled running them, leaving the newcomer, Twilight, to get accustomed to her new responsibilities…

…just as soon as she figured out what they were…

The purple alicorn had no country to run, no throne to fill, and no real direction. No objectives, no duties, no real purpose.

So… why am I here now?

The profound despair caused her to groan and throw down her quill. The collision between desk and cranium was unintentional.

“Princess, are you alright?”

The tough masculine voice caused her to jump. Along with the crown and obligations, Twilight also hadn’t gotten used to armed guards on standby at all hours.

“I’m fine, Sergeant. Thank you for your concern.”

“My honor, your highness,” he answered as he bowed out of the room.

What am I supposed to do when the guards are here for me? Am I still supposed to be formal, or can I be more relaxed? Is a princess even allowed to be casual with them, or must I be strict all the time? Why do I understand less every second?

One thing hadn’t changed and would remain her only security in her time of adjustment: her home, the Golden Oak Library of Ponyville, would remain her residence and her castle.

Spike at least had been doing more work around the library, taking the more menial chores off Twilight’s mind, but now he was doing more work in maintaining the library than she was.

Is it really my library anymore?

A wisp of green smoke entered the window, swirling before Twilight and solidifying into a postcard resting on the table. Twilight picked it up with her magic and examined the photograph of Spike and Rarity decked out in shiny new and decorative mining equipment. The two waved, leaning against a mine cart with Spike’s shovel resting on his shoulder and Rarity’s flashier-than-necessary silver-handled pick axe held up with her magic. Three large medals hung around their necks denoting 3rd, 2nd, 2nd. Twilight flipped the card over.

Dear Twilight,

We wanted to thank you again for giving Spike time off for the Gem Hunt, he’s been doing so well! We’re sorry everypony else was so busy, but we promise to bring you all souvenirs (We think they might let us keep some of the gems we mine). We haven’t been doing bad, either; we placed in the top three in every event so far. Spikey’s Wikey’s been an excellent worker and needs a party when we get back (hint hint, nudge nudge). Tomorrow we go through the gravel and mud field, and here I thought digging in mud alone was bad enough yesterday. There are four more rounds to go so wish us luck! (Rarity needs no luck, she has Spike) We miss you all so dearly and can’t wait to be back home.

Your dearest friends and #1 assistant,
Spike and Rarity

P.S. I wanted to wait until morning to send it, but Spike insisted you were still awake at this obscene hour. I hope we didn’t trouble you.

Twilight smirked, setting the postcard on her table. Spike knew her so well. They’d be gone for another week but the absence of her number one assistant made Twilight realize just how lost she truly was. She’d give anything right now to have him here, making some snide comment about how she was over thinking this. She needed him to tell her to calm down and say she was worrying over nothing. Sadly, he wasn’t here; he was off being himself and loving every minute of it.

That’s because he doesn’t have a crown to fill…

Twilight drew a small to-do list she’d been keeping and added “#263: Write reply to Spike and Rarity” before groaning and realizing she still did not know how to send a letter straight to a dragon like Celestia did. She’d have to send it by mail or just wait until the two got back.

Casting the list aside and looking once more to her empty parchment, Twilight released a frustrated sigh of exasperation.

She would pick this up again tomorrow. For now, she notified the guards of her exhausted journey to Luna’s realm of dreams. Perhaps she could gain some guidance there.

* * * * * * *

“Would you pick up the pace?”

The sky buzzed and swam with the beating wings and hooves of the pegasus weather team. The sky that was supposed to be cloudless two hours ago still had blots of condensed moisture razzing them for all their efforts. The noon sun was warmer than usual, causing discomfort for those having fun, and a choking chafe for those hard at work.

Weather captain Rainbow Dash hated moving slow and hated being behind schedule. Part of her job being to remind the whole team of that fact.

“Come on who’s securing these, and why do they keep drifting back?”

Pegasi, having an incredible influence over meteorological phenomena, could control the wind as well. Despite popular belief, however, this control was by no means absolute. The natural wind continued to drift back over the town, bringing storm clouds back that had only seconds before been cleared.

“Dash, why can’t we just bust them?” asked a black pegasus, wrestling with a hefty cloud of his own.

“By all means, Thunderlane, go right ahead,” Dash taunted. “Hit that storm cloud with everything you’ve got.”

Thunderlane’s bravado evaporated more efficiently than his work ethic. The nervous glance over his shoulder to the rest of the team told Rainbow he’d wanted to show off.

“If anypony else wants to do the job quick, please, buck the sky clear!”

An electrical crackle and resounding rumble echoed over the town, accompanied by pained and startled vocalizations.

“Anypony who would rather not be struck by their own lightning, will move these clouds to the drop zone over the farms to the north.”

Grumbling but compliant murmurs answered and the team went back to work. Now Dash needed to watch her team work. Somewhere there was a loose gear in need of adjustments, and the error would be corrected on her watch.

Blossomforth moved a large clump of clouds about three times her size with no difficulty. Flitter and Cloudchaser worked together to move a huge ball of storm clouds, again with no difficulty. The pair also took their time, though on closer inspection they appeared to be giggling and looking back.

Rainbow observed Thunderlane carrying more storm clouds than he should have been in awkward poses in an attempt to show off his style, attempt being the operative word.

Still, his cloud loss was minimal and did not account for the problems they’d been having.

Finally, Rainbow saw the grey mare…

Of course…

Derpy sweated and strained to move enough storm clouds to build a whole apartment complex. Apart from the figurative breadcrumb trail she left, her jostling of her cargo caused the clouds to spark and pop.

“Derpy! Hold it!” Rainbow ordered, flying down in a huff to deal with her subordinate. “Derpy!”

Apparently Dash’s approach was sudden and unexpected as Derpy jumped in surprise, throwing herself against the clouds while turning to face her boss. The involuntary kick sent a bolt through her and Rainbow Dash, shocking the both of them. Dash glared back, her mane and coat singed and smoking. Derpy blushed and shrank shyly, her own blonde mane sizzling.

I hate this part…

Dash had to look Derpy in the eye, but which one? One sort of went down and to the left while the other was up and slightly right. Dash eventually elected to address the bridge of Derpy’s nose.

“Derpy, what are you doing?”

“I’m sorry, I was just trying to move the clouds like you said,” Derpy timidly responded.

“You’re moving them alright,” Rainbow scolded. “You’re moving them where they don’t need to be and leaving them!” Rainbow’s agitation bubbled into her speech.

“I- I’m sorry…”

“Yeah. Sure. You just made a ton of work for the rest of us all day long,” Rainbow said. “Jus- just go home.”

Rainbow set to work gathering the storm clouds drifting back over the town, calling other pegasi to help, leaving Derpy behind.

* * * * * * *

The choir of crickets sang along the banks of the stream below the bridge. Derpy stood with her forelegs over the railing, gazing down into the water. The calming flow helped ease her, but it still couldn’t quite finish the job.

Tears dripped softly down her face while she looked upon her reflection illuminated by the yellow street lamps. At least she tried to look at her reflection. She’d be lucky if she could get one eye to focus at that range.

I’m a failure…

Derpy swallowed her sobs in a futile attempt to stifle her anguish. The pressure built up all day and only in solitude did she feel comfortable enough to open the floodgates. Derpy’s chest heaved as she cried, her face dampened with tears.

The sliver of a moon passed the midnight position a while ago. She should be asleep by now.

I can’t let her see me like this…

Her.

The whole reason Derpy refused to return home just yet. The reason she had three jobs. The reason she even got out of bed every day.

Derpy’s precious baby.

Her light.

Her sweet little muffin.

The hours spent meandering aimlessly through Ponyville, Derpy’s thoughts revolved around the little unicorn filly at home. There was no way she could face her baby with such a disappointment hanging over her head.

The grey mare dismounted the railing and slouched toward one of the benches outside town hall. She lay down on the bench and closed her crooked yellow eyes, wiping her nose on her foreleg.

I just wish I were normal. I wish I weren’t so different… for her.

Derpy sat alone with just the Darkness and her thoughts.

* * * * * * *

“Do you know what subtlety is?” Cloudchaser cocked an eyebrow at Thunderlane. The black pegasus stallion went through his pre-flight stretches, which contained a few more muscle flexes than normal today.

“What? The gunship needs to warm up before battle!” he jested.

“Again, subtlety? Do you know it?”

The bluish-grey pegasus, Flitter chuckled at the show as she signed in for work. The displays some stallions put on were very alluring. The rest were outright comical, and great for a laugh. Thunderlane, as always, remained undecided as to which he was.

“Um, Flitter?”

The smooth voice too young for the stallion who possessed it gave him away.

“Hello, Caramel,” she greeted. The aptly-named and appropriately-colored earth stallion, Caramel stood blushing and averting his gaze.

“Hi, um,” he stumbled. “You work today?”

Flitter looked over her shoulder to the other pegasi, then down to the sign-in sheet in front of her.

“Uh, yeah?” she answered.

“Oh, right. Uh Sorry,” Caramel stammered. “Later tonight, um, when you’re finished… would you like to see a movie, or something?”

Flitter knew full well this was coming. He had to be trying to be Thunderlane’s opposite. Flitter chose to respond with a line she’d been reserving for the immature Thunderlane himself.

“I’m single, not desperate. Now if you’ll excuse me, the adults have jobs to do.” Flitter's rejection punctuated with a flip of the tail as she turned to rejoin the team, just in time for the boss to show up.

* * * * * * *

“Everypony, listen up!” Rainbow Dash bellowed. “We lost some time yesterday and the farmers need more rain. We’ll be gathering rain clouds over the farms again to make up for it. A shipment of fresh rain clouds has been dropped just north of town. Move them over the farms and spread them evenly. Any questions?”

An exuberant “No ma’am!” answered her with one “YEEA- uh NOOO!” thrown in. When they broke, Rainbow Dash saw a new face in the crowd. The new flier departed too quickly for Rainbow Dash to intercept, but set to work right away, gathering clouds about the size of a standard pull cart and transporting with no issue.

I wasn’t told about any new hires…

Rainbow Dash joined her team in moving the clouds, but kept a distant eye on the new one. Whoever this new mare was, she worked efficiently and without hesitation or distraction. She set to work ferrying clouds and not even glancing at anything not directly related to the task. Politely excusing herself when she got in somepony else’ way or waiting patiently when her own path was obstructed, she looked like she knew exactly what she was doing and how it was supposed to be done.

Though Rainbow Dash had not touched the book in years, she recalled the Department of Weather Services Official Hoofbook had exact measurements for everything, including what volume of clouds was safe to push. Dash could not remember the exact volume, or what a square meter was, but she was pretty sure this new pegasus handled that exact amount. No more. No less.

Must be from Cloudsdale.

The weather capital did have higher standards and more regimented behavior. The thought eased Dash’s mind and she set back to work. Within the span only thirty minutes, a nice, cooling rain fell upon each of the farms: a new town record!

“Great job everypony!” Rainbow Dash congratulated. “Only other thing on the schedule is clearing the skies over Ponyville! If you’re quick enough, there might even be a few pizzas afterward! My treat!”

“YEEAAH!”

The cheers went up and the group zoomed out over the town, dispelling the clouds over the town with their new energetic drive.

Except one.

The new mare set to work, but that spirit wasn’t present. Something was off, it was difficult for Dash to pin down. The mare moved with speed, precision, and energy, but lacked any feeling. No slouching from exhaustion, no bounce from excitement, not even a hesitant moment to think about the next move. She wasn’t working. She simply functioned and carried out every task.

According to the book…

The rules and regulations from Cloudsdale were annoyingly strict, so nopony followed them exactly.

Nopony except her…

Confident her team could handle this on their own, Dash went out to confront the new one. Drawing closer, Rainbow Dash could see she was grey. No other color. Just grey. Not even different shades of grey. Just a dull, lusterless grey.

“Hey,” Dash called. “I didn’t know I had anypony new here! You did some good work, but who are you?”

Maybe the Department sent her to evaluate me. My speech was pretty compelling, wasn’t it?

The grey mare turned to face Rainbow Dash. Her calm but somehow alert demeanor was somehow foreign to Dash, but not unwelcome.

Until Rainbow saw the grey eyes, that is.

By Celestia, everything about the new girl was grey. Her eyes, her coat, her mane. Rainbow grimaced as she saw something disturbing and unnatural.

This full-grown adult doesn’t have a cutie mark…

Brushing aside the nervousness, Rainbow spoke.

“What’s your name?

In a calm, straightforward voice, the grey mare stated simply:

“I am Derpy Hooves.”

* * * * * * *

The fresh-sewn rain clouds nourished the land and plants all around, softening the dirt as it worked. Having completed their work, the pegasi landed in the dry and sunny town for fun and relaxation.

Further up the road, from beneath an old tree, the sodden and sullen Caramel watched.

What was it this time?

Caramel mentally lashed himself, berating yet another failure. How many times? How many times had he heard ‘no’ with a hateful twist? How many mares thought he was a waste of flesh and space? How many ponies- no, how many beings both living and dead felt he shouldn’t have been made?

When you’re rejected once, it’s a stumble. When you’re rejected twice, it’s annoying. When you’re rejected three times, it’s frustrating. When all you’ve ever heard ‘no,’ you start to question your purpose.

Thunderlane makes it look so easy…

Thunderlane could show off anywhere anytime and chances were good there’d be a mare swooning somewhere in the crowd.

What am I doing wrong?

The stuttering hadn’t helped, and neither had the slumping posture. The nerves that always hit him whenever he spoke with a member of the feminine persuasion paralyzed him each and every time. They were unfamiliar to him, and that made them intimidating.

I wish I wasn’t such a wimp…I wish I just didn’t care…

Caramel should be going home. He should be taking care of the chores around the house.

For now, his scattered thoughts and caustic emotions swirled too violently in his head. He needed to rest.

With the rain pouring all around and rivulets dripping through the tree branches on him, Caramel closed his eyes and rested alone.

Just the darkness and his thoughts.

Friendship in Every Color

It had been an embarrassingly long time since Twilight had fully appreciated a warm, sunny day, but she could ask for no more perfect day for this occasion. The cloudless sky, courtesy of the local weather team, felt even more spacious than ever after the events of the previous night.

Twilight stood behind the curtain at the stage beside town hall, admiring the similarities and differences between Ponyville and Meadow Ridge, realizing just how much of Equestria she had yet to truly see. Thoughts of the future could wait, at least for a moment. Perhaps she was exhausted from a fight that defied logic. Maybe it was the emotional roller coaster of the last couple days. It might have even been that she'd opened her eyes and seen where value and attention should be placed. Whatever the reason, Princess Twilight Sparkle remained focused on the task at hand, or at least unable to worry about anything else for a while.

The little town, roughly the same size as Ponyville, held an impressive population, all of whom turned out when the Princess of Friendship announced she would be holding an event. Then again, it was equally possible ponies had traveled to see her speak, but that was beside the point. The point was they were here, now, and so was Twilight, in every sense of the term.

"Everything's ready, your highness," Stonewall said. "Just waiting on you."

"Thank you," she said, the two exchanging bows. He went to inform the mayor.

"Fillies and gentlecolts!" the mayor of Meadow Ridge proclaimed to the gathered crowd. "It is with great honor, that I present to you, in her first public event as the Princess of Friendship, Princess Twilight Sparkle!"

Twilight stepped onto the stage, facing the roaring adulation of the crowd, now fully able to appreciate how many had come out to see her. The thunderous stomping on hooves in applause shook the earth beneath, and carried into the sky, aided by pegasi perched on their own clouds for a better view. She cleared her throat.

"Thank you, ponies of Meadow Ridge!" she proclaimed. The crowd slowly quieted. "Until recently, I had all the standard worries and concerns. More, if you ask the friends who saw me study." She gave a winking smile to her friends in the front row. The audience chuckled. "But with the crown and a new set of wings, I felt lost, unbalanced, dizzy. I felt like everything had changed for me, but I hadn't changed to match it. I tried to be something new, when me being who I've always been is what got me the crown in the first place. I needed to be shown nothing had changed, and that my old problems as a unicorn were still my new problems as an alicorn." She paused. "It took the crying of a young filly to help me see it."

Eyes went to Derpy and Dinky. A few sniffles could be heard here and there. Rainbow Dash nudged Derpy and gave an approving smile.

"In the days that followed, I came to see everyone has the same problems. Be they adult or child, stallion or mare, working or wealthy. After watching them back in each other's arms, I saw in them everything I should have been, and everything we can all be now. The old adage goes 'there's no such thing as strangers, only friends we haven't met.' I know for certain that is true! I watched ponies who hated each other days before dive into the unknown to save them! I have seen the best life can give, and know that should be what we strive to accomplish! Today, after I leave this stage, I encourage you all to meet new ponies, see new faces, and maybe, forge a few new friendships." She motioned to someone off stage. "But first..."

The red pegasus stallion from the forest came out, head bowed in timidity and an uncomfortable apprehension. Some ponies Twilight had arranged to be seated in the front row gasped. Some choked back tears, while others simply stared.

"I'd like to introduce you all to my new friend."

* * * * * * *

Luna entered the front door to Twilight's library, joining the others gathered around the table. The freshly raised moon lit the night outside. Candles and lanterns illuminated the room, with papers, diagrams, maps, and documentation of the Crystal Empire and Crystal Heart upon the table. Surrounding them sat Princesses Celestia, Luna, Cadance, Shining Armor, and Discord. The princesses all wore their standard regalia, while Discord wore the riding pants, green jacket and hat of a military general. Naturally, brows cocked in his direction.

Luna was first to address the darconequus.

"Discord, are you-"

"Swagalicious? Thanks for noticing!"

Shining and Luna exchanged groans and eye rolls, while Cadance just looked confused. Celestia made no attempt to hide a chuckle.

A door at the top of the stairs opened, and Twilight descended. All eyes followed her as she approached the table, gave Discord a confused look, which he responded with a wink, and took her seat at the table.

"I'm glad you could all make it," she said, placing more papers on the table, this time documentation of the events of the last few days. "I've called you all here to discuss a matter of grave importance. Four days ago, a fragment of King Sombra was able to twist three ponies and convince them to give up who they are."

Photographs of Derpy, Silver Spoon, and Caramel levitated out to each of the attendants.

"While it was stopped at just three victims, had this not been stopped when it had, we could have seen something far worse and far more widespread."

"You beat Sombra," Shining Armor said. "I'm worried that he came back at all, but I know you wouldn't call us here on such short notice if that were it."

Twilight nodded grimly.

"While you are right about why I called you here, I did not beat Sombra," she explained, noting the looks of confusion the rest of the attendees gave. "What I faced was only his mouth."

With those words, the realization dawned on them all.

"If that was only the mouth, what can the rest of him do?"

Author's Note

WOOO! And with that, my first ever finished story! I look forward to writing more on a more regular basis! Thank you for sticking with me, and see you next time!