She's the flan

Chapters

1 - Better a witty fool
2 - Love sought is good
3 - Patience is a monument
4 - No ignorance but darkness
5 - Be not afraid of greatness
6 - Journeys end in lovers

1 - Better a witty fool

Pinkie Pie bounced through the streets of Ponyville, Gummy bouncing along with her, his tiny jaws clamped tightly over a strand of curling hair. As she went, she smiled and greeted each of her neighbors by name.

"Good morning, Klarity Cut! Nice mustache, Ace Point! Watch'ya playing, Apple Bytes? Cool costume, Amethyst Star! Smells good, Savoir Fare! Keep up the sunny weather, Jetstream!"

She paused when she saw Caramel Chance, a rather forgetful pony, atop a ladder, struggling with his end of a "Welcome to Ponyville, Princess Cadence!" With a smile, she wrapped both hooves around the base of the ladder, instantly steadying it.

"Don't worry, I gotchya!" She called up to him.

He blushed and gave an uneasy smile, before pounding the nail in the corner of the banner into the wooden plank in which it was embedded.

"Th-thanks a lot Pinkie Pie..." He said, quickly descending the ladder. Like many Earth Ponies, he was uncomfortable far off the ground.

"Sure thing! That's what friends are for silly!" She said, booping him on the nose with her hoof and then smiling at Thunderlane, the Pegasus who had long ago finished nailing in the other side of the banner. "Turn that frown upside down, Thunderlane. These decorations are gonna knock Princess Cadence's socks off!"

Thunderlane rolled his eyes, but Pinkie Pie didn't notice. She was too busy continuing her peculiar mode of movement down main street, all the while cheering on every creature to continue in their preparations. Normally, the upcoming holiday would warrant this level of decor, but it was not every year that the Princess of Love decided to pay Ponyville a visit. Ponies from all over Equestria had taken advantage of the hubbub and even three days before Cadence's arrival, the alleys were filled with musicians, performers, rodeo clowns and roustabouts setting up booths for various, love-themed carnival games.

Pinkie loved games. Especially ones with hoops and bottles and brightly colored stuffed animals as the prizes, waiting to be won. It was always fun to see Applejack ring the bell at the high striker to. Pinkie Pie didn't like to advertise her own Earth Pony strength. She would rather ponies remember her for her parties and her pastries. But there was something about seeing another pony do it, especially a close friend like Applejack that got her all excited. It reminded her of the feats that Maud used to do, the kind which she and Marble Pie would cheer her on for (well, Pinkie would cheer her on, but Marble Pie would give moral support).

She skidded to halt outside Rarity's Boutique, grinning at the sign in the window. "50% off dresses for Hearts and Hooves day!" Pinkie wasn't much for dresses. They always restricted her movement and parties were for dancing, not dressing up. Still, she was always glad to admire the beautiful creations which Rarity could form out of silk and satin. It was a skill which she'd not seen replicated in all her travels across Equestria. Rarity had an eye for beauty and beauty seemed to flow from her so easily, that if Pinkie Pie hadn't been such good friends with her for so long, she might have believed it was effortless.

She remembered her father, Igneous, telling her that ponies in the big city (which, to the Pie family, had been any city at all) wasted time on frivolous pursuits like gaudy clothing and frivolous music. Of course, he had grown a lot, since his most awkward daughter became one of the heroes of the realm. Still, his opinion of the arts had stayed with her during her first months in Ponyville. She had worked so hard to become everypony's friends and to fulfill the destiny of her Cutie Mark and she'd worried that he had been right, and that she was being drawn in by something that was intangible and unproductive.

Then Rarity had shown her the light. Her generosity in those first few months when Pinkie Pie was relying on the hospitality of the Cakes had inspired her to keep going and reassured her that she had made the right choice. Her place was in Ponyville.

The two had barely fought throughout their relationship, and although Pinkie's messiness had made it difficult for them to spend as much time together as Pinkie would have liked, it only meant that Pinkie appreciated it all the more, when Rarity attended one of her parties, knowing how particular she was about getting confetti in her mane.

Sticking her tongue out between her teeth with effort, Pinkie stood up on her hind legs and took a few steps backwards. Then charged the front door, flying inside utterly without grace, and cartwheeling over to the area of the shop where she knew she'd find her BUFF (Best Unicorn Friend Forever) working on her next big outfit. As she came to a stop, she lifted both hooves in the air as if expecting applause and took a deep breath.

"GOOOOOD...MORNING...RARITY!" She yelled, shaking the timbers of the building and receiving a single blink out of Gummy.

Her smile dropped when she failed to get the reception she'd expected.

Sitting on the stool in front of the worktable was a unicorn with a familiar white coat and purple mane. But she was slumped over her latest chef-d'oeuvre, picking at the hemline of a beautiful emerald ball-gown with one hoof while she used the other to rifle through a box of chocolates.

"Rarity...are you okay?" Pinkie asked. Usually, she could get a reaction out of any creature, just by being herself. She wondered briefly if she'd lost some of her touch, at having failed to cheer up Rarity's morning.

"Oh. Hello Pinkie Pie. What a pleasant surprise. Please...take a seat." Rarity said, popping the next caramel-coconut twist into her mouth and inhaling it without bothering to savor its perfect mixture of saltiness and crunchiness.

"Rarity, you're going to get chocolate on this beautiful dress!" Pinkie said, hopping up onto the table and inspecting the gown.

"Oh. Really? It doesn't matter. I can always just make something better to replace it. That's all I'm good for, making dresses. That and saving Equestria from countless apocalyptic dangers of course."

"Rarity, you're not making any sense." Pinkie said, leaning down towards her.

Rarity sighed and rolled her head over so that she was staring lazily up into Pinkie's quizzical eyes and popped a dark-chocolate cherry explosion into her mouth. "I'm sorry Diana, I am just not in the mood for the usual tomfoolery this morning."

Pinkie scratched her head and then pressed a hoof to Rarity's head. When she had determined that there wasn't a fluxuation in temperature in the unicorns body, she leaned down and whispered "Why not?"

"Because..." Rarity began, sliding off her stool and collapsing into a pile of self-pity on the ground. "No pony loves me."

Pinkie considered this for a moment and then laughed. "Oh, Rarity, that's silly! Of course, ponies love you! Your parents, your little sister, me, Applejack, Twilight, Fluttershy-"

"No, Pinkie...I mean, no pony is...in love with me." Rarity clarified. "I have dedicated my entire life to...refining myself. Making myself as desirable as possible...but every time I see some creature I fancy; it ends in mortification and regret. I am doomed, Pinkie...doomed to grow old without a hoof to hold and to die...unwooed and unloved." At this, her eyes welled up and she rolled over, turning her gaze glumly toward the floor.

"That's not true!" Pinkie insisted. Even she was surprised that Rarity didn't have a special somepony at this point.

"It's not your fault." Rarity conceded. "I've been so busy building up a fashion empire, helping you and the others protect Equestria, I've barely had time to pursue somepony worth spending time with. Meanwhile, the few which I have pursued have always been...uninterested in me."

Pinkie winced, remembering the stories about the prince and the travel writer. The stories had been recounted in jest and they had all laughed together at how ridiculousness of Rarity crushing her own slipper or dressing up as a farmhand. But in hindsight, the amusing aspects of the story had only been a distraction from the underlying angst. Neither stallion had been the least bit interested in actually spending time with Rarity.

She was so beautiful, within and without. If Pinkie could notice that, how was it that no other pony had? Pinkie shook herself, quickly recovering her normal exuberance. If no other pony was going to make Rarity feel wanted, then it would just fall to her.

"Rarity, you're the kindest, most gentle, most generous mare in all of Equestria!" Pinkie declared, grabbing her friend and staring deep into her red-rimmed eyes. "Just because somepony hasn't fallen in love with you yet, doesn't mean they never will!"

Rarity looked back down at the floor. "Obviously, Pinkie..." Then she dropped from Pinkie's hold, standing up on her own hooves at last. "I suppose I should put on a brave face for my public. After all, there are creatures with lives far worse than mine..." She paused as she turned away. "It's only...I've always wanted to...well, you know...to be courted. Like in stories. To feel those butterflies in my stomach I've always heard about and know that the other creature is feeling the same...well, I suppose it's time I grow up, eh?"

Pinkie watched her normally self-confident friend trot out of sight, still staring at the floor in defeat. Then she jumped to her feet. One of her friends...deciding she needed to grow up? Not in this lifetime, not as long as there was something Pinkie could do about it.

With unparalleled speed she zipped off the table and out the front door of the boutique, returning only briefly to finish the chocolates that Rarity had left behind and deposit the box in a recycling container. She would need all the energy she could get for what came next.

"I can't believe you still haven't told her!" Rainbow Dash said, as they arranged Cumulus humilis in the atmosphere directly above Ponyville. Although she had long ago left the job of weatherpony behind, her tour with the Wonderbolts was over for the year and Applejack had so very sweetly ~~nagged~~suggested that she help her second home with preparations that she'd felt like a jerk trying to nap while everypony else was working.

Plus, it gave her a chance to talk to Flutterdash in private.

Flutterdash didn't answer, focusing instead of pushing the cloud at her hoof-tips. Her eyes were downcast though and her gaze focused on the tiny forms of buildings below.

"This is the perfect opportunity...just ask if she wants to dance with you. Even if she says no, you can just pretend that you meant it as a friend." Rainbow said.

"But...I don't want to lie to her...about my feelings..." Fluttershy said.

"Then tell her the truth!" Rainbow ordered, landing on Fluttershy's cloud. "You're already lying to her every time you two go to the spa together!"

Fluttershy wilted. "But Rainbow...what if she doesn't like me back. Then we won't be able to hang out anymore."

Rainbow ran a hoof across her face. "C'mon, Fluttershy...do you want to spend the rest of your life feeling bad every time you see her with somepony else? Just...tell her about your feelings and we can stop talking about this every time we get some alone time."

Fluttershy frowned. "Rainbow, you're the one who doesn't want anypony to know about your relationship with Applejack."

Rainbow's eyes widened and sweat began to form on her brow. Then she folded her forelegs together across her chest. "That's different. That's just because...I have a fan club and I know it would crush them if they found out I'm taken. Besides, it's not like I was afraid to tell Applejack I liked her."

"But isn't she the one who kissed you?" Fluttershy asked.

"Hey! We're talking about your problem right now, not mine." Rainbow said. Then she sighed. "Okay, fine...I-I know how you feel, okay, Fluttershy? Before...before me and Applejack kissed...I was afraid to tell her I liked her. I worried that...that she might not like me. But you can't live your whole life being afraid...trust me, you will feel better, when you tell her the truth."

Fluttershy considered this for a moment. "Rainbow Dash?"

"Yes, Fluttershy?"

"You knew that Applejack liked mares...before you two kissed, right?"

"Uh...yeah, why?"

"Well, the thing is...I don't know if Rarity likes mares."

"Fluttershy..."

"Oh, please, Rainbow! She's only ever talked about dating stallions...for all I know, she might not...have the romantic feelings the same way I do."

"Uh, Fluttershy, I'm pretty sure Rarity is romantic. She swoons at every other stallion we meet."

Fluttershy glared up at Rainbow.

"Right, not helping. Sorry."

Fluttershy sighed. "It's just...I wish there was some way to know...you know, before I asked her."

Rainbow sighed. "Alright, fine. If I find out, for you, if Rarity likes mares, do you promise that you're going to ask her to go on a date with you for Hearts and Hooves Day?"

Fluttershy considered her options for a moment. Then she nodded.

Rainbow let out a deep sigh of relief. Finally, it was hard enough keeping her and Applejack's relationship secret. The sooner Fluttershy just spat it out, the fewer secrets Rainbow had to worry about never revealing. It was hard sometimes, being the Element of Loyalty.

But Fluttershy would thank her, when it was over and done with.

"So, Di, what is it this time?" Silver Spoon asked, as she climbed into the booth of the Hay Burger. Since their first big blowout, she had slowly grown more comfortable with being able to express her exasperation with her friend, instead of just parroting whatever she thought she wanted to hear.

She still didn't know if it was a healthy relationship, but it was for sure a lot more fun.

"Well, you know how Hearts and Hooves Day is coming up?" Diamond Tiara asked, as Silver Spoon, realizing that she was in for a long and in-depth rant, raised a hoof to order a serving of horseshoe fries.

"Uh, yeah..." Silver said, with a glance to the copious decorations which had somehow made their town even more nauseatingly pink than normal.

"Well, I just thought...wouldn't it be totally ironic if like, I invited somepony to the dance?" Diamond said, twirling her mane around her hoof.

"Di, you don't have to pretend you're too cool for the dance." Silver Spoon said with a snide smile. "It totally doesn't make you a square..."

Diamond Tiara shot her a glare, but then a look of consternation replaced her annoyance. "Silver Spoon, do you remember when we used to...umm, be really mean to some of the fillies in our class."

"You mean when we bullied the Cutie Marker Crusaders?" Silver Spoon asked, with a slurp from the complimentary cider which had come with her fries.

Diamond's face fell. "Wha-uh, I mean...yeah?? How-how long have you known?"

"I figured it out after you sang that song with them about just being yourself. It was either you were in the closet or you were secretly a changeling." Silver Spoon said, meeting the sweetness of the cider in her mouth with the salty crispiness of the fries.

"Oh...o-okay..." Diamond said, her eyes lowering.

"Which one did you want to ask?" Silver Spoon asked, through a mouthful of fries. "Becash if itsh Shcootaloo, I shink that ship has shailed."

Diamond closed her eyes, overcome with regret. It was only as she'd matured and exposed herself to more ponies that she'd realized how terrible her mockery of Scootaloo's wings was. She'd told herself that she never would have said those things if she'd known how serious not being able to fly was in Pegasus cultures. But the reality is that she had tormented another filly for something she couldn't help and while she had been able to slowly build trust with Applebloom and Sweetie Belle, she had remained at wing's length from Scootaloo, terrified that the Pegasus would confront her about the things she knew she couldn't take back.

"Diamond, relax...we said a lot of stupid things back then." Silver Spoon said. "You can't torture yourself for every time you messed up in your childhood."

"Silver, do you think if somepony bullied you, you would ever want to go dancing with them?" Diamond asked, with a fixed glare.

"Well, when you put it that way..." Silver Spoon said, with a contemplative hoof to her chin.

"Ugh. Why couldn't it be somepony else?" Diamond Tiara asked, slumping her face into the table.

"So, it is Scootaloo then?" Silver Spoon asked.

Diamond Tiara shook her head, slowly. "S-Sweetie Belle..." She admitted, in a voice barely audible.

"Ooooh...I didn't realize you liked the unicorn mares." Silver said, leaning over the table.

"Uggggh...can you please not make this worse?" Diamond Tiara asked, in a voice that was so pitiful Silver had to take mercy on her.

"Relax, I'm just teasing...if it makes you feel any better, I'm really into those crystal ponies." Silver said. "Can you imagine how much they must glitter while their showering?"

"C-can we get back to my problems?" Diamond Tiara asked, suddenly deeply uncomfortable with this conversation.

Silver rolled her eyes. "Do your parents know? About the mare thing, not the unicorn thing. I know they aren't that racist."

"My parents aren't racist...their just...classist." Diamond Tiara said, uncertain if this was better once she'd said it out loud. "Anyway, this isn't about them, my mother might be mad I'm not interested in the colts from the Canter Club, but my dad just wants me to be happy, alright?"

"Well, then what's the problem?" Silver asked, taking another sip from her drink. "You've already apologized, and the crusaders have forgiven you, haven't they?"

"They might have said that but..." Diamond Tiara groaned. "What-what if it isn't enough?"

"You know what it sounds like," Silver asked, leaning across the table. "It SOUNDS like you're just looking for some reason to avoid asking her out." She leaned back and took another sip. "If she says no, it just means that you're actions as a spoiled brat have forever tainted your chances at happiness. It's no big deal."

Diamond groaned again and Silver cackled with schadenfreude.

Sweetie Belle sat in the backroom of the Carousel Boutique, kneeling over an immense strip of orange construction paper, using her telekinesis to draw the purple sparkly glue across the paper. When she was done, the message "WILL YOU DANCE WITH ME THIS HEARTS AND HOOVES DAY?" had been drawn across the center of the oversized card, in big sparkly letters.

She bit her lip as she considered her efforts. Somehow, they still weren't...awesome enough. With that, she popped up and levitated over from Rarity's collection (the specific materials her sister had set aside for her to use in projects such as this) a couple of jars of glitter, spilling two multicolored streams of dazzlement across the face of the card and grinning at the end project.

Then she took a deep breath and, using her magic, lifted the giant card and folded it carefully, before haphazardly stuffing it into her backpack, throwing the backpack over her neck and galloping out of the room. No more hiding her feelings. No more being afraid. For all her foalhood, she had dreamed of the kind of romance she'd read about in storybooks. But she wasn't waiting for somepony to come sweep her off her feet. She was going after the thing she wanted.

Her heart fluttered, with the innocence of childish attachment and the eagerness for reciprocation. She was not a little filly anymore. She was finally ready to tell Scootaloo the truth.

Being the Element of Laughter was fun. But it came with a lot of responsibilities. Responsibilities like making sure that your friends who were extremely talented and powerful never took themselves too seriously. And making sure that if they fell into a slump, like Rarity clearly had, you were there to pick them up.

Words clearly weren't going to help. No, she needed to show Rarity how much she was loved. And that meant taking action.

As Pinkie sat in her Party Cave and blew on her bubble pipe, she stared at the poster board in front of her. In the center of it was a picture of Rarity, taken while in the shower (hosting surprise parties for the same ponies every year involved doing a lot of recon without their knowledge, or as the Ponyville Law Authority called it, "stalking"). Multicolored pushpins had been embedded in the board at the corners of the photo and strands of red thread ran from the knobs of each pin to the other photos hosted on the board (which were all pictures of cupcakes except for one blurry photo of a pink pony with a yellow and pink mane).

Leaping out of her sofa chair, Pinkie yanked out a magnify glass and began to inspect each thread, following it to its terminus and then jumping to the opposite end of the board to investigate some alternative angle. Then she lifted a hoof with an "A-ha!" and threw the board (which was on wheels) into a distant cranny of her underground base. With that, she turned to Gummy and bounced over to him.

"I did it, Gummy! I figured out how to cheer up Rarity!" Pinkie cried.

Gummy blinked.

"No, Gummy. I'm not going to try to set her up with a bunch of different ponies in hopes that she finds her true love!" Pinkie laughed. "No pony is going to want to date her with the way she is right now! No, I'm going to send her a present letting her know how much she means to everyone here in Ponyville. Once she knows how much she means to us, that'll snap her out of her funk."

Gummy lifted his tongue and dragged it slowly across a purple iris.

"Of course, I'm not going to tell her who it's from! If I told her who it was from, it would be like I wanted her to know how much of a good friend I am. But a really good friend wouldn't care if she knew. If she thinks it's a gift from some unknown pony, she won't know who is being a good friend to her. She'll only know that somepony, somewhere cares for her! And that's all she needs to know to be back to her usual, glamorous self!"

Gummy continued to suckle on his own eyeball.

"Silly Gummy! Of course, it's a good idea. Now I just have to make the perfect gift for her...something that will make her believe in romance again!" Pinkie held a hoof to her chin, considering her options. Then her eyes lit up with a second epiphany in less than five minutes and she sped over to one of the various piles of party supplies which lay haphazardly about the cavern.

Gummy just watched, knowing deep in his reptilian heart, that he was incapable of halting the catastrophic disaster which was so clearly and rapidly unfolding in front of him.

"Ponyville station!" All Aboard declared as the Friendship Express groaned to a halt.

The princess enthusiasts who'd come to gawk at the reunion of Cadence and Twilight, seemed to scramble up out of their seats, jostling and pushing to retrieve their luggage. All Aboard prided himself on being able to read his passengers and considered himself as much a steward of their comfort as a conductor of the train. And he had observed them for the whole train ride and expected the level of enthusiasm which all tourists seemed to come to Ponyville carrying.

He was startled though, by the urgency of their departure. They seemed agitated, more relieved to be exiting the train than glad to be arriving at their destination. It was only when the crowd had cleared, and the car was all but empty that he made out the cause of their clamor.

Sitting at the back of the car, wedged into a booth which, despite the crowdedness of the train, was a creature he'd never seen before. It took him stepping closer and watching her intently to realize she was Abyssinian. The catfolk had begun to filter up into Equestria slowly, ever since one of their own was given a medal for his participation in the emancipation of Equestria from the Storm King's forces. Still, he'd never seen one with fur this dark. It was like a looking into the night sky, an impression only amplified by the constellation designs on the cloak which the passenger was wearing.

"Thy work be done.
Haft this miraculous device arrived us,
At the villa on which we designed?" The creature asked, as she dragged a perfectly manicured claw across the strings of her parched bone lute.

"Ah, yes, m'am. This is Ponyville." He said, taking off his hat. "Say, that's a funny way of speaking you got there? Are you royalty from some far-off land or some such?"

The Abyssinian laughed and for a moment All Aboard understood why the rest of the passengers had departed in such haste. The sound was like the bellowing applause of a thousand drunken apes, as repulsively boorish as it was overwhelming.

Then her yellow eyes met his and she stood, the lute disappearing into the void of her cloak. "Thy speaks verily ere introduction.
Mine airs ought to be,
the most enflamed in this desserted land,
by such bald presumption.
Though thine flattery begs of thine position,
it indebts to thy mine mercy.
May thy daze remain pleasant,
And thy worn fate remain untouched
by the scissors of Moirai
in tears yet."

All Aboard frowned. "You mean 'in years yet' surely?"

The passenger grinned and her paw passed across his forehoof and in its wake was left behind a strange looking coin, much larger and thicker than any bit he'd yet received as compensation. He squinted through his spectacles at the words around its rim, which seemed to be written in a language he'd never encountered in all his travels.

"Thank you for the tip, Miss..." He looked up in hopes of catching the name of what had to be the most interesting passenger he'd encountered in a long time.

But the Abyssinian was gone, leaving behind only the faintest whiff of roses.

Author's Note

Villian, enter stage left!

Originally this was to be nothing more than a romantic comedy, but it wouldn't be an Infamous Fly story without a bit of cosmic horror infecting the story.

2 - Love sought is good

Sweetie Belle galloped through Ponyville's park, pausing only when she caught sight of the pegasus she'd been searching for.

Scootaloo had long ago upgraded from her standard scooter to a much more impressive, two wheeled, partially enchanted skateboard designed for her specifically by a thankful client in Canterlot. Despite being almost twice her length, it moved with the same deceptive grace and alacrity she now embodied and between tutoring at the School of Friendship and helping with Cutie Mark Crusader missions she could usually be found here, in the center of the park, skating up and around the statue commemorating the saving of Equestria.

Due to her closeness to Rainbow Dash as well as her own, not inconsiderable accomplishments, she had attracted quite a following, with members of the "Scootaloo Fan Club" gathering around the statue every week to witness Scootaloo's outrageous and oftentimes physically impossible stunts. Earth ponies had long dominated the sport of extreme scootering, using their geomancy to manipulate the ground beneath them and their increased durability to protect themselves from the cuts or bruises inherent in such a dangerous sport. But Scootaloo's wings and lighter build allowed her to move with agility which no other pony could accomplish, mostly because no pegasi had ever attempted to become an athlete in this arena of spectacle before.

It worried Sweetie Belle sometimes, how many risks Scootaloo would take in showing off to her adoring audience. And not, because, as Scootaloo had once suggested, Sweetie Belle was afraid that Scootaloo was too weak to look after herself. It was because Sweetie Belle couldn't help but imaginge each increasingly convoluted trick ending in a nasty and permanent fall.

There was of course, something beautiful about the smile on Scootaloo's face when she was in her element, moving with lightning speed between the different facets of the statue and whirling up the vertical sides of each polished brass form with utter disregard for her own wellbeing. Sweetie only wished that Scoots could find as much release in less life-threatening endeavors.

As she paused to watch the display, she felt a hoof tap her on the shoulder and turned to smile in surprise.

"Oh, hey, Diamond Tiara! Hey Silver Spoon! Sorry, I-uh, I didn't notice you!" She said with a shy chuckle.

"It's okay, you were clearly focused on something else." Silver Spoon said dryly.

Diamond Tiara didn't seem to be paying attention, she was clearing her throat and staring at the ground, with an expression like she was about to throw up.

"Are you alright Diamond Tiara?" Sweetie Belle asked, quick to change the subject.

Diamond Tiara took a deep breath and then she raised her head and spoke. "Iwasjustwonderingifyouwantedtogototheheartsandhoovesdancewithme!"

Sweetie Belle stared at her for a moment. "Oh."

Diamond closed her eyes, wincing like Sweetie Belle might strike her.

"Oh..." Sweetie Belle said, suddenly comprehending the weight behind her friend's request.

"I'll give you two some privacy," Silver Spoon said, shifting out of sight as Diamond Tiara scrunched herself up so much, she looked ready to implode and become a black hole.

"Diamond, I really like you...and you are a very pretty mare but..." Sweetie Belle began.

"It's okay, it's no big deal, I just thought I would ask, hahahaha...see you later Sweetie Belle!" With that Diamond Tiara had already turned away and dashed out of sight, tearing between bushes and trees to escape the completion of the rejection.

Sweetie Belle slumped in her posture; the wind taken out of her sails. She would never want to hurt Diamond Tiara. Still, it was difficult to imagine, the two of them dancing together. What would they talk about? They didn't have anything in common. And Diamond Tiara was a beautiful mare but not beautiful in the same way that Scootaloo was. She would have spent the whole dance thinking of somepony else and that was no way to treat a friend.

Shaking her head, she turned back toward the direction of the statue, just in time to witness Scootaloo's grand finale. She watched as the orange pegasus skidded to a halt after a spectacular display of mid-air acrobatics and immediately began signing various objects and tousling the hair of the fillies and colts who worshipped her.

Sweetie smiled at the sight, although her excitement was still somewhat dampened by her encounter with Diamond Tiara. Had she been too hasty? Was it cruel to turn away another creature's affections without first giving them a chance?

"Come to check out my awesome moves?" Scootaloo asked, rolling up to Sweetie Belle as the crowd dispersed.

Sweetie Belle blushed. "Well, that last trick was pretty cool..."

"It should have been, I've only been practicing for two weeks." Scootaloo said, shifting her sore foreleg to regain feeling in it. Then she hopped off her skateboard, popping it up from her rear hooves to her fore ones. "So, is there a cutie mark emergency or something? Usually, this isn't your scene."

This was it. No turning back. It was better to know, even if it crushed her heart, she had to know.

"Scootaloo, I-I want you to know...I made something for you." Sweetie Belle said, opening the flap of her backpack and lifting the oversized card out of it.

Scootaloo stared at the card in surprise and then, almost suspiciously, opened it up. She stared at the words inside for a moment and Sweetie Belle tried to gage her reaction. Was it too girly for her? Too glittery? She wished now she had paid a pegasus to skywrite it for her, as had been her first idea.

"Umm, Sweetie Belle, whatever this is, it's not funny." Scootaloo said, passing the card back without looking Sweetie in the eye.

"What? B-but it's not a joke!" Sweetie Belle said. "I'm serious, Scootaloo."

"Oh, c'mon, Sweetie Belle. We've known each other since we were fillies. What do you expect me to believe that you suddenly developed a crush on me or something?" Scootaloo asked, with the folding of her hooves.

Sweetie Belle looked away. "It...it wasn't all of a sudden..."

Scootaloo's eyes widened, and her expression filled with instant regret. "Oh...I'm sorry, Sweetie I didn't..."

"It's fine." Sweetie Belle said, trying and failing to blink away the tears very clearly running down her cheeks. "It was a stupid idea anyway."

"No, Sweetie, I just...I love being your friend, it's just...there's somepony else that I was planning to go with."

That was it, the sound of her heart being shattered into a thousand tiny pieces. She thought it would be accompanied by a thundering boom. It wasn't right for terrible things like this to happen on sunny days like this one, in a beautiful place like the park. Neither was it right for them to pass by as quickly as a breeze.

All her excitement, all her anticipation, died, leaving behind only a hollow feeling in the stomach and terrible taste in her mouth. She shuffled her feet and then turned away, her telekinesis picking up the crumpled invitation and stuffing it into her backpack.

"Oh, I'm glad...I hope you two have a wonderful time at the dance together. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable." That was all she could get out, before she had to teleport herself away, unable to take Scootaloo's sympathetic eyes anymore. When she landed, it was half-way inside of a bush, and as she slowly and ungracefully pulled herself free, she shook her head and closed her eyes.

Of course, why would Scootaloo have ever wanted her?

Twilight sat in the silence of her conservatory, having temporarily vacated the Canterlot palace and returned to the Castle of Friendship to celebrate Hearts and Hooves Day with Cadence and her friends.

It was also a better place to hold the friendship summit between Ember and Cadence. Less buildings to burn if things went sideways.

Twilight liked to think that as the current ruler of Equestria she and Ember had a respectful and companionable relationship. However, she was not an alicorn to take chances, and was currently levitating all the books about dragon diplomacy in her library into the air around her. It was a short list, containing mostly volumes about the theoretical applications of diplomacy to dealings with dragons. The very nature of dragons, wherein they became more powerful the more things they stole, gave them very little incentive to ever consider anything other than brute force. At the moment, it was only the tenuous friendship between Spike and Ember which secured Equestria from being reduced to ash.

Well, that and the Elements of Harmony and the Alicorn Magic, but even at the height of their strength, Twilight very much doubted that she or her friends could fight every dragon in the Dragon Lands, if Ember united them under the common goal of loot.

Of course, the selfish nature of Dragon magic also prevented dragons from working together. No dragon wanted any other dragon to grow bigger, because then that dragon might steal whatever meager hoard they had hidden away. As a result, they were too busy infighting and grand standing to unify their efforts. Only the Dragon Lord had any sway over the rest, and even then, any dragon could attempt to usurp the current Dragon Lord, provided they were willing to risk a battle to the death.

She groaned and closed her current book. While it was true that dragons had begun to gain some understanding of friendship, thanks in no small part to the efforts of her and her friends, love was a whole other matter. Dragons did not mate for life. The females produced a clutch of eggs, and then left them to be protected by the male. It was the male's job to protect and warm the eggs, while the female assembled hoards so that their children would not be defenseless when born. But the male might just as soon steal the female's hoard if it wasn't hidden well-enough. There was no such thing as marriage and there was definitely no equivalent to Hearts and Hooves Day, no such thing as dancing, dating or writing poems to each other about how much they loved one another.

As far as she could tell, dragon courting was almost identical to dragon territorial disputes, only with slightly less murderous intentions.

This wouldn't have been such a big deal, except that Ember was visiting the Castle of Friendship on Hearts and Hooves Day to discuss gem deposits in the Crystal Kingdom with Cadence. And Ember had a tendency to...burn things she found difficult to understand. If Twilight couldn't figure out a way to get her to wrap her head around the nature of Pony relationships, then it might result in a diplomatic incident.

Worse, it might mean that Cadence and Ember didn't become friends. And Cadence was friends with every creature.

Twilight knew that if her friends were around, they would laugh and tell her that everything would be fine. She also knew that they weren't the Princess of Friendship. She was. And it was her job to make sure all of their allies stayed allies. She needed some way to be assured that Ember would enjoy the festivities, without getting the impression that she and all of Ponykind were a bunch of love-sick ninnies.

"Hey Twilight! Watchya reading?"

She sighed.

"Hello, Pinkie." She said as she snapped closed all the books at once, well aware that any meaningful conversation with Pinkie was an enterprise prohibiting distractions.

"I just wanted to check on you and see if you needed any help with anything for Hearts and Hooves Day!"

Twilight sighed. "You're still making the chocolate souffles, right?"

"Yepperoni! And the molten chocolate and chocolate fountain and the strawberry and chocolate cake and the chocolate eclairs and the chocolate stuffed croissants and the chocolate cupcakes with sprinkles and the chocolate donuts with pink glaze and the heart-shaped cookies with heart-shaped chocolate chips in them! I just wanted to check on you and make sure you hadn't spiraled into another existential crisis."

Twilight frowned and turned to find Pinkie bouncing in place, an alligator hanging off one long strand of hair.

"Pinkie, what are you talking about?"

"Oh, c'mon Twilight, you're always on the verge of some kind of mental breakdown!"

"Pinkie!" She shot her friend a glare.

"Oh," Pinkie paused and put a hoof to her chin. "I'm sorry Twilight, I didn't mean it as an insult."

Twilight rolled her eyes but was startled out of annoyance and shot straight into confusion when Pinkie bounced over to her and wrapped her arms around her midsection.

"You know we all love you for who you are, right Twilight?" Pinkie said, nuzzling her muzzle into Twilight's midriff.

With all the strength which being an alicorn afforded her, Twilight pried Pinkie off as gently as possible. "That doesn't make it okay to say nasty things, Pinkie..."

"I wasn't trying to be nasty!" Pinkie said. "It's just that Rarity is worried she's going to grow old without any hoof to hold and end up dying before she ever meets her special somepony and I realized I haven't been doing my job so I'm checking up on all of you guys to make sure you aren't feeling the same as her. Except for Applejack and Rainbow Dash, because Applejack would just tell us if she was feeling lonely and Dashie doesn't care about that kinda stuff."

Twilight took a deep breath. "Pinkie, what do you mean you haven't been doing your job?"

"You know, my job as the Element of Laughter." Pinkie answered, rocking back and forth on her front hooves. "It's my job to make sure that you and the others and everypony in Ponyville is happy and so I wanted to check on you, because I felt guilty about not, I'm doing my job."

Twilight considered her response for a moment. There was so much glaringly wrong with Pinkie's explanation, that it was difficult knowing how to convey how glaringly wrong it was. Finally, she said "Pinkie, you know it's not your job to make sure everypony is happy, right?"

"Haha, good one Twilight!" Pinkie clapped Twilight on the back with a hoof and Twilight had to catch herself to avoid falling out of her chair. "Well, if you don't need me, I'm going to go check on Fluttershy and make sure her social anxiety hasn't degraded to the point where she's become agoraphobic. Good luck with reading your floating books!"

With that, she bounced out of the room, causing several books to fall from their shelves with the slam of the conservatory door behind her. Twilight sighed and began the laborious process of picking up the fallen volumes with her telekinesis and returning them to the correct section of her meticulously organized collection.

She shook her head at the thought of Pinkie feeling guilty because of Rarity's melodramatics. If only there was a book in her library that would help her make Pinkie Pie slow down long enough to understand how backwards her thinking was.

"Dear Rarity,
Do you like mares?
Yes or No?
~ An anonymous friend"

There. Nice and simple. No possible chance of being misinterpreted.

Of course, it would be simpler for Rainbow to ask Rarity in person, instead of slipping this note under her door. But Rainbow had a terrible feeling that if she did that, Rarity would ask if SHE liked mares. And Rainbow was a terrible liar.

It wasn't that she was ashamed of her relationship with Applejack, as she'd told Applejack time and time again. Rainbow Dash was proud of Applejack as much as her parents were of her. She woke up every day and provided for her family in a ways that Rainbow didn't think she'd be able to if she was in Applejack's position.

But whenever she thought about telling anypony about the two of them, all she could do was remember what had happened when Twilight and Starlight published that diary about all their adventures. And that made her remember that Gabby Gums article which had almost destroyed her reputation.

She was a celebrity, a member of the Wonderbolts. If her fans found out that she was in a relationship with another mare, they would view her differently. What if they didn't like what they saw? She liked to think it didn't matter, that she wouldn't live in the stable just because of public opinion. But she also wondered about those people close to her, who were also her fans. What about her father and mother, who were always trying to set her up with the stallions on her team. What about Scootaloo, who looked up to her like a big sister? She couldn't bear it if they came to love her any less.

No, the note was the only option. All she had to do was to get to Rarity's house and deliver it and then get back to the preparations for Hearts and Hooves Day. Rainbow liked her free time, but she also wanted to finish preparations as quickly as possible, so that she could get working on her own date with Applejack.

It wouldn't be in public, but at least they'd be able to spend time together. It had been so long since they'd had a proper date and she knew that Applejack hated all this sneaking around. But this was chance for her to make it right, for the two of them to be happy again.

She paused, just outside the door of boutique and, making sure that no pony was paying attention to just what she was doing, she slipped the envelope containing the letter under the door and then flew off.

She was too busy leaving to notice the mournful Sweetie Belle slowly approaching the building, who stopped in the middle of the street to watch her "covert" delivery.

Having just finished helping Twilight re-organize the to-do list for Cadence's arrival, Spike had deduced there was just enough time for him to head into town and help Rarity out with her own preparations. Of course, he was exhausted already from being Twilight's number one helper. But a little more fatigue was hardly a fair price to pay for being in Rarity's company for just a few hours.

He was almost to the Carousel when a gray hoof tapped him on the shoulder and he turned to see Derpy, the local mail pony, hovering slightly off kilter right behind him.

"Oh, hi Derpy!" He said. He couldn't remember sharing a proper conversation with the mare before, but everypony knew her and they had all learned to steer clear when she was on a delivery.

"Hey Spike..." She said, rubbing her hooves together.

"Uh...is everything alright?" He asked.

Derpy looked around and then leaned down. "Is Pinkie Pie replacing me?"

Spike stared at her for a moment and then said. "I'm not sure what you're talking about..."

Derpy gulped. "Well, I saw her deliver a package to Rarity's shop and I wanted to know why she didn't give it to me to deliver. It's just...if it was because she was worried that I was going to lose it, I know I'm not the best flyer and I know I messed up that one time with Big Mac's pie, but I've gotten a lot better, and I would never let anything bad happen to the mail."

"Derpy, I don't think-"

"And if it's because I'm not mail pony anymore, well, I just wanted to see if you could ask the Princess, since you're her royal advisor. I-I really need this job. I don't know if you could have me moved to the packaging department or something-"

"Derpy, I'm not a royal advisor and Twilight isn't in charge of the mail delivery system. And even if she was, she wouldn't fire you for no reason." Spike said. "Now, Pinkie probably just delivered a package herself because...she's Pinkie. She does things like that."

"Oh. Okay." Derpy looked at the sky and then leaned back towards Spike. "So, I can keep my job?"

Spike rolled his eyes. "Yes, Derpy. You can keep your job."

The Pegasus pumped a hoof in the air and then shot off like a cannon ball, almost smashing into a nearby building and instead only knocking over a collection of garbage cans, causing a couple of ponies who had just finished sweeping the cobblestones to shake their fists in her direction.

Spike rolled his eyes and hurried up the stairs and into Rarity's boutique. If Pinkie had left a package for Rarity, it was probably some kind of invitation to a party. Which was strange, because they were having a dance and everything for Cadence's visit. But it wasn't unlike Pinkie either, to overdo it with the partying. He'd have to ask Twilight if-

"Spike! You won't believe it! I just returned from shopping for a new fainting couch, and I found this on my stoop!" Rarity said, holding up a beautiful, soft-lavender dress with felt hearts sewn into the hemline.

Spike stared at the dress and then at the box on the floor next to it. Yep. Definitely Pinkie Pie's work, judging from the volume of glitter glue used on the packaging.

"Some anonymous pony left this beautiful dress on my doorstep, addressed to me. Do you know what that means?" Rarity asked.

Spike pretended to think about it for a moment. "That they're hoping you'll hire them at your boutique?"

"Of course not, Spikey-Wikey. It also came with this note!" Rarity said, holding up an envelope which had been torn open. Pulling on a pair of glittery glasses, she began reading the extremely brief letter contained within. " 'Dear Rarity. Do you like mares? Yes or No?' Signed 'An anonymous friend'." Rarity sighed and pressed the envelope to her bosom, along with the dress. "Can you believe it, Spike? Some mare is in love with me..."

Spike's frown turned into a scowl. "Nope...I can't believe it."

"Oh, who do you think it is? Do you think it could be Flitter? Or Helia? Or...*GASP*, what if it's Inky Rose? You know I don't think I could pull off the Goth look 24/7 but I've never really tried it." Rarity said, the blueprints for a whole line of darkly colored, but still quite fashionable clothes appearing in her mind.

"Rarity, why would somepony give you a dress and a weird letter? Why wouldn't they just...tell you they liked you?" Spike asked, trying to figure out exactly where Pinkie's mind was at this point (always a dangerous question to contemplate).

"Oh, Spike, you simply don't have a romantic mind." Rarity sighed, turning away and levitating the dress and letter along with her. "Whoever it is, they are probably planning to reveal themselves on Hearts and Hooves Day. And they'll know that if I wear this dress...it will be the answer to their question!" She squeed. "Can you believe it, Spike, I have a secret admirer!"

Spike watched as she speculated about whether or not making some modifications to the dress to make it more "her", would be taken as an insult by the pony who'd sent it. Then he shook his head and turned away, marching out of the boutique while Rarity rambled about being barely able to wait until the celebration to find out who had sent her the dress.

Pinkie had just finished knocking for the third time on the door to Fluttershy's cottage when the door was opened by an extremely unamused looking rabbit.

"Oh, hey Angel!" Pinkie said springing up into the air. "Is Fluttershy home? Also, is she going through a romance related dilemma. Or just in general does she have anything she needs to talk about that she hasn't been able to because I've been too busy baking to make sure she's alright?"

Angel glared up at her and his nose twitched with displeasure.

"Phew!" Pinkie said, with an exaggerated wiping of her brow with her forehoof. "I was worried for a second there. Here, you play with Gummy while I go talk to her!"

With that, she lay Gummy down in front of Angel and sproinged over the two of them and into Fluttershy's cottage. Her eyes ran over the various birdhouses and animal dens which occupied Fluttershy's living area and she was reminded of how kind and wonderful her friend was. She felt a pang at the realization of how much she'd been letting her down, neglecting her own duties as a friend and as an Element of Harmony.

She vowed then to do better. Stick a cupcake in her eye.

She skidded to a halt when she heard the voice upstairs. Fluttershy's voice probably would have been imperceptible had she been addressing another pony; she was much more comfortable speaking in front of her animal friends. Which meant she was talking to herself, psyching herself up for something.

Pinkie slowed her movement and crept up the stairs, pressing her ear to the door of Fluttershy's bedroom.

"Okay, one more time...Rarity, would you want to come to the dance with me? Oh no, that's no good at all..."

She gasped and then grinned as she stage whispered. "Fluttershy wants to go to the dance with Rarity but doesn't know how to ask her?"

She jumped up and down, while still somehow managing to make as much sound as a feather landing. "I can't believe it! I can't believe it!" She squeed, still stage whispering. "Oooh, they'll make such a cute couple!"

She stopped when she heard what was next.

"Oh, this is pointless...I'll never have the courage. Rainbow Dash is going to be so disappointed in me."

With that, Pinkie threw open the door and tore across Fluttershy's room, wrapping her hooves around Fluttershy's neck and splaying her body across the floor. "No Fluttershy! Don't give up on romance! I'm sorry I wasn't here to help you with your feelings but don't become shriveled and embittered and then decide never to leave your house again. I'M SORRY I'M SUCH A HORRIBLE FRIEND!!!"

"Umm, Pinkie?"

Pinkie sniffed. "Yes?"

"Why are you in my house?" Fluttershy asked, managing to look stern despite the blushing of her cheeks.

"I-I came to check that you were alright..." Pinkie explained.

"So, you were spying on me?" Fluttershy asked, her expression darkening.

"No, no, no, no! It's just that Rarity has been feeling really bad that she doesn't have a very special pony for Hearts and Hooves Day and so I've just been checking on everypony to make sure that all my friends are happy because I don't want you to be unhappy because then that would mean that I haven't been doing my job and-"

"Pinkie, please slow down..." Fluttershy slipped out of Pinkie's loosening grip, causing the pink pony to fall face forward onto the floor. "Did you say that Rarity is feeling bad that no pony wants to be her special somepony?"

Pinkie looked up from the floor and nodded.

Fluttershy beamed and grabbed Pinkie, giving her a massive hug and then swinging her through the air in a circle. She twirled as she did so, her wings carrying her up off the floor and Pinkie along with her.

"This is wonderful!" Fluttershy said lowering back to the floor.

"It is?" Pinkie asked, stumbling back and forth and then shaking her head to dispel her dizziness.

"Yes, this will give me the courage to tell her the truth..." Fluttershy explained. "Before, when I was doing it for myself, I was afraid of being rejected. But now that I know I can make her happy, I have to do it!"

"Uh, great!" Pinkie said, still at a loss how it could be a good thing that Rarity had fallen into a romance induced despair but unwilling to argue when it was clear that Fluttershy was no longer upset with her.

"Oh, just promise me you won't tell her about my feelings, okay? Everything needs to be perfect for when I tell her!" Fluttershy said, now flying around the room and rifling through various drawers, wardrobes and closets.

"Cross my heart and hope to fly!" Pinkie said, backing out of the room. Oh well, she would count this as a win. She had cheered up Fluttershy and that was the bit which was important.

As she pronked down the stairs, she could hear Fluttershy whispering instructions to all of her animal friends. She grinned at the thought of how happy Fluttershy and Rarity would soon be. Fluttershy's mellowness and benevolence combined with Rarity's elegance and charity. They would mix together like peanut butter and chocolate, both so perfect for one another that everypony would be surprised they hadn't been together all along in a few months.

As she hopped over to where Angel was trying to keep Gummy at bay with a spatula (no matter how well behaved, there were some species, like rabbits and alligators, which were not designed to co-exist), scooped up her favorite crocodillian and hopped out the still open front door.

"Thanks for keeping Gummy company, Angel Bunny!" She called back to him.

He palmed his face and slammed the door shut behind her with unnecessary force.

Pinkie didn't notice. She was already prancing down the path from Fluttershy's cottage toward the road and back in the direction of Ponyville. Well, that covered Twilight, Rarity and Fluttershy. Now she just needed to check in on every single other pony in Ponyville and its neighboring municipalities.

She had just reached the spot where Fluttershy's driveway turned onto the dirt road leading back to Ponyville, when she felt it.

A shudder going all the way up her spine, vibrating up from her tailbone and rattling her ribs as it reached the base of her neck. It happened in total conjunction with a sudden pinch in the cartilage of her left front knee, and as soon as they came her hyperactive mind discerned their meaning.

Something which you would never have expected was about to happen. And whatever it was, it was going to be scary.

She shook her left forehoof, trying to get feeling back into it and shivering despite the warmth of the spring sun. Something very bad was about to happen, something which no pony could have predicted.

She had to do something and quick, or somepony might get hurt. Twilight. Even if she hadn't been the Princess of Equestria, she was always ready to help her friends. She was the most powerful pony in Equestria and she knew about all kinds of things which Pinkie didn't. If something scary was going to happen, Twilight should be the first to know.

She turned to race back the way she'd come, in the direction of the Castle of Friendship and nearly ran over Spike.

"Oh, hey Spike! I'd love to catch up, but I just got the weirdest feeling from my Pinkie Sense and I need to tell Twilight right away in before something really, really, really bad happens!" She moved to run around him but he moved so that he was in the way.

"Pinkie, why did you send Rarity that letter?" Spike asked.

Pinkie frowned. "Spike, you're going to need to be more specific. You mean the letter where I cut out pictures of ponies from the Ponyville Express and made it look like they were all kissing? Or do you mean the letter where I gave her my super-duper secret recipe for rock salad?"

"I mean the letter asking her if she liked mares!" Spike fumed. Then his anger faded. "It's just, you know that I have a crush on her...I don't get why you would send her a letter like that if you didn't want to take her to the dance yourself."

"But I didn't send her any letter like that!" Pinkie said.

Spike growled and face palmed. "Fine. Fine! Don't tell me! Just...don't get her hopes up for nothing, okay?"

Pinkie frowned. "But Spike, I didn't-"

He just shook his head and took off, quickly flying out of earshot. If she didn't know better, she'd think he might have been...crying? She stood in the road for a moment.

Was what just happened what her Pinkie Sense had warned her about? She'd never expected for Spike to be that angry with her. It hadn't been exactly scary though. He had grown a little sure and he was a dragon, but she'd spent too much time with him to be scared of him.

Either way, it was clear that he was also feeling underappreciated, just like Rarity. Of course! He was her friend too and she had been neglecting him like she'd neglected Rarity and Fluttershy. She wanted to tell him that it was Fluttershy who liked Rarity, not her. But she had Pinkie Promised not to share Fluttershy's secret just like she had also sworn never to share Spike's.

Well, she would find another way to make Spike feel appreciated.

"Gummy, remind me to tell Twilight about my Pinkie Sense after I'm done putting together a gift for Spike!" Pinkie ordered, as she sped off, away from Ponyville, in the direction of the mines where Spike and Rarity had often gone to collect gemstones in years past.

Gummy blinked.

"What was I thinking?! Of course, she doesn't want me!!"

Silver Spoon sat on Diamond Tiara's bed, rolling her eyes as she held out a handkerchief with her right hoof. Diamond Tiara looked up from sobbing into the carton of ice cream in her lap, long enough to grab the handkerchief and blow her nose noisily into it.

"I'm a monster..." Diamond Tiara said, wiping her eyes with that same handkerchief before attempting to pass it back to Silver Spoon, who was in the process of pretending it had never existed.

"It's not that bad." Silver Spoon said. "So, it didn't work out this one time, what are you never going to date anyone then?"

Diamond Tiara just stared at the pink carpet of her room and sniffled. "Probably..."

"Ugh...C'mon, I bet we can find you a great date for the dance. Now, have you gotten all the self-pity out of your system?" Silver Spoon asked.

Diamond sniffled and then nodded.

"Great. I'm gonna go see if you're parents are alright with me staying over. We'll have a slumber party, and we'll think up who you can ask instead."

Diamond stared at the floor and then nodded forlornly. Silver frowned and then gave her a hug. "C'mon, it's not that bad...you'll see."

Diamond didn't answer and Silver tried not to look at her as she hopped off the bed and headed out the door. She didn't like her when she was like this. She liked the Diamond Tiara she could tease without feeling bad about it, or even better, the Diamond Tiara that she could verbally spar with.

As she headed down the staircase, she half-expected to hear Diamond's mother complaining about all the noise Diamond was making. The Rich house was nice, but the walls couldn't be that thick. She was surprised to hear Spoiled Rich laughing, as if she couldn't even hear her daughter's wailing. Not that she had much of a hoof to stand on, after all she had remained somewhat cynical in the face of Tiara's heartbreak.

Still, she was Tiara's friend. Spoiled Rich was her mother, she was supposed to be there for Diamond Tiara when she was going through something like this. It wasn't supposed to be that Diamond Tiara was afraid to even talk about her crush because she knew her mother wouldn't approve.

There was another voice. Filthy Rich was laughing too! And they were playing music! What were they having a party down here while their daughter sobbed her heart out?

Silver Spoon had dealt with Diamond Tiara making excuses for her parents their whole childhood. Which she understood, because they were her parents. But she also longed for the day that Diamond Tiara could move out of this home, and she could finally give the both of them a piece of her mind about the way they'd treated her over the years.

For now, though, she'd have to be polite to gain their permission to stay the night. She had just formulated an explanation for Tiara's behavior when she saw the cause of the music.

Silver Spoon had never seen a cat person before, but she had always imagined them as silky, beautiful creatures. This one was anything but. She looked like something left behind by a leaky inkwell. And that instrument she was playing...was it made of bone?

"Uh...hello?" Silver Spoon said, stepping carefully off the staircase and approaching her friend's parents and the stranger.

The cat-woman's yellow eyes gleamed in Silver Spoon's direction, and the hungry look on her face was beyond disconcerting, verging on terror inducing.

"What's going on down here?" Silver Spoon asked, glancing between Filthy Rich and his wife, both of whom were still laughing hysterically and pounding their hooves on the table that the Abyssinian had sat down at. She was startled somewhat, by how...undignified their guffawing was. Filthy was usually a little more boisterous than Spoiled, but both of them, being Earth Ponies who came from rich families that worked very hard to imitate how they thought the Canterlot Elite acted, had always been relatively reserved in her presence.

Now their eyes seemed to bulge, and their faces were masked with sweat as they heaved for breath between laughs, making sounds like a dying donkey. And the Abyssinian just watched, as if this was all perfectly normal.

"Worry not
About this coupling
Alas, mine caterwaul
Was too bawdy for
Their tender senses.
Thyne look betrays
distrust for which
thou art without blame.
Though kin did once
call me Bard,
to thyne mine name
is only friend."

Silver Spoon watched as the cat-person stood up on Spoiled Rich's table and bowed as if it was a stage. Silver Spoon didn't know how she'd done it, but somehow the lute was returned to the interior of her cloak without her noticing. That wasn't the strangest thing about the interaction though, not by a long shot. The strangest thing was the way that her simple gesture caused the Rich parents to burst out into even more uproarious laughter.

"W-what are you doing here?" Silver Spoon said, glancing at Filthy Rich's agonized yet gleeful expression. "What did you do?"

"I am a minstrel
Most itinerant,
Drawn from distant lands
By tail of beauty
And might of horn
Princess to whom
this land is bairn.
I seek to serenade
thy most chaste court
And share song
Of heroes betrayed
and long departed
Before this enlightened stage."

"You mean age?" Silver Spoon corrected.

The creature which Silver Spoon was beginning to doubt was actually an Abyssinian laughed and it was a sound which made her want to bolt back upstairs and lock the door behind her. It drowned out the antics of Diamond Tiara's parents in both volume and madness and reverberated as if cast from the maw of the most musical of caverns. Then Bard leaned down and ran a claw beneath Silver Spoon's throat.

"Thou art deserving
of commendation,
For pretense
So unbridled.
Deign not to
Correct me,
For art there
No greater joy
Than the twisting
Of words; save the
blossom of love?"

With that, Silver Spoon realized that the lute was back out of Bard's cloak and that Bard had begun once more to play. But this song was far from the jaunty tune Silver Spoon had picked up during her descent and which seemed to have caused the buffoonery of the mare and stallion in front of her. This one was soft and bittersweet, a song to fit the birth and rebirth of all things in the thawing of winter. It was a kind of radiant splendor which seeped into the breast and wrapped itself around the heart.

Then Bard plucked one final string and the seizure transformed into a constriction. Suddenly, feeling was pressing on Silver Spoon's chest. She tried to fight against it, to relieve herself of the blistering pressure, but it was to no avail. Soon, the song was driving up through her like a great lance, ripping through bone and flesh as if they were tissue and leaving behind only a great hole. A wave of excitement crashed over her, dragging her kicking and screaming into an ocean of desperation and regret. Then the useless struggle against the metaphysical tide gave way to the almost pleasant sensation of surrender, letting the foam of obsession fill her lungs. Her eyes teared up, as she felt all resistance beginning to leave her body.

Suddenly, her memories were much brighter and much warmer than she remembered them being. In her mind's eye a thousand smiles and laughs were exchanged, each childhood moment scrutinized and reinterpreted with hindsight she had never before known. It gave the impression that her entire life had only existed to facilitate this moment and the sudden and terrifying realization that she had and would always love Diamond Tiara, and that all their time together as friends would be merely a footnote in the future they were destined to share together.

Silver Spoon blinked, her mind reeling with the influx of emotional alteration. As she looked around the dining room, she wondered who it was she had been talking to a moment ago. Certainly not either of Diamond Tiara's parents, who were passed out against the table, each occasionally making a slight giggling sound.

She glanced behind her and then at the open door, the only hint that there had been anyone else in the room, the almost imperceptible odor of roses, too weak to be a perfume but too strong to have originated from some nearby flowerbed.

With a shrug, she gently closed the door and headed up the stairs. What had she come down here to do anyway? To ask permission to stay the night? As if any creature could keep her and Diamond separate against their wishes. The only entity who could make Silver Spoon leave was Diamond, a request she dearly hoped her beloved would never ask of her.

As she neared the top of the stairs, still trying to remember why it was she had gone downstairs and further, why Diamond Tiara's parents were acting so strangely, she heard the familiar sound of sniffling from within the room. She felt then a jagged shard of hate coalesce in her heart. Not only had Sweetie Belle stolen the heart of the only creature Silver Spoon would ever love, but she had hurt it too. And that sin, unlike the first, was unforgiveable.

If she had been much more violent in nature, she might have considered engaging her romantic rival in some kind of duel. The idea was nonsensical, of course. She had no conception of what such a confrontation might look like, only the vague suspicion that participating in one might somehow prove her devotion. As she contemplated how the two of them would go about such a thing, she opened the door and walked inside and over to where Diamond Tiara sat.

"Are-are you alright?" Diamond asked.

Silver Spoon blinked. "Uh, sorry, what did umm...what did you say?" She was so beautiful, even in this state. Oh, how her heart yearned to dry those eyes and bring unhindered happiness into Diamond's life. Let her be a slave to love and she would toil endlessly in its frozen fields, if this was the sunshine which she would be rewarded with.

"You...have a strange look on your face...like you're not fully awake or something." Diamond said, waving a hoof in front of Silver Spoon's eyes.

What a kind and gentle creature. Even now, wracked by pain Silver Spoon could scarcely imagine, Diamond cared only about her. About her! She could have died then with happiness, had she not been so devoted to lifting her dearest companion from the throes of despair.

"Diamond, forget the sleep over. Let us walk freely tonight." Silver Spoon said, taking Diamond's hooves with her own. "Just look outside. What a beautiful dusk! How we ask for more favorable weather or a more temperate season? Let us be free of this stuffy interior and the suffering it has incited! We can dance through the night, with only the stars to keep us company! Together, we can rejoice at the true meaning of the festival of hearts and forget our woes as one soul separated by only two bodies!"

Diamond Tiara stared at Silver Spoon like she had gone mad, mad for finally expressing the love she had always had. Then she yanked her hooves free. "Suh-Silver...that's not funny..." She said with a scowl.

"I would sooner cast myself onto swords than mock you, in your time of need." Silver Spoon said, dropping to one knee. "For you are my truest and dearest friend, the jewel in the vault of my breast which sparkles most clearly and my love for you is as boundless as the ocean and as weathered as the sky."

"Ge-get out!" Diamond yelled, pointing a hoof at the door. "I-if all you want to do is make fun of me, you can just leave, alright!?"

Silver Spoon stared up at the goddess before her in disbelief. Then she closed her eyes and nodded. "Let your will be done." She said, slowly standing and moving out the door without another word. She had failed. She'd had one chance to impress her love and been rejected.

She slunk down the stairs and out of the house without giving the still giggling members of Diamond Tiara's family a second glance. She was too befouled by fate to notice anything but her own inconsolability.

3 - Patience is a monument

Author's Note

Warning: This chapter contains depictions of bullying and verbal abuse, including slut-shaming, gay-shaming, and disability shaming. Please don't read if it is going to incite a traumatic response.

3 - Patience is a monument

Maud watched her sister as they approached the glimmering exterior of the Friendship Castle.

It was formed largely out of Intoxicating Amethyst, a variety of quartz created only by massive exposure magical radiation. But her mind was not on the material of the castle, or the wheelbarrow of gemstones which she and Pinkie were bringing toward the castle. She didn't mind helping Pinkie track down gems or vacate them from her underground campsite. Gemstones were simple, pieces of rock which had been pressed into perfect, shiny, useless things.

They represented a distinction between creatures and minerals which she preferred not to dwell on. If you put a rock under enough pressure, it turned into something shiny and indestructible. That wasn't true for ponies and Maud very much doubted it was true for other species either. If you put an animal under pressure, it became fearful, then angry, then all dignity and intelligence was stripped away, replaced with a mindless, foaming desperation.

It was the reason she preferred stones like Boulder. They were formed from sediment, ancient but common and utterly uninteresting to the common eye. And just like ponies they wore away over the years, ground down by the wind and rain of life, untempered and unremembered.

Maud would take a thousand pebbles like Boulder, over another perfect, glittery diamond. No, she was not bothered by last night's excavation or the disruption of her own sleep schedule. She often kept strange hours, in her geological pursuits, if only because spelunking prohibited her from seeing the sun for days on end. What she was bothered was not the flamboyant display, but the subtle change to her sister's gait.

Normally, Pinkie's bouncing steps were quick but deliberate. Not the slightly off-kilter stagger to which even Maud's slow trot was more efficient. Pinkie was normally a source of immeasurable energy, fueled by a high caloric diet and the occasional nap. Now, in spite of her smiling and humming, Maud could see the cracks in the normally seamless facade. There were rings beneath her eyes and her hair, normally as wild and untamed as she was, now looked slightly too frizzy.

"Pinkie, why are we doing this?" She asked, as they reached their destination, leaving the cart in full view of the front door.

"I told you, Rarity was feeling bad about not having any special somepony, so I got her a gift. But me getting her a gift made Spike feel jealous, so now I'm getting Spike a gift, so that he doesn't think I'm not his friend anymore!"

Maud blinked at Pinkie. "Pinkie, I barely remember who those ponies are."

"Spike's not a pony, he's a dragon, silly!" Pinkie said, bouncing off the stoop of the Castle of Friendship.

Maud stepped close to her. "Pinkie, when was the last time you slept?"

Pinkie laughed. "Ha, ha, good one, Maud."

"I wasn't joking."

"C'monnnnnnnn..." Pinkie said, gently elbowing her sister in the ribs. "It's not like it's the first time I've skipped bedtime...remember that time when we stayed up all night to celebrate you getting into Institute of Rockology?"

"Pinkie, everypony needs rest. Including you." Maud said.

Pinkie groaned and threw up her hooves. "Fiiiiiiine! I'll take a nap, okay?"

Maud stared at her for a long time and the nodded. "You know if you burn yourself out you won't be able to participate in the party tomorrow."

"It's not a party, it's a dance. Speaking of...is Mudbriar taking you?" Pinkie asked, returning to elbowing her sister even more slyly.

"He's on a retreat in the Badlands, looking for a tree which is older than most nations." Maud said.

"Aww! Y'know, I don't have a date for the dance yet. Why don't we spend the night together?" Pinkie asked.

"Actually, Trixie is out of town at the moment...so Starlight asked if I would spend the holiday with her."

Pinkie paused. "Oh. That's...wonderful! I'm so happy that you and Starlight...are such good friends."

Maud sighed. "Pinkie..."

"I-I should go take that nap we talked about...uh, have a great day, Maud. Thanks again for your help!" Pinkie quickly turned and sprinted in the direction of town.

Maud closed her eyes and put a hoof to her forehead. She pretended for a moment, that she was a rock, deep beneath the surface of the world, surrounded by warm, comforting soil. Then she sighed and opened her eyes. It was not the first time she'd all but begged Pinkie to be healthier in body and mind, but the lesson, for whatever reason, hadn't gotten through. She supposed Pinkie was stubborn, in the same way the rest of their family was, she just happened to be the best at hiding it.

She wondered if Starlight would be able to help. She had become great at counseling the students of the Twilight's school ever since she took over it. Maybe she would know how to say what Maud couldn't.

Apple Bloom walked through the eastern orchard, sizing up each trunk before doing as she had been taught. There was a specific spot where you wanted to hit on each one. It had to be low enough to the ground to shake the entire tree. But it also had to be far enough up the trunk for the impact not to be completely absorbed. Of course, if she expended all her magic, it was easy, but the trick was to use enough so that every kick had an effect, but she still wasn't exhausted by the time her bucking was over.

She was slightly miffed when she noticed her sister, halfway across the orchard, reclining in the shade of a tree. Applejack had always instilled in her, the importance of hard work. It felt a little hypocritical for her to be slacking off, especially when she knew their farm was supplying so many of the ingredients for the feast tomorrow.

Apple Bloom was about to gallop over and give her a piece of her mind, when she realized Applejack wasn't alone. There was a blue pegasus, lying down in the tall grass next to her. It was not the first time that Apple Bloom had caught the two of them sneaking around, but it was the first time she'd seen them cuddling.

They looked...happy. Applejack looked content, like all the weight of the world had been lifted from her shoulders. The two weren't kissing or even really hugging like Apple Bloom might have expected ponies in relationships did. Instead, they were just lying there, enjoying each other's company.

She felt ashamed suddenly, first at her own anger. Applejack did so much for their family and had done so much for Apple Bloom, teaching her the value of hard work and always being there to support her no matter what. And Apple Bloom had gotten huffy with her the second she saw her relaxing. She often worried she was spending too much time with the other Crusaders, that she wasn't here enough to support Applejack and Big Mac run the farm. There was something deeper too, some sense of uncertainty and discomfort which only came when she saw her sister like that.

Like she had done something wrong, even if she hadn't meant to. Or like she was witnessing something that was wrong, even if she knew it shouldn't be. She didn't know how to express it, only that talking about it to Applejack was out of the question and holding it inside made her nauseous.

"Hey, Apple Bloom!"

Apple Bloom turned and quickly rushed around the side of the tree she'd just finished bucking to intercept the visitor. It was Scootaloo, riding her skateboard over roots and around trees to reach her. Apple Bloom swallowed and tried to compose herself. She didn't know why Applejack and Rainbow Dash were keeping their relationship a secret or even if Scootaloo knew about it. What she did know, was that she didn't want to be responsible for letting that secret get out. Applejack would surely never forgive her, and she was sure she wouldn't deserve it if she did.

"Howdy, Scootaloo!" She said, hoping that she sounded like a better bluffer to Scootaloo than she did to her own ears. "What brings you 'round these parts so early?"

Scootaloo grinned. "I just wanted to know if anypony was taking you to the dance tomorrow."

Apple Bloom brightened up. If Scootaloo wasn't going to the dance, then maybe they could hang out together instead. She'd felt too scared to ask anypony out and to be honest, she felt like she'd be more comfortable just having a conversation with Scootaloo or Sweetie Belle then getting all dressed up and spending the evening with some pony she barely knew.

Plus, the latter would involve her revealing that she didn't really know what ponies did on dates anyway.

"No, I ain't got any plans for tomorrow night." She said, vaguely aware that she should have felt bad that no pony had asked her to the dance, but instead relieved that Scootaloo seemed like she wanted to hang out.

"Do you wanna go to the dance with me?" Scootaloo asked.

Apple Bloom frowned. "Ya mean like with you and Sweetie Belle?"

Scootaloo's smile dropped a little bit. "No, I mean like...on a date...just the two of us."

Apple Bloom felt her stomach turn. The apple pancakes she'd had for breakfast suddenly felt like they wanted to be on the outside of her and the warm spring air grew terribly cold. She had to close her eyes and take a deep breath to repel the feverish sensation overtaking her.

"I...I don't think so, Scoots...I'm sorry but I can't." She said, staring at the grass and hating herself. All the other ponies were doing it, why was she so weird about it? Why couldn't she just make herself go through with the date? It would have been so much simpler.

Still, she knew, deep down, it would have been a lie.

"Oh...okay. I umm, I'm sorry..." Scootaloo said.

"No, no, you don't have to apologize. It-it's not that big of a deal, really." Apple Bloom said, unsure which of the two of them she was trying to reassure. "Just forget we ever had this conversation." She said. Why had she said that? Why was this so hard?

Scootaloo nodded. "Is it because I'm a mare?" She asked, without looking at Apple Bloom.

"What? Uh, no, I just..."

"Is it because I'm a pegasus?" Scootaloo asked, now looking her right in the face as she stepped closer.

She looked like a prisoner waiting to find out if she'd been given a leave of execution. Apple Bloom suddenly felt like she was back in the fire swamp, cornered by the chimera. Only Applejack wouldn't be able to come and save her this time. "No, Scootaloo, I just don't want to go to the dance..."

"Well, I mean, if it's the dance that's the problem, we can have a date somewhere else. We-we could even go on a different night if you want..." Scootaloo said.

"Scoots, it's got nothing to do with the place or the time, I-I just can't go on a date with you, alright?"

Scootaloo just stared at her and then nodded, her eyes drifting to the ground. "Okay, Apple Bloom. I'm sorry for being pushy...I just thought...well...I...I really, really like you and I-I thought...I'm sorry..."

Apple Bloom rushed forward to comfort her friend, seeing tears gathering in her arms. But she stopped herself, certain that touching Scootaloo after the conversation they'd just had would hurt more. She paused, terrified by indecision before finally giving into empathy and reaching out.

Scootaloo brushed her hoof away and Apple Bloom felt like she had been slapped. She was sure now that she was going to start crying too. What was wrong with her? Why was she hurting her friend so much? Why did Scootaloo have to pick her, the one pony who absolutely couldn't have reciprocated her feelings even if she had wanted to?

"I better get going. Thanks for being honest with me." Scootaloo said, turning away and slowly trotting back up the hill, now carrying her skateboard at her side.

Apple Bloom wanted to run after her. But what could she say? What could she do? She took a deep breath. Maybe, maybe Zecora would know what to do. She was so wise. Or Twilight? Twilight was the princess of Friendship. And Scootaloo was her friend no matter what. Yes, Twilight could help her.

She quickly finished up her chores and headed in the direction of the castle, praying that Twilight would have some magical solution to all her problems and that by this time tomorrow, this terrible feeling, that she might have broken something which was beyond fixing would be long gone.

Twilight Sparkle stepped out onto the balcony of her bedroom and flexed her wings, letting the morning air smooth between them. She had fallen asleep reading about dragon history, in a vain hope of finding some information about dragon holidays, so that she might have a better way of conveying to Ember the purpose of Hearts and Hooves Day. Her search had been unhelped by the fact that the scrolls she'd been reading were so ancient they'd been written in pre-Equestrian times.

She had woken to find that Spike had put a blanket over her, and she made a mental note to do something for him tomorrow. Hearts and Hooves Day was all about spend time with the creatures in your life that you loved, not just the ones you were in love with, after all.

She had just considered what might make a nice gift, when the morning sun struck something below and nearly blinded her with a polychromatic flash. She almost fell backward in surprise and held a hoof to her face as she peered over the edge of the balcony and down at the until now unnoticed wheelbarrow full of gemstones parked up below. She glared down at it, wondering who in their right mind would deliver such a valuable stash and then abandon it on her front stoop. It was practically a fire-hazard where it currently was.

Focusing her telekinesis, she levitated the cart and its contents up and onto the balcony, inspecting the haul carefully. A deposit of this size, containing this many high value gems...it was worth more than half of Ponyville. Who could have possibly obtained it and then physically located it to this castle?

Her eyes widened as she suddenly remembered something she'd read in one of her books last night. It was written from the perspective of one of the few and extremely fool-hardy ponies who, like herself, had via camouflage infiltrated the Dragon Lands and risked life and limb to return with information about dragon society. The passage had included a description of one aspect of dragon courting. If a dragon wanted to invite another to fight them, thus proving their viability as a mate, they would gift that dragon a pile of gems. The larger the pile, the more romantic the gesture. It was a compliment, a willingness to spend resources to assure the safety of another and simultaneously, also an insult. It told the dragon being courted, that the dragon courting believed themselves strong enough to defeat another dragon, even if that dragon's hoard was bigger.

She remembered, dimly, Ember mentioning something about a present which she'd be sending as part of their negotiations when they'd met several weeks prior. Surely, she hadn't been referring to an invitation of courtship like this? Twilight's mind reeled at the implications. There were three possibilities.

The first was that Ember had sent the pile for Spike, which meant she was challenging him to a duel to prove that she should be his mate. Which made the most sense, and simultaneously seemed completely insane. Spike wasn't as small as he'd once been, but he wasn't anywhere near the same size as Ember, let alone as vicious as she could be in a full-on brawl. Maybe that was why the gift was so large, because she wanted him nice and strong for their confrontation?

She knew that Spike and Ember had spent a lot of time together and had often thought that Ember might make a suitable replacement for his crush on Rarity. But he was too young to start a family. She knew that dragons wente mated earlier than ponies, but it still seemed wrong for Ember to ask him to either accept the invitation to a tooth and claw fight (which he had to win if he didn't want to guard her eggs for the next two decades) or to decline the invitation, destroying their friendship and any chance at diplomacy between their two nations.

The second possibility was almost as bad. It was possible that the gems were intended as a gift toward Cadence. Dragons after all, didn't stay with one partner and had no concept of marriage. Even if Ember knew that Cadence was married to Twilight's brother (unlikely, given that Ember wasn't one for new information), it was entirely possible that she didn't believe that beginning a relationship with Cadence violated Equestrian cultural mores. This was worse, she decided, because it meant that Ember possibly did understand what Cadence as the princess of love was responsible for and wanted to enjoin Equestrian royalty with the spawn of the Dragon Lord.

The third possibility, and the worst, was that the gift was for Twilight herself. She remembered fighting alongside Ember in the battle for Equestria. Ember was powerful and...pretty, in a scaly kind of way. But Twilight didn't think she could honestly be in a relationship with a dragon, even if it was to Ember, even if it was a fling, even if, in both of their elongated lifespans, it would eventually become only a footnote. Ironically, Twilight actually felt more confident fighting Ember in a duel than trying to explain to her that she was flattered but uninterested without Equestria ending up as a scorched landscape.

Dragons barely understood friendship. How would Ember react if she tried to introduce the disappointment and frustration of unrequited romance to them? What if to Ember this proposal was a purely mechanical one? What if she just wanted to be in a relationship with a pony and considered Twilight, as an alicorn, to be one of the few who could serve as an adequate partner? There might be no romantic intention in the proposition, only a pure biological need, or worse, a perverse curiosity.

Not that Twilight was against inter-species relationships. She knew for a fact that Ocellus the changeling and Smolder the dragon were very happy together. No, she wasn't against such relationships on principal. She just would prefer not to be in one, where she would remain incapable of loving the other participant.

There was a knock at the door to her bedroom and she forced away the panic.

"Twilight, it's me...can I talk to you about something?"

It was Spike. She had to hide the gems. If he found out...well, she didn't know what might happen but until she was sure who it was Ember was gifting them to, she couldn't let him know. She quickly created a field of invisibility over the wheelbarrow and stepped back inside, closing the balcony doors behind her and pulling the curtains closed, just in case.

Then she raced over to the door, took a deep breath and opened it. "Hey, Spike! What uh, what do you want to talk about?" She asked, with as kind a smile as she could summon given the circumstances.

He frowned. "It's about Pinkie..."

Fluttershy took a deep breath. Then she turned to the myriad birds, rodents, reptiles and the one ursine who were cheering her on. "Wish me luck." She said to them, and Harry even gave her a shooing motion as if hurrying her to admit her feelings.

She stepped out of the alley and trotted up to the front door of the boutique. She wasn't sure if she'd be able to fly with how nervous she felt at just this moment. But she was glad for the stability of the cobblestones beneath her feet.

She lifted up a hoof as if intending to knock down the door with one strike. Then she winced as she lightly tapped its perfectly polished surface.

Almost immediately, the door was thrown open and a white hoof dragged her inside.

"Fluttershy! Just the pegasus I was looking for!" Rarity said, hurrying Fluttershy through the shop and into one of the backrooms. "What do you think, darling? It took me alllll night, but I think it was worth it..."

Fluttershy stared up at the lavender and silver dress which rested on a mannequine. It had hearts, carefully sown across the hemline and the waistline and a big, red piece of cloth sewn into the breast. It was quite possibly the best one she'd ever seen Rarity put together.

Oh, to be that mannequine, to stand in this shop all day and be adorned by Rarity's creations. Oh, to be that dress, to have those delicate hooves working on her every day, molding her into something which radiated refinement. She was overwhelmed in that moment with the longing she had hidden since the two first became friends. She suddenly wanted to make her affections known through yelling and screaming.

Instead, she said "It's beautiful, Rarity." She wanted to add some cheesy line about how it wasn't as beautiful as Rarity was to the end of that sentiment, but she stopped herself, having not yet gone that mad with affection to give into such an obviously cringe-inducing compliment.

"Yes...I can't wait to find out who made it for me." Rarity said, with a deep and wistful sigh.

Fluttershy blinked rapidly. "I thought you said you worked on it, last night..."

"Oh, I did...but the original material comes from my secret admirer. That's what I wanted to tell you, Fluttershy, I recieved the most scandalous note yesterday afternoon. Somepony asking if I liked mares...well, naturally, I was at a loss for words, but it came with this dress and well, the meaning is obvious, isn't it? Some mare in this town made this dress for me and she wants me to wear it tomorrow to indicate my interest in her. It's the most romantic thing you've ever heard of, isn't it?"

It wasn't. Fluttershy briefly flipped through a mental calendar, trying to ascertain if she had made a dress for Rarity and forgotten about it. No. No, she hadn't. Did that mean that there was some other mare, vying for Rarity's attention? No, the message had come from her, or from her through Rainbow Dash. Anypony could have given Rarity this dress. Its existence was no confirmation that there was another mare interested in Rarity, only that there were plenty of ponies who found Rarity as attractive as she did, something she'd already known.

Now all she needed to do was tell Rarity that the dress she'd worked all night on hadn't come from her. Instead, a piddly, foalish note had and if Rarity just came with Fluttershy out of the boutique, she would receive an invitation to the dance which was not nearly as romantic as the dress.

In her duties as a pegasus, she had often become blown off course by inclement weather or temporarily lost consciousness mid-flight due to exhaustion. The sensation of falling now returned to her, all the comfort of the floor beneath her hooves disappearing into a vast gorge.

She had failed. She had waited too long to act on her feelings and somepony had beaten her to the punch by one day. She considered then, madly, throwing herself at Rarity's hooves and begging her to choose her instead. But it would due, no good. She had been too shy, too nervous, again, and it had taken everything from her.

She turned away, ready to march out of the shop and return to her hut and hopefully never have to leave it ever again. She was interrupted by Rarity's unhidden enthusiasm.

"Who do you think it is, Fluttershy? I've made a list of all the mares who I think might be in love with me, and well, I thought maybe you could help me narrow it down, just a tiny, winy bit? I'm just so excited to know who it was, I can't bear to wait to find out."

Whoever it was, they would probably make a wonderful partner for Rarity. They would probably be able to visit all the galas and social gatherings that she loved without wanting to curl up and hide underneath the furniture. Whoever they were, they would probably be able to work up the courage to tell Rarity how wonderful she was.

"What are you talking about?"

It was Sweetie Belle, she'd been sitting at the front of the shop, flipping rather unenthusiastically through a magazine about fashion. Now, she had a look like she'd just been roused from a particularly rewarding dream.

"Oh, Sweetie Belle, I can't believe I didn't tell you!" Rarity buzzed over to her sister, giving her a big hug and then showing her the note that Rainbow had delivered on Fluttershy's behalf. "Some mare left me this note yesterday, along with this beautiful dress (Which I've only made a few adjustments to). Do you see, she's asking me if I like mares! Can you believe it?"

Sweetie just stared at the note in momentary confusion and what almost looked like disgust.

"Fluttershy and I were trying to work out who my secret admirer is. Whoever she is, I just hope she's a good dancer..." Rarity said, with another lovesick sigh.

Then Sweetie spoke and both Rarity's contentment and Fluttershy's misery were cut short. "You mean the letter that Rainbow Dash delivered?" She asked.

Rarity frowned and Fluttershy wondered if it was possible to fly out of the boutique as quickly as possible without her exit being noticed. "Whatever do you mean, Sweetie?"

"I saw Rainbow delivering this letter yesterday." Sweetie Belle said, handing the letter back to Rarity. "Congratulations, sis, now you know who likes you."

Rarity took the letter without looking at it, her smile slowly fading as comprehension made it past her mind and into her eyes. "Oh. Oh dear. Oh no."

"What do you mean, 'oh no'? Isn't that what you wanted?" Sweetie asked, almost angry now.

"Well, yes, I mean, no, that is to say...I-I never would have expected...oh dear." Rarity suddenly slumped. "I thought...well, it's not that I don't love Rainbow dearly, as a friend, or that I don't find her work commendable, as an associate, or that she hasn't bettered my life, as an acquaintance...but..."

But. But Rarity wasn't interested in Rainbow Dash any more than she was in Fluttershy.

"Ugh, you're impossible!" Sweetie complained. "You, you get to hang out with princesses and visit other kingdoms and-and you own a fashion empire and it's still not enough for you!"

"Sweetie Belle!" Rarity began.

"And-and then when you complain that no pony loves you, boom! This beautiful pegasus, one of the greatest mares in Equestria shows up and gives you a gift and you can't leave it alone or stop talking about it. And then when you find out it was her...you're disappointed!" Sweetie said, tossing her hooves up in the air. "It-it's not fair, Rarity! You get everything you could ever want and you're still not...you're still not happy."

"Sweetie, that's not...you don't understand..." Rarity said, stepping over to her sister. She looked absolutely gutted, but her distress was nothing compared to Sweetie's verge-of-tears expression.

"I-I hate you! You-you make it impossible to be your sister!" Sweetie Belle said, before turning away and racing out of the room. Fluttershy heard the sound of front door slam shut behind her as Rarity dropped the note and rushed after her.

"Wait! Sweetie, please! Wait! Let me explain!" She cried, galloping after her sister.

Fluttershy stood in the workshop, staring at the abandoned, half-crumpled love note. She knew she had to run after Rarity, to tell her that the note was from her, not Rainbow Dash. To be sure that Sweetie Belle was okay. To be sure that no pony was hurt because of her mistake.

She knew that was the kind thing to do. Instead, she slumped to the ground, lying next to the note, in the shadow of the lavender dress above. And quietly, she began to cry into the floorboards, closing her eyes and listening to the feeling of her heart, pounding a hole through her chest.

Diamond Tiara sagged in her bed, staring out her bedroom window at the bucolic day blossoming outside. She was quite sure that she would have preferred it, at this moment, if the sun wasn't shining and ponies weren't jumping around outside, giddy with love for one another.

It was bad enough for Sweetie Belle to refuse her advances. That was something she'd just need to accept and move past. But for Silver Spoon, her oldest friend to mock her, when she was at her most vulnerable...she wasn't sure if she could forgive that kind of behavior. It was so unnecessarily spiteful, especially since Diamond Tiara had asked for her help in figuring out how to approach Sweetie Belle about her feelings.

She groaned and rolled over for the sixth time, trying to drive herself back into the comfortable oblivion of sleep. It was no use; she'd cried herself to sleep last night and stayed in long past breakfast. Sooner or later, she would have to get up. It didn't help that her parents were acting strangely as well. She kept hearing them whispering to each other, then they would break into giggles. Maybe their relationship was flourishing too because of Hearts and Hooves Day. That was just what she needed, for her stuffy parents to be flirting with one another while she was picking up the pieces of her broken heart.

When another fit of giggles broke out down the hall from her room, she decided she'd endured enough. She rolled out of bed and, landing on her hooves, hurried downstairs and out of the sweet-smelling interior of her home. The Cutie Mark Crusaders were always talking about friendship, right? Maybe if she talked to Scootaloo or Apple Bloom about what had happened, they'd have advice about what to do about her feelings for Sweetie Belle (and her feelings about what Silver Spoon had done).

It would be embarrassing, for sure, to discuss her crush with another pony, after how the first had treated the subject. But she knew that Apple Bloom and Scootaloo were incapable of the cruelties exhibited by Silver Spoon and she needed a friend right now, more than anything.

Careful to avoid detection, she crept downstairs, slipping out the front door and onto the busy street. She was halfway to the park, where she knew Scootaloo would be headed this time of day, when she heard it. A strange, almost familiar lullabye, echoing from a nearby alleyway. It sounded like something her mother had hummed to her when she was a foal, or like some tune which had appeared in a now long distant dream.

It was soothing to her aching heart and over-heated mind. So slow, so gentle, like the rocking of the waves beneath a pleasure barge, or the soft beat of another heart pressed to her chest. It was so beautiful, as simple and natural as the singing of the birds and the whistling of the wind. But it was simultaneously beyond nature, beyond description. As ephemeral as a thought and as enchanting as a dream. So, enticing, so inviting, Diamond Tiara was sure that if the stars themselves could make sound, it would sound like this.

Slowly, she entered the alley, too entranced to even notice the overpowering fragrance of rotting flowers emitting from its depths.

Applejack had just finished helping put up the stage for Cadence's big speech, when she saw Rarity pushing through the crowds, stopping every other pony and asking them something in desperate tones. Dropping the hammer between her teeth into a nearby bucket, she cantered over.

"Are you alright?" She asked, as Rarity desperately interviewed a heavily tattooed Earth pony.

"Applejack! Have you seen Sweetie Belle anywhere? Did she run through here?" Rarity asked. Her mane was all frizzy. Applejack didn't know it could get that unkempt.

"No, I'm sorry." Applejack watched Rarity's face fall. "Why? Is she in trouble?"

Rarity shook her head and Applejack thought she might keel over; she looked so upset. "I-I have to find her...It...it's all my fault..."

"Slow down, sugarcube." Applejack reached out, putting a steadying hoof on Rarity's withers. "Sweetie Belle is a smart mare, just like 'er sister. I reckon whatever trouble she gets up to she'll be alright...now tell me what happened, and I promise to do everythin' I can to ya find her."

Rarity took a deep breath regaining some of her normally uncompromising composure. "Well, Fluttershy had just come by and I was telling her about this dress I received in the mail. I-I thought it was a gift from a secret admirer, because it came with this note...asking if I liked mares. Anyway, Sweetie Belle says she saw it being dropped off by Rainbow Dash and I...I was just shocked is all, because I didn't think that Rainbow Dash was interested in me, in that way. But then Sweetie Belle started yelling about it...the poor dear, I know I'm not the easiest pony to grow up in the shadow of...but I never meant to hurt her! Well, she...she said she hated me and ran out of the boutique and now I'm worried that she might do something drastic and all I want to do is apologize to her, but I-I can't find her!"

"Don't you worry now, Rarity...we'll find her." Applejack assured, pulling her hat down over her eyes and then turning and yelling up at Thunderlane, who was in the middle of adorning the awning of the stage with flowers. "HEY! Thunderlane! You and the rest of the pegasi start scanning the area, we need to find Rarity's sister lickety-split!"

Thunderlane frowned. "Applejack, I'm kind of in the middle of so-"

"You get goin' or I'll have Princess Twilight Sparkle reassign you to the Frozen North, ya hear!?"

Thunderlane rolled his eyes, most ponies knew that Twilight was incapable of that kind of punishment. Still, he bolted up into the sky, waving some of the pegasi on cloud duty down to him so that they could set up some kind of search party.

As soon as they were gone, Applejack suggested Rarity go tell her and Sweetie's parents, while Applejack checked out the old Cutie Mark Crusader clubhouse. She was glad to help, but she was also far more comfortable not having to hide the grinding of her teeth. Sweetie Belle was mistaken, that was all. Rarity was clearly distressed and her story didn't make much sense anyhow. Clearly, there had been some kind of misunderstanding and this whole big mess would soon be cleared up and they would all laugh about it over a heart-shaped eclair.

There were pegasi from all over Equestria for the Hearts and Hooves festival. Sweetie Belle had probably just seen another blue pegasus and the pegasus had been flying quickly and so she had mistaken her for Rainbow.

Just another blue pegasus with a very distinctive rainbow mane.

It was mistake. It had to be. Rainbow was the most loyal pony that Applejack knew. She would have never betrayed her. And even if she had, she never would have done it like this. Dropping off some kind of dress? She couldn't think of anything which sounded less appealing to a mare as coltish as Rainbow. It was probably some kind of prank, where she had sent Rarity the dress just to make fun of her. Of course, that wasn't like Rainbow either. It was a little too personal, to be mocking Rarity's greatest passion and her love-life all in one go. But it made far more sense than sending a love note.

Then Applejack remembered how hesitant Rainbow was when the two of them had started seeing each other. She was so worried about what others thought of her, and so worried about messing up her friendship with Applejack. It had taken a lot of patience to get to this point, where they could spend time together the way ponies ought to be able to, and even now, Rainbow still begged Applejack not to tell anypony about it, not even their best friends.

If Rainbow was willing to lie about her relationship with Applejack, after claiming that she loved her, what else was she willing to lie about?

"It's not that I don't want her to be happy..." Spike said. "It's just...I don't know...I-I never thought she wanted to be with Rarity. If I had, I wouldn't have told her about my crush..."

"Spike, what you're describing doesn't sound like Pinkie at all." Twilight said. "If she was in love with Rarity, I'm pretty sure she'd spell her name out in the sky with fireworks."

"But Derpy said she saw her doing it!" Spike said.

Twilight sighed. "Why don't we go talk to Pinkie about it and find out her side of the story, before we jump to conclusions, okay?"

Spike took a deep breath then he nodded. As Twilight got up from her seated position and moved to clear away the mess of books left behind by last night's cram session, he hopped off the bed and padded over to her.

"Twilight?"

"Yes, Spike?" She put the book where she'd read about dragon duels atop her bedside table for later reading. Boy, she hoped that Spike was wrong about this thing with Pinkie Pie, she had enough to worry about with their tightly wound group dissolving due to some needless drama.

"Rarity doesn't love me, does she?"

Twilight's telekinesis went so haywire she very nearly knocked over her private bookcase. Steadying it with both hooves she glanced back at Spike. "Why do you say that?" She asked, when she was sure that her carefully curated collection of thousand-year-old tomes was no longer in danger.

"Well, she wouldn't be this excited about being with a mare if she was, would she?" Spike said, slowly. "I thought for a long time that maybe she'd fall in love with me. But that's not going to happen, is it?"

Twilight took a deep breath and then walked over, leaning down slightly so that the two of them were eye to eye. "Spike, I think that Rarity will always be there for you, as a friend...but no, I don't think she is in love with you. I can't say that I know she will never love you the way you love her. But...I know that you can't make some creature love you, all you can do is give them love and hope they will give it back."

Spike hung his head, nodding slowly. "I've been deluding myself for years, haven't I?"

"No, Spike...I...I don't know much about relationships, okay? But I know that all the time you've spent with Rarity...the things she's done for you...none of that was wasted okay? Just because you two can't...be together. It doesn't mean that it wasn't worth it, that you were there to make her happy...or that she'll be there to help you be happy sometime in the future." Twilight said. "Remember when you were all embarrassed about your stone-scale? You were afraid to let her see you like that, but she didn't care. She just wanted to help you. That's a true friend, and sometimes...that lasts longer than love ever will."

Spike stared at his claws for a moment and then nodded. Twilight sighed and drew him in, wrapping her wings around his torse and rubbing the ridge of scales across his head and back.

"Someday, you're going to fall in love again, Spike. And someday, some creature who cares as much about you as you do about Rarity, is going to fall in love with you. This isn't the end of the world, I promise."

There was a knocking on the door and Twilight, mildly annoyed, gave Spike one last smile and then hurried over to the door. "Okay, what is it this time?" She asked, unlocking the door and swinging it open.

It was Apple Bloom, coated in a thin layer of dust and completely out of breath. Her coat around her eyes was stained too, as if she'd been crying and her legs were wobbling slightly.

"Apple Bloom...wha-what are you doing here?" Twilight asked, glancing out into the hall, as if expecting the other members of the CMCs to be right behind her.

"Princess Twilight...I-I think I did somethin' awful and I'm worried about my friendship with Scootaloo...is-is it alright if I talk to you about it?" She asked, her big amber eyes turning up to meet Twilight's.

"Oh, umm, yes, of course." Twilight glanced at Spike, who was already opening the balcony doors.

"I'll let you get to your work, Princess..." He said, with a smile.

"Wait, Spike, don't-!" Twilight began.

It was too late, he flew out of the room, smacking straight into the wheelbarrow of gems and causing it to turn over upon him, burying him in a cascade of emeralds, rubies, sapphires, and diamonds. Twilight lifted a hoof to her face and slowly dragged it across her muzzle and mouth.

Apple Bloom stared at the bizarre sight and then at Twilight. "Uh...did I come at a bad time?"

Sweetie Belle sat in the shade of tent, listening to the carnival barkers trying to drum up some early business before the rush of the festival tomorrow. She lay with her hooves pressed to her forehead, trying to rub feeling back into her brain.

How mortifying. First, she'd acted like an idiot in front of Diamond Tiara and Scootaloo and now she'd been an absolute beast to her sister, only because she'd been in a bad mood. It was Rarity's fault that Scootaloo wasn't interested in her. It wasn't Rarity's fault that she was prettier than Sweetie Belle. Of course, Rainbow Dash would want to be with her.

She wasn't a spoiled brat, desperate for the slightest attention. It wasn't the first time that Sweetie's envy had bubbled to the surface. But it was the ugliest. She wouldn't blame Rarity if she never wanted to see her again.

Slowly getting to her feet, she wandered away from the town center and into the safety of the park. Oh well, maybe she wouldn't ever have a special some pony. But at least Scootaloo was still in her life, at least she hadn't totally burned that bridge yet. Staring at the monument and waiting for Scootaloo to arrive and start her familiar routine, Sweetie resolved to return to the boutique and give her apologies. Maybe if she told Rarity about her crush on Scootaloo, maybe she wouldn't just receive an undeserved "I forgive you". Maybe Rarity would be able to say something to her, something which would ease the heartbreak.

She was mentally assembling the exact phrasing of her apology, when she noticed Silver Spoon across the path, standing next to a garbage can and staring intently at a discard piece of paper litter. Her normally pristine coat was dirty, her mane unkempt and the bags beneath her eyes magnified by her spectacles.

Sweetie Belle hated the thought, but she looked half-dead, almost zombie-like.

"Silver Spoon...are...are you alright?" She asked, slowly inching toward the taller mare.

Silver Spoon's eyes left the ground and flashed with hatred. Sweetie Belle jerked back instinctively. She hadn't seen that much anger in another pony's eyes since Cozy Glow almost destroyed Equestria. Silver Spoon wasn't cackling like Cozy Glow would be. There was nothing cheesy or over-the-top about her expression, just a piercing intensity which reminded Sweetie of staring at the sun.

Silver Spoon whispered something, slightly too quiet for Sweetie Belle to make out.

"What-what did you say? What's wrong?" Sweetie Belle asked, still backing away. She was scared now; she'd never seen another pony act like this. She'd only heard stories, usually told around a campfire, of ponies who lost their mind and became inured to the balm of friendship.

"IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!" Silver Spoon yelled, attracting the attention of the Scootaloo fans who'd gathered nearby in preparation for today's show.

Her words were accompanied by a pointing hoof and Sweetie Belle actually looked behind her, she was so stunned by Silver Spoon's accusation. "Wha-what are you talking about? What did I do?"

"HA! Don't play the foal, thou art more diabolical than furies of Tartarus, more parasitic than the lowliest centaur..." Silver Spoon snarled, her hooves making deep grooves in the dirt path as she stomped over to Sweetie Belle. "First thou takest mine love, then thou denies her bliss. Thou art a serpent by tongue and tooth, poisoning the roots of harmony with caprice." She spat, looming over Sweetie Belle and causing her to fall over in surprise and fear. "Were that thou a stallion, I would be revenged upon thou in the arts of bloodletting. But as thou art the most churlish and lubricous of temptresses, I am reduced to callous denouncements!"

Sweetie Belle lifted a hoof to protect herself, closing her eyes and wincing for an impact. "Suh-Silver Spoon stop it...what, what's wrong with you?"

Silver Spoon growled and turned away addressing her audience and pointing melodramatically again at Sweetie Belle's prone form. "Behold, good ponies, the most dangerous of deceivers! Look upon her and feel naught more than disgust, for she art more wolf than waif! She hath savaged the love of mine dearest friend as a bone to a starving stray! Reveal unto the world her wantoness, and let it be known to her most doting ally, how the marrow of Diamond Tiara's devotion tasted!"

Sweetie Belle stared at Silver Spoon in shock. She was vaguely aware of the meaning behind Silver Spoon's words, some accusation of harming Diamond Tiara. But Silver Spoon's method of speaking was so strange and her mannerisms so exaggerated, she was more terrified of what had befallen the pony she once called friend. Just yesterday, Silver Spoon had been her normal, sarcastic self.

"Silver Spoon! Knock it off!"

There were gasps as Diamond Tiara stepped out from the edge of the crowd, with a glare at Silver Spoon. But it was not, as Sweetie Belle hoped, outrage at Silver Spoon for her actions or even concern for her mental state. It could barely be described as more than annoyance at a spot of public embarrassment.

Silver Spoon withered like a flower in December and squeaked. "But mine lady-"

Diamond Tiara lifted up a hoof in disdain to silence her and rolled her eyes. Then she marched up to her, keeping her eyes on Sweetie Belle. "I thought I told you to shut up! Honestly, do you think I would ever want her?"

Sweetie Belle felt like she'd just been thrown a lifeline, only to discover it was made of paper.

"Hath mine proposal been reconsidered?" Silver Spoon asked, a shred of joy appearing on her ghastly face.

"I believe I requested...SILENCE!!" Diamond Tiara snarled, giving Silver Spoon a look which made her cower. Then she glanced back at Sweetie Belle and marched up to her, with that same look of imperious distaste which Sweetie Belle thought she would never see on her face again. "Well? Did you tell her I fancied you? Is that what this is about?" Diamond Tiara demanded.

"I-no...I..." Sweetie Belle glanced at the crowd, hoping that somepony would come to her aid. But at the moment every creature seemed too stunned by the madness of the proceedings to consider intervention.

"Do you honestly believe any pony would find you intriguing, let alone one as well-bred as me? I mean, puh-lease! I expect your own parents forget you exist half the time." Diamond Tiara said as she looked Sweetie Belle up and down and sneered. "The only reason you have friends is because you found two other fillies too pathetic to give up on you. I expect the lot of you take comfort in each other, all the while aware that no stallion is ever going to deign to use you for anything more than passing pleasure..." She paused, smirking and leaning down, her voice lowering as the tears welled in Sweetie's already red eyes. "Is that it, Sweetie Belle? Did you want me to join your little club so you could kiss me and tell me how wonderful I am? Maybe you got tired of playing at the real thing with that hayseed, Apple Bloom?"

"HEY! Knock it off!" Called a voice. Again, the crowd parted and again there were gasps as Scootaloo strode forth, carrying her skateboard under one hoof.

Diamond Tiara laughed. "It figures. Who else would come to the defense of this loser and her bumpkin friend?"

Boos rose from the crowd, finally jolted out of surprise by sheer outrage. Scootaloo just walked up to Diamond Tiara and pointed with her hoof. "Get out of here! NOW!"

Diamond Tiara wasn't even looking at her, she was too busy scowling at the crowd. "Oh please! Save your sympathy for a creature deserving of it!" She turned back toward Scootaloo and pointed at her. "Admit it, thhe first thing you notice when you see this mare is those wings on her back. Any mare who says otherwise is deceiving only herself."

Scootaloo gritted her teeth together. "I knew you hadn't changed...I knew that no matter how kind we were, you would always just be a spoiled brat."

Diamond Tiara rolled her eyes. "Oh, my heart! I'm soooooo wounded...go ahead, flightless. Call me all the names you can think of. At least I have parents who actually care about me-"

Sweetie Belle's hoof collided with Diamond Tiara's face, spraying blood across the park grass and causing the Earth Pony to fall over in surprise. For the first time in her life, Diamond Tiara had been hit and she did not like the feeling. She removed a perfectly manicured hoof from her snout and stared at the dark stuff staining her coat. Then she narrowed her eyes at Sweetie Belle.

Whatever revenge she had planned was made unnecessary a moment later, when Silver Spoon launched herself onto Sweetie Belle. "How darest thou!!?" Silver Spoon screamed.

The park was suddenly filled with the nauseating echoes of crunching bone beneath her whirling hooves. The melee was quickly stopped when Scootaloo and the crowd quickly descended on Silver Spoon and dragged her kicking and hissing away from her victim. But Sweetie Belle still lay on the ground, one eye blackened, two teeth missing, her snout crumpled, and her mane stained with blood.

Worst of all though, was the crack which Scootaloo could see in her horn. Wrapping her hooves around Sweetie's incapacitated form, Scootaloo picked her up and atop her skateboard, hurried in the direction of the Ponyville Hospital.

4 - No ignorance but darkness

Sweetie let out a groan as consciousness returned like a hammer to the head. She was only vaguely aware of the sobbing sounds to her left and the slight wetness of her fetlock, her mind preoccupied by the throbbed in her forehead and eye.

Slowly, she shifted beneath the soft hospital bedsheet and stared at the source of the dampness, her sister Rarity.

"Sweetie!" Rarity quickly wiped the tears from her eyes, although the streaks of mascara across her pristine white coat remained. "Oh darling, you-you're awake!"

Sweetie was roused out of her groggy state by her sister's repeated kisses to her cheeks and forehead.

"Don't you ever run off like that again!" She said, wrapping her hooves around Sweetie's midsection and drying her wet eyes on the coat of Sweetie's underside. "I was afraid you wouldn't wake up..." She admitted in barely more than a whisper.

Sweetie winced, then smiled, carefully extending a leg and wrapping it around her sister’s head. "Where's mom and dad?" She asked with a croak.

"They're talking to the doctor outside. He said you should stay overnight for observation." Rarity said. She looked up at Sweetie for a moment and then her eyes welled. "Sweetie, I just wanted to apologize. I know that I'm not the easiest pony to live with and-and you were right...I was acting awfully and I'm sorry."

Sweetie sighed. "No, Rarity...you didn't do anything wrong. I-I was just hurting because...the special pony that I asked to the dance doesn't like me back. And I took it out on you instead of talking about it..."

"Oh, Sweetie...you know that I've had romances that turned out badly before."

Sweetie gave her a skeptical look.

"It's true. Part of the reason I was so excited somepony wanted me...was because things haven't worked out in that department for me before." Rarity reached out, brushing some of Sweetie's mane out of her eyes. "The truth is, I still think of you as a filly." She looked away. "But you aren't...I should have known you'd have heartbreaks of your own."

Sweetie's eyes dropped. Then she looked back up at Rarity.

"Did you really have crushes that turned out badly?' She asked.

Rarity smiled and nodded.

Sweetie Belle shifted beneath her covers. "Would you mind telling me about them?"

Ponyville Hospital was like the rest of the town, its pastels muted only for the effect of sterilization and its staff genial to the point of obsequiousness. It's chief doctor, Dr. Horse, reflected this in the rather pediatric manner in which he addressed and cared for his patients. Like most ponies since the Reign of the Alicorns began, he had never been exposed to a lethal injury or a fatal disease.

As a result, when he attempted to give The Bad Newstm to Hondo Flanks and Cookie Crumbles, his composure evaporated with such rapidity, that Nurse Tenderheart had to hightail him out of the sight of Sweetie Belle's parents, before he made them think she'd somehow expired from a horn injury.

That left it to Nurse Redheart to give The Bad Newstm. Like all good nurses, Redheart was constantly on the verge of passing out from exhaustion, and like all exhausted creatures, dwelled beyond the subtleties of etiquette.

"We've healed the damage to her muzzle and jaw, but there was one thing we couldn't fix. Her horn was cracked around the base." She paused. "She should still be able to cast spells, but her concentration will be impaired, and the buildup of unused mana may cause migraines."

Hondo and Cookie shared a look. Then Hondo spoke. "But she'll be alright?"

Redheart nodded.

"And...there's nothing you can do to fix her horn?" Cookie asked, leaning towards the nurse.

Redheart took a deep breath. "Thanks to our friends in the Crystal Empire, there's an experimental procedure which might help. But we've never had to cause to use it before."

Hondo nodded and eyed his wife. "Thank you so much, for all you've done. I...think we should talk to Sweetie before we make any decisions."

Redheart nodded stepped aside to allow them into the hospital room beyond. "Of course. Please advise her against trying to cast spells for the time being, any use of magic could worsen the damage."

Scootaloo sat in the waiting room, just down the hall, listening to the hushed conversation, as she examined the linoleum tiles. The whole building smelled like lemon-scented cleaning fluid, enough that most ponies chose to wait just outside of the hospital, by the flowers and the topiaries sculpted to amuse and distract the bored patients on this side of the building.

Scootaloo just sat on the plastic chair and stewed in her own anger. Right next to her was Rainbow Dash, the first pony to find out what had happened during her search for Sweetie Belle. She'd tried to hug Scootaloo when she first arrived, with Rarity and Sweetie's parents close behind. Scootaloo hadn't been in the mood for being hugged though.

"Are you okay, buddy?" Rainbow asked, when the silence became too brutal for her overactive mind.

"I'm fine." Scootaloo answered. She didn't want to be comforted; she didn't want to talk about her feelings. She wanted to sink into in the mire of hate filling her mind. She deserved to be angry. She liked its acrid taste. There was strength in it's sting, especially right now, when she felt more useless than she ever had.

"What happened?" Rainbow asked.

Scootaloo glared at the floor, unsure if she could give her testimony without unleashing a barrage of obscenities from her admittedly limited vocabulary.

"I mean, I heard that Sweetie got attacked...but...whatever it was, me and my friends can deal with it, I promise."

Scootaloo felt like she was going to scream. But Applejack and Apple Bloom rushed in, worried looks on their faces, and the waves of frustration receded.

"Scootaloo!" Apple Bloom said, rushing over and not bothering with the "offering bit", instead jumping straight to the comfort of affection.

Scootaloo continued to stare at her reflection on the shiny linoleum as she felt Apple Bloom's warm body press to hers. A little while ago, she would have given anything for this embrace. Now, she couldn't help but feel undeserving of it.

"I...I was so worried about you." Apple Bloom said, awkwardly untangling herself from the hug but resting her hooves on Scootaloo's shoulders. "How...how is she?"

Scootaloo shared a look with Rainbow, both of them knowing it wasn't their place to repeat what they'd overheard from Redheart's disclosure.

"She'll be fine." Rainbow said.

"What about you Scoots? Are you alright?" Apple Bloom asked.

When Scootaloo didn't answer, Applejack followed her sister's lead. "What happened to y'all?"

Scootaloo looked away and then back at the three ponies focused on her. She squirmed. "Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara were bullying Sweetie. So, I told them to leave her alone, then Diamond Tiara...started making fun of me. So, Sweetie hit her. Then Silver Spoon went nuts..."

Applejack glanced between Apple Bloom's shock and Scootaloo's sullenness. "I don't understand. I thought Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were friends with y'all?"

"They were." Scootaloo answered.

"Silver attacked Sweetie? Why? I-I don't understand." Apple Bloom was looking between Scootaloo and her sister, as if either of them might be hiding the answer.

Scootaloo brought her hooves close to her chest and pressed her wings subconsciously against her sides. "It looked like...if we hadn't done something...I-I think that Silver Spoon might have..."

She stopped herself, too focused on trying to hold back the horror bubbling to the surface to finish the thought. She was sure now that she was going to start shaking and sobbing like a filly and she was sure she'd scream if everypony tried to comfort her right now, after all that Sweetie was going through.

Applejack's eyes widened and put a hoof to her mouth to stop herself from gasping at the thought.

"Wha-what you mean Scoots? What was she gonna do?" Apple Bloom asked.

Rainbow gently leaned in, putting a hoof on Scootaloo's back and guiding her off the chair and onto the floor. "C'mon, I'll walk you home, alright?"

Applejack moved closer to Apple Bloom and shared a knowing look with Rainbow before the two of them moved beyond the automatic doors. From the hill atop which the hospital had been built, they could see the whole of Ponyville, bathed in a soft orange glow from the already disappearing sun. Scootaloo suddenly realized she didn't know how long she had been at the hospital.

"You wanna get back at her, don't you?" Rainbow asked, sidling up to where Scootaloo was standing.

Scootaloo hung her head. "You-you heard what they said in there. Sweetie might not be able to do magic ever again...at least not like she used to." Her throat was suddenly clogged with phlegm and her chest swollen with emotion. Still, she gritted her teeth and talked through the pain, sure that the words would burn up inside her otherwise. "You can't just do that to somepony and deserve to be forgiven." She turned back to Rainbow. "And-and I know what you're gonna say...I-I know that you're gonna tell me that...that hurting her won't solve anything. Well, well...I don't care, okay? I don't care...I can't just go home and do nothing..."

Rainbow's face remained impassive.

"Not...not when I saw Sweetie like that. Not when I carried her in my arms...you...you don't know what she looked like..." Scootaloo couldn't hold it back anymore. She wanted to scream. To wail like a newborn. Instead, she lay down on the dirt, next to one of the nicer looking bushes and allowed the terrible vibrations to begin at her hooves and work their way up through her body, all the way through her wings.

She heard the sound of hoofbeats approaching and then felt the warmth of Rainbow sitting down next to her. "I'm proud of you, little buddy. You stood up for your friend, you carried her all the way here by yourself. I know what it's like...when a creature hurts one of your friends. You want to make them hurt so that they never do it again...but Silver Spoon's not a chaos god or a prisoner of Tartarus...she's a pony like you and me. I don't know why she did what she did, but I know that Twilight is with her now. And if anypony knows what to do, it's that egghead."

Twilight didn't know what to do.

Silver Spoon's parents had just appeared at the Castle telling her that their daughter had been chased out of town by hooligans. Mayor Mare, being the only member of the local government with the slightest authority, had accompanied them to relay a slightly less jaundiced, but no less disturbing account.

Twilight had assured both Mare and Silver Spoon's parents (who she'd never even held a conversation with before this moment) that she would handle the situation and a simple tracking spell and a flight through the Everfree had brought her to the Silver Spoon's hiding spot with minutes. That had been the easy part.

Twilight had fought other ponies before. Tempest Shadow and Starlight, both convinced of the rightness of their actions by obsession and heartbreak. She had fought Sombra and Cozy Glow as well, both of whom had relished the malice they inflicted on others.

There was none of that in Silver Spoon when Twilight found her. Instead, Silver Spoon seemed to have genuinely wanted to harm Sweetie Belle, for no other reason than the fact that she had stuck Diamond Tiara. Her feral possessiveness had melded with some kind of highly outdated chivalric code, one which had been outdated even in Starswirl's age. Still, even the most of self-righteous and violent pegasus knight had never demonstrated so much over the top savagery. It was profoundly disturbing, to witness the normally amiable if often sarcastic Earth Pony throwing herself against the inside of Twilight's forcefield with increasing desperation. Her frothing indignity was only made more unnatural by the unfamiliar dialect and loquacious manner of speech she'd adopted.

Whatever animalistic pique had overtaken her, it was the only thing driving her at this point. She had long used up her magic, and now her legs trembled underneath her, even as she persisted in her fruitless escape attempts, her actions all the while accompanied by muffled insistence that Twilight and "her kin" would not keep her from her so called "beloved."

Eventually, when it became clear that discussion would not be an option, Twilight had to use a sleeping spell on the poor mare before she hurt herself any more than she already had in her flight from Ponyville.

As Silver Spoon snored into the cool black earth of the Everfree Forest, Twilight dropped the barrier. Using her telekinesis, she cradled her slumbering subject and lifted off before anything too hungry had the chance to stumble onto them. After a quick flight, she landed on the balcony of her room, almost slipping on the gemstones that had spilled across the threshold and thanking her lucky stars that Silver Spoon's parents weren't present to witness the gaff. It was only natural for them to be anxious about placing their daughter's fate into the hooves of another, even if she was a princess and the brief indignity which had almost caused her to drop concentration on her telekinesis and break Silver Spoon's supernatural slumber would have done her no favors in assuaging their discomfort.

Carefully watching where she stepped, Twilight lowered Silver Spoon onto her bed and shut the doors to the balcony behind her. Looking over Silver Spoon's curled up body, Twilight took note of every cut and bruise and each stain of dust on the young mare's normally spotless coat. Then she closed her eyes and focused, the neon pink of her magic filling her horn and illuminating the room.

When she opened her eyes, Silver Spoon's aura, a glowing readout of her emotional and metaphysical state, encircled her sleeping form. Twilight almost recoiled. She'd used this spell countless times before since her coronation; usually to determine the intentions of an untrustworthy creature but sometimes to make it easier to empathize with ponies who had trouble adequately expressing their distress. She had a pretty good idea of what a healthy aura constituted, with each one of the Elements of Harmony feeding into the healthy development of one's magic. In world without strife, all auras would be a shining rainbow of multicolored elements peacefully intermingling.

But Silver Spoon's aura was bruised red and purple, all other elements consumed by mindless Loyalty and perverse Generosity. Even more unsettling, the longer she stared at the map of Silver Spoon's rapidly degrading soul, the more she realized that the bloated elements were growing, consuming all Kindness, Honesty and Joy within Silver Spoon. Soon there would be none left, no longer even the capacity to make friends and Silver Spoon would be left with...what?

With a spark of her horn, she magnified the spell, focusing in on the middle of Silver Spoon's aura, where the red and purple blobs overlapped. There she saw something else, something half-pink and half-scarlet. It almost looked like Love. But it wasn't. Twilight had read books on magic; she knew what the Element of Love was supposed to look like. She had witnessed its firsthand effects when Cadence and her brother had used it to repel the Changeling invasion and banish Sombra back into the cold wastes.

Love was multifacted, just like friendship. There was the doting between a parent and their child. The competition between a friend or a sibling. The infatuation of a filly's first crush, unspoiled yet by the depravities of lust. The intense shyness at the beginning before lovers became friends. And then there was the enduring reliance which held marriages together for decades. Each came in a different flavor, each branded with its own symbols.

This was like none of them. This was as alien to the oldest scholars of magic as it was to Twilight, something that not even Celestia could have forewarned her of. All Twilight knew is that it burned, at the center of Silver Spoon's soul, with such luminosity that she almost wanted to release the aura spell.

Instead, she increased the magnification. Whatever malady now afflicted Silver Spoon, it was stripping away all charm and intelligence in her, in a manner in which Twilight had not had the displeasure of encountering before.

As she stared at that place where the disturbance seeped forth, she saw it. Stars. Two tiny stars, encircling one another, moving in perfect syncopation with the rise and fall of Silver Spoon's heart.

So that was what it was.

It was like the love that happened only in stories. The "True Love" which was talked about in hushed and she realized now, terrified tones, the same kind of passion which the ancient fillyosophers of Poseidonia had branded as "mania". It was an all-devouring, all-consuming love, closer to madness than affection.

And it was out of her control. Love magic was Cadence's domain. She was sure that she could try to remove the tumorous spell overtaking Silver Spoon. But she could not be sure that Silver Spoon's aura would survive the intensity of such an expansive surgery. What if she took too much? This was a delicate operation, requiring magic she'd never had cause to practice the use of. She thought about Silver Spoon's parents, the looks on their faces when she'd promised to return their daughter to them safely.

No, it was too risky. Instead, Twilight deepened the enchantment she'd placed on Silver Spoon, ensuring that she would not wake until after Cadence's arrival in tomorrow morning. Then she turned away, sealing the room with protective and imprisoning magics as she exited it.

There was work to be done, vital work to be sure that whatever this was, it wasn't spreading.

And she knew exactly who she needed to ask.

Diamond Tiara shook the house with the slam of her bedroom door behind her. She was surprised but relieved when her mother didn't come running up to tell her how unladylike it was. Though she had long ago mastered the art of tuning out her parents, she was too exasperated at the moment to stand another lecture.

She paused to glare at her reflection. Sweetie Belle was supposed to be all soft and girly like her sister. Where did she learn to hit like that?

Diamond grabbed a handkerchief and held it to her muzzle, tilting her head back to stop the blood flowing. As she did, she had a strange impression that she'd forgotten something. She looked around the room and even checked her head for her crown. She chalked the feeling up to a concussion and made a mental note to ask her father if they could sue Sweetie's parents for physical assault. Of course, Rarity was loaded thanks to her fashion empire. But maybe they could force Sweetie's parents to commit their daughter.

That would take away the sting a little.

Although based on today's events, it was Silver Spoon who would likely be looking at a padded cell. Diamond sighed. It wasn't like she'd told Silver to attack Sweetie like that. Not that she hadn't enjoyed the sight anyway.

She had long ago learned that the only real joy which could be supped from life came at the cost of others happiness. Oh yes, ponies talked about the magic of friendship, but no creature had ever offered any to her. Her cries for companionship had gone unanswered. Well, if ponies were going to pretend they were too good for her, then she would show them the same courtesy.

Diamond Tiara had only one real friend in this town and that friend had turned out just like them. Completely and utterly deluded. No wonder Silver Spoon had gone nuts, Diamond Tiara had probably made her feel needed.

No pony was needed. That was the truth no pony wanted to admit. They talked big about love and friendship, until they saw the shiny bits spilling out of your father's pockets. They hated her family the same way they hated her. She had what every pony wanted.

Her father didn't seem to notice this, no matter how obvious she tried to make it to him. He was too concerned with her taking over the family business. Her, sitting behind the counter and smiling at all the slack jawed yokels she was selling groceries to. No thank you. They had set her up for failure, but she wouldn't let them or anyone else in this town win. She knew she was important and beautiful and built for some place better than this. Soon, she'd be rid of it all.

There'd be dozens of rich and handsome stallions at the dance tomorrow, come to gawk and drool all over the princess and her sister-in-law. She'd wrap one the hungriest one around her hoof and they'd gallop off into the sunset and she'd never have to think about this stupid town again.

Meanwhile, ponies like Sweetie Belle and her dorky little friends would be gushing all over each other about the beauty of wuv. Sweetie had seen where that ended. Oh sure, you started out happy. You started out thinking each other's farts smelled like flowers. Then before you knew it, you were seven years into an unhappy marriage with a child who wanted nothing to do with you.

The only reason her parents doted on her so much was because it meant they didn't have to spend time talking to each other. Still, there weren't enough extravagantly wrapped gifts in the world to make up for a lousy childhood. They probably thought they were staying together for her benefit.

Speaking of which...they had quit laughing at whatever joke had been occupying their measly minds and were making conversation with somepony downstairs. Probably one of the idiots who'd chased Silver Spoon out of town, come to make things hard for her.

Diamond Tiara grabbed a loose strand of her mane and plucked it off, allowing the sharp pain to well into tears. Then she smeared the salty wetness across her face and peeked out of the bedroom. When her parents realized what had been done to her, they'd trip over themselves to defend her. That was how it worked.

She was surprised to find that it was Princess Twilight downstairs, talking to them. She noticed then, how bloodshot their eyes were and how disturbingly wide their smiles were. As if they were just holding back tears. She felt again that she'd forgotten something, something important...

Then the Princess stamped her forehooves and strands of neon purple lashed out of her horn and wrapped around the heads of Filthy and Spoiled. The two twitched against the pulsating streams of magic, before their eyes rolled back and they dropped limply to the carpet.

The magic drew back into Twilight's horn and she put a hoof to her head, as if she'd just gotten a headache. Then her lower lip quivered. She snorted. Then she chuckled. Then she howled in the ecstasy of imbecility, while Diamond Tiara's parents drooled into the carpet.

Diamond Tiara galloped back to the safety of her room, quickly barricading the door and then shoving open the window and climbing down the trellis like she had many times before. She had gotten half a dozen strides from the house when
there was a flash of purple and a cringing, giggling alicorn appeared inches from her.

"Ah! Oh...P-Princess Twilight. To what do I owe the honor?" Diamond Tiara asked, backing away as slowly as she could.

Twilight snickered and snorted and Diamond Tiara searched the darkened street for somepony who could save her. Even if there had been anypony around though, she knew they would be of limited help.

"Hello, Diamond Tiara." Twilight said, before bursting into another round of rib-shaking laughter.

"I umm...I would love to stop and chat, Princess, but I really have to get going." Diamond Tiara said, backing up against a trash bin and almost falling over.

"Your parents...there was something wrong with them." Twilight said, her telekinesis gripping Diamond Tiara and yanking her closer. "I can't let you go until I'm sure you don't have it too."

Diamond struggled against the pink energy encasing her, using every ounce of magic she had to summon the magnified strength she'd never had cause to exert before. Twilight didn't even notice her attempts to break free.

"Don't worry, it doesn't hurt, I promise." Twilight's compassion was undercut by another undignified snort. "In fact, why-why don't I tell you a joke to ease you into it? Okay, so once upon a time there was a cat princess, and she was set to inherit a mighty empire. Then one day, a sphinx came to her home and ate her mother, the queen in front of her. That's not the funny part though, so just bear with me. The funny part comes later. Anyway, then the sphinx forced her into exile...and made it that she had to walk out into the desert until she couldn't even see the gold-tipped pyramids anymore. So, the princess walks out into the desert and is pretty sure she's going to die of dehydration. That night she decides to play one last song her lute, the only thing the sphinx let her take with her and she plays a song to make the gods remember her. But while she's playing, she begins to hear all these voices in her head, thousands of voices, asking her to play more for them, asking her to let them help her so she can save her people and play always and be joyful forever. Then the next day she returns and traps the sphinx with the power of her newfound friends. But and this is the punchline...the rest of the cats, they don't want her to be queen of the cats now, because of the dark magic she used to save them from slavery. And because they disown her, their empire becomes corrupt and decadent and the creatures they've oppressed rise up against them and there's war and madness and disease for a thousand years so princess of the cats she tries to take her own life by letting a snake bite her because she blames herself for all this. But she can't die because she promised she was going to sing for the stars!"

Twilight paused as if waiting for Diamond to laugh. Then she coughed. "Well, it loses some of its effect in translation." Then her eyes burned white with power. "Why don't I just show it to you instead?"

Pinkie skipped along the path up to Fluttershy's cottage, skidding to a halt to listen to the calls of the various birds who lived just beyond Fluttershy's porch. She noticed their song was melancholier this evening than normal, but the observation did nothing to defuse her excitement. Still, she managed to contain the part of her which wanted to fling open the door and instead took a deep breath and lightly rapped on it.

She had just woken from the most relaxing nap and after finishing up the baking for tomorrow, she was ready to hear some good news. After her strange conversation with Maud, it would soothe her to hear that Fluttershy had finally asked out Rarity.

Realizing she'd been standing in front of the door for a whole minute without hearing response, she knocked again, this time unable to contain her enthusiasm. She couldn't wait to ask a million questions and then Fluttershy would smile shyly in that way she always did and answer barely any of them. But that was the point of asking a million questions anyway, if she wanted them all answered she wouldn't ask them so quickly.

Slowly, the door opened, a familiar bunny sticking his head out through the crack and fixing his beady black eyes on her with a hateful look. Pinkie frowned.

"Hey, Angel. What's wrong?" She asked, leaning down towards him.

He just pointed behind her and when she turned to look at what he was gesturing at, he slammed the door closed, causing her to jump.

"Hey! What's the big idea?!" She demanded, pounding on the door again.

"GO AWAY!" Wailed a voice from inside.

So. This was not going to be a happy visit after all.

For a moment, Pinkie floundered, unable to tell what to do. Then she narrowed her eyes and barreled through the front door, sending it flying off its hinges and disrupting the swarms of critters crowded around the prone pony in the center of the living space. As she watched Fluttershy's pink mane bob with each sob, she looked down to find Angel Bunny pushing on her left forehoof in an attempt to drive her out of the house.

"Fluttershy...what's wrong?" Pinkie asked, stepping over him.

"Ruh-Rarity...she found somepony else..." Fluttershy said. "It...it's better like this anyway..."

Pinkie looked at the mournful looks on the faces of Constance, Mr. Mousy and Harry. Then she stepped closer, wading through the sea of fuzzy faces to reach her friend. "No, it's not!! How could it possibly be better!?"

Fluttershy cast her tearful gaze at Pinkie. "You can't make somepony love you, Pinkie."

Pinkie's ears drooped. Then she straightened back up. "No! I'm not gonna just let you be unhappy for the rest of your life. You're my friend and it's my job-"

"Pinkie..." Fluttershy said, wiping her face with her hoof. "I really need to be alone right now..."

Pinkie's whole form slumped to the ground. "Oh. Right...I'm sorry..." Then she straightened for a second time. "Don't worry, Fluttershy, I'm gonna fix this! Cross my heart and hope to fly!"

"But it's not your fault..." Fluttershy began.

It was too late. Pinkie Pie had already bolted out of the cottage and disappeared into the night.

Fluttershy groaned and turned to the exhausted Angel. "She at least could have put the door back on her way out."

There was a general chittering of agreement from her animal friends.

Twilight hated using mind magic. First off, it was unethical, the kind of thing which her worst enemies had resorted to in their efforts to manipulate and enslave others.

Secondly, it was as uncomfortable an experience for the user as it was for their victim. When she reached out to calm another pony's heart, all the fear, despair and anger they felt ended up inside her, emptied into her soul like the contents of septic tank. And boy did Diamond Tiara have those things in spades. It was if someone had taken the book containing all her memories and re-written all the parts containing Sweetie and the other Crusaders. The whole thing had been gutted, parties never gone to, conversations never had. Expectations had faded, dreams left out to dry.

It was a terrible collaboration of loneliness and pride, and the longer Twilight stared into it, the deeper it bored back into her. Almost instinctually, she wanted to give back all the carefully cultivated cynicism and unanswered need. She wanted to let Diamond Tiara continue to wallow in bitterness and let it destroy her as it so clearly was on a path to doing so.

But deeper inside, she knew it was her duty to protect her subjects. And she knew that whatever creature had done this, it was not Diamond Tiara. Whatever had done this, had taken away all her memories of the friendships which had saved her, it was far more powerful and more sinister than she'd predicted.

As the hollowness came away with the unspooling of the psychic whip, Twilight did what she was best at. She flooded her with friendship, blasting down each clumsily constructed mental dam with no regard for restraint. She'd barely finished, and Diamond Tiara had already started to cry, from all love and hope pouring back into her.

Twilight didn't have the time nor the capacity to help with that. At the moment she was currently battling two very powerful curses attempting to take root in her brain. The first was like an annoying ditty, the kind which got stuck in your head and took up permanent residence. The second was like a beautiful song, but only beautiful because of how much misery it conveyed. And right now, they were both trying to deprive her of her friends, trying to strip away everything that made her whole. She fought back as hard as she could, but the magic was unfamiliar. It was like when Starlight had taken her Cutie Mark and when Sombra had invaded her mind, all rolled into one. It was old, older than possibly anything she'd yet encountered. It was a curse from a time before words, when lyrics and lines did the job just fine and when the shadows on the wall were as good as the real thing.

The songs were melding together, the chipperness of one only emphasizing the morbidity of the other. She was consumed by the simplicity of the two-folded ballad, quickly losing ground to each defiling note. There was only one way to counteract it, only one alkaline to the acidification forming grooves in her mind. Without another word to the sobbing mare in front of her, she flew back in the direction of the castle.

Spike swore that if he ever got his claws on Silver Spoon, well, he knew he was supposed to just be glad that Sweetie Belle was apparently fine. But sometimes he got so angry. It was something about being a dragon, he was sure of it. He had lived with ponies his whole life, but whatever mollifying effect the Elements of Harmony had on Ponykind, it didn't affect him the same way.

He knew why Princess Celestia had done away with dungeons, but it seemed wrong that Twilight was running around trying to help Silver Spoon when she'd caused so much harm.

He shook his head as he headed for bed early, having just spent the last hour ushering out the host of ponies who had come to Twilight's castle for some kind of comfort after today's events. He was halfway up the staircase when there was a thundering knock at the front door.

With a groan, he descended the staircase and jogged over to the door, as the knocking grew in speed and force. "Yeah, yeah, I'm coming." He grumbled, as he dragged open one of the massive crystal doors.

He was immediately grabbed by a claw and hoisted off the ground, so he was face to face with two burning red eyes.

"Do you think it's a good idea to keep the lord of all dragons waiting?" Ember snarled, her teeth poking out just beneath her snout.

Spike let out an audible gulp and shook his head.

Then Ember smiled. "So did I do it? Did I make a pony joke?"

Spike felt his heart return to a normal rate as he remembered his discussion with Ember on their last meeting, regarding the nature of "Pony humor." He'd been trying to explain that it involved no creature actually getting hurt, but merely the suggestion of something bad and then the relief that it wasn't.

"It was a little more terrifying than funny..." Spike pointed out, knowing Ember well enough to understand that any attempt to conceal the truth from her would only worsen her temper.

She snorted. "I should have declared war instead, that would have gotten you laughing." Gently, she set him down, stepping past him.

"You uh, you're early..." Spike said, rubbing his neck.

"Yup! Now we get to spend more time together." Ember said, glancing around the interior of the Castle of Friendship. "Twilight should really put up some battle trophies on the walls of this place."

"Ponies don't really do battles." Spike pointed out. He was still shorter than her by half, although he didn't have to crane his neck up at her like he once had.

"Oh c'mon! What about the time the Changelings invaded? Or you fought off that centaur? Or what about the Battle for Equestria?" Ember said, floating up above the pristine floor. "You don't give yourselves enough credit. Anyway, you can always just make up a battle. Dragons do it all the time. If we did half the stuff we boast about doing, well, we'd never get anything done."

"I'll be sure to suggest that to Twilight." Spike said, as he flew up to her.

Yeah, right. On the 32nd of Neveruary. He thought. "Ember, we weren't expecting you until tomorrow morning."

Ember frowned. "What, so I have to leave and come back now?"

"No! It's just...it's just that...well, in pony culture sometimes it's a little rude to go to a place before every creature is ready for you."

Ember just stared at him. "That doesn't make any sense! You told me it was rude to arrive after you're supposed to. This is the opposite, so it must be right."

Spike contemplated flinging himself through the nearest window, surely a safer option to trying to correct Ember. Then he took a deep breath and spoke as quickly as he could. "I know you didn't do this on purpose and I'm glad you are here, I'm not telling you this because I want you to feel bad, but because I don't want you to be offended in case any other creatures are surprised that you're here early."

Ember blinked, then snorted. "Well, then...thank you for being honest with me."

Spike opened one eye and seeing that he hadn't been cut to ribbons relaxed slightly.

Ember groaned. "Ugh, is it gonna be like this with Princess Cadence tomorrow? Is she gonna be mad at me for things I don't know about?"

Spike relaxed. "Oh, you don't have to worry about that. Cadence is pretty easy going as far as alicorns go..."

Ember smiled. "Good. Because once we get this...what did you call it again?"

"Trade agreement."

"Yeah. Once we get that out of the way, I wanna spend the rest of the day with you. The only time we get to see each other anymore is during a crisis." She said, her tail swinging behind her.

"Oh yeah? Well, there's a ton of carnival games set up for tomorrow's celebration." Spike said, flying closer and nudging her with his elbow. "There's even a game where you can show off how strong you are."

Ember smiled, then frowned. "You're having a celebration just for this trade agreement-thingy?"

Spike's eyes widened. "Uh, Twilight didn't tell you about Hearts and Hooves Day?"

Ember stared at him like he'd just claimed the moon was made of cheese.

Before he could elaborate there was another pounding at the door, this time more frantic and erratic. Ember raised an eyebrow, and Spike smiled. "Uh, let me just go get that."

No sooner had he flown over to the door and dragged it open, then a pink blur knocked him to the floor. "Spike! I know you're angry with me for some reason, and I don't really know why, but I do know that I told Fluttershy that Rarity liked her, and Rarity told Fluttershy that somepony else liked her and now Fluttershy is all sad and if I don't do something about it, she's going to transform into a hermit and never leave her cottage again and then the Everfree Forest is going to grow out of control because Fluttershy isn't there to reason with the monsters and then Ponyville real estate will rise exponentially because there will be less places to build houses and then the Cakes won't be able to afford for me to board with them and so I'll have to move back to the Rock Farm and then our friend group will dissolve and the next time our nation is existentially threatened you'll be like 'where is Pinkie Pie?' and then somepony else will be like 'Oh, she went back to the farm because she made Fluttershy unhappy and ruined Hearts and Hooves Day for everypony forever' and then you'll be like 'That's right. I'm so glad we gave the Element of Laughter to Snails, he's so much funnier than Pinkie Pie is.' and then I'll go to the grave with no hoof to hold and I don't even know what that means!!!"

Spike glared up into Pinkie's watery eyes. "Pinkie..." He rasped. "You're stepping on my larynx."

"Oh, sorry." Pinkie slunk off Spike, allowing him to sit up and rub his neck. "Oh, hey Ember!" She waved.

"Is this what Hearts and Hooves Day is about?" Ember asked, flying over to the two of them. "Jumping on a creature you know and telling them about all your insecurities?"

"More or less." Spike snarked. "Pinkie, I have no idea what you're talking about-" Seeing her open her mouth to repeat her entire diatribe, he lifted a claw. "-but, Twilight is dealing with an emergency right now, okay? I'm sure, that whatever is going on with you and Rarity...it can wait."

"What do you mean she's dealing with an emergency?" Ember asked, landing behind him and putting her claw on his shoulder.

Spike sighed. "There was a fight in the Ponyville Park today. One of Sweetie Belle's friends hurt her, and she ended up in the hospital."

Pinkie stared at him and then at her reflection in the marble floor of the castle. She overheard Ember say "Why didn't you say so earlier?" and Spike reply "I didn't want to spoil your visit, Ember. Twilight's upstairs dealing with it right now..."

"Sweetie Belle is in the hospital?" Pinkie repeated, looking up at both of them.

Spike sighed. "The doctors said she would be fine. If you would just wait-"

Pinkie was already dashing out of the still open door. Spike drew a claw across his face, before turning to look at Ember when she tapped him on the shoulder.

"I want to talk to Twilight." She said, arms folded.

Spike opened his mouth to disagree and she lifted a claw to silence him. "You and her have saved dragonkind more times than I can count. If there is an emergency, I owe it to your kingdom to help."

Twilight bent over Silver Spoon like a bat inspecting a particularly juicy piece of fruit. Wings splayed, eyes wide, she began to weave the incantation to repeat the spell. This was it, take a little out of Silver Spoon, put a little into Diamond Tiara. Ponies were just machines with the perfect adjustments they could always be fixed. Little toys to amuse her and-

No, no, that wasn't her. That was the emptiness she'd absorbed from Diamond Tiara. It was mixing with the hysteria she'd saved Filthy Rich and his wife from and fermenting into something atrocious.
disintegrating her sanity one memory at a time. It wanted her to believe that she'd never been chosen by Celestia. It wanted her to believe that Rainbow Dash's rainboom had never come and that she had been rejected by the School for Gifted Unicorns. It whispered of years struggling to cast the most basic spells, to prove that she was worthy of attention. It spoke at length about how she had never been foalsat by Cadence, instead left for uncounted afternoons in the charge of a filly who barely acknowledged her existence.

It was trying to take away Spike. Spike, her little brother, her number one assistant. It was trying to make her forget all her friends, all they had accomplished together, all the times they had been there for her. The song was growing more dissonant by the minute, the sweet seduction of its symphony replaced by atonal vociferation. It was making it impossible to think about anything other than the hole in her heart that it was boring.

It made it difficult to care when Silver Spoon started to scream. Not that the procedure was painful by any means, the spell to transmit emotions from one entity to another was as anodyne as having your hoof trimmed. But Twilight had seen enough of the world to know that too much of anything was a bad thing. Just as a hoarding dragon would raze a city over the loss of the smallest opal, so too would a pony drunk with love cry out at the return of sobriety. Still, she was too concentrated on drowning the cacophony with the discharge from Silver Spoon's spiritual abscess to simultaneously pacify the young mare. Instead, she merely held down her forelegs, allowing her hind legs to buck against her ribcage.

Even if her skin hadn't been harder than diamonds, Twilight wouldn't have noticed. It was impossible as well to pretend that the love suppurating from Silver Spoon's soul tasted bad. Not when it was so rich, so creamy. Not when it tasted of things beyond tasting, of poems exchanged through kisses, of testimonials given in looks. It reeked of trysts held in the dead of night, beneath the light of the laughing stars.

So that was what "true love" meant. It meant uncut. Undiluted. Like pure oxygen it was poison to the body. It carried with it a song unlike any which could be otherwise heard, as lethal as it was captivating. She understood then, how small minded she had always been. Before moving to Ponyville she had considered friendship to be beneath her. Until now, she'd held that same view of romance. A luxury which she might one day enjoy dipping a hoof into, but one which she could do without, and which acted only to distract from the necessities of life.

Now it was clear why Cadence had been granted her charge, a power just as monumental as the sun or the tides. Love was as universal and inevitable a force as gravity. It was the magnetism which unified enemies and the chemical reaction which perpetuated life.

And it would not be denied.

"Twilight, stop it! You're hurting her!"

She felt familiar claws trying to tug her off the bed. It was Spike. He didn't understand, how could he? She wasn't doing this just because it felt good. She wasn't hurting Silver Spoon, she was saving her from a fate worse than death. But she didn't have time to explain that, not right now.

She paused the incantation only long enough to telekinetically pin him to the far wall, careful not to hurt him just as she had been with Silver Spoon. They would all understand, once she was done.

Then a blur of blue scales slammed into her, and she was thrust out the nearest window.

Scootaloo had waited until her aunts were asleep to slip out of the house. Now she sat in the CMC clubhouse, her wings extended as far as they would go. With her eyes closed, she listened to the creaking of the tree and felt the cool night breeze run across her feathers.

It was moments like this when she was sure she could fly. If she just didn't open her eyes, if she just trusted in herself, she was sure that she'd be able to fly as good as any pony.

But it was an illusion. It had all been an illusion. She'd thought that she'd loved Apple Bloom. She'd thought that Diamond Tiara was a good pony.

She, of any pony, should have known better. There were some things which didn't change, no matter how hard you fought for them. That was life. And now, she'd ruined Sweetie Belle's life too. She tried to think about what Rainbow Dash had said, what her aunts had told her. But she knew they had only said that, because they didn't know that it had been her fault.

She closed her wings and allowed the night to spin around her. Maybe if she was lucky they would all forget she existed and she could stay here in the darkness, forever.

That was when she heard it. An eerily jaunty tune filling the night and closing in on her. Without lyrics, it recalled moments with her parents, before they'd become so busy. It was so rich with bittersweetness that she was temporarily overpowered by its timbre. Then she opened her eyes and moved to the front door, peeking out to try to find the source of the sound. She was surprised to find the musician right above her, draped over one of the branches of the tree, melting seamlessly into the white-speckled blackness of the night sky.

"Alas, a bird without wings,
Hath a more tragic fate
been named?"

Scootaloo stared up at the Abyssinian. She wanted to say something in retort, to ask what the cat woman was doing here. But the music...it was cutting through her mind like a hot knife through butter. It wasn't real music, real music wasn't capable of reaching such highs. No, it was better, it was the music that played in the heads of maestros when they composed. It was the idea of music, removed from the disappointments of physical limitations.

It was the soundtrack to the life that she would never share with Apple Bloom and she was useless in its warm grasp.

The Abyssinian landed in front of her, leaning down to curl a claw underneath her chin and gently turn her face up so that she was staring her in the eyes. She smiled and her whiskers captured Scootaloo's great welling tears as she leaned even closer to whisper into her ear.

"I knowest one, child.
Dishonor unrevenged."

Author's Note

I'd like to apologize to those following this story for how many times I have changed its tags. The truth is that when I start a story, I have only a vague notion of where it is going. It makes the writing process a lot more fun, but it leads to instances like these where the story shifts genres over the course of its creation.

5 - Be not afraid of greatness

"Rainbow Dash?"

"Yeah?"

"Rarity told me something...when she was talking 'bout the reason Sweetie Belle ran off."

"Uh...okay?"

"It's really important okay. So, don't you go laughing, just give me a straight answer, alright?"

"Um...Applejack, what is this about?"

Sigh. "Rainbow, I know you'd never do anything to hurt me. That's why I just want a straight answer from you...why'd Sweetie Belle say ya gave Rarity a love-note?"

Long pause.

"I-I didn't give it to her...I dropped off a love note, okay? But it wasn't from me alright? I mean, I was the one who dropped it off, but it the note was from another pony, alright? I mean...it was a different pony who was interested in Rarity, okay?"

"Uh-huh. And I don't suppose you'd be up for telling me who that was?"

"I promised not to." Rainbow shifted beneath the covers. "Anyway, why does it matter? You didn't really think I sent a love note to Rarity did you?"

"No. No, I didn't."

"Great..."

"..."

"Can we go to sleep now?"

Applejack sat up and switched on the lamp. "Why don't you wanna tell folks about us?"

Rainbow Dash groaned. "Do we have to talk about this right now?"

"Yes, Rainbow, I-I was really worried that you were...well, I don't rightly know what I was thinkin' but I wouldn't have been thinking anything if we weren't sneaking around like we was doin' something wrong." Applejack declared.

"Ah-ha! So, you did think I had the hots for Rarity!" Rainbow said, rejuvenated at the prospect that she wasn't the one who'd messed up this time.

"No! Well, I-"

"You liiiiied." Rainbow said with a grin. "Admit it!"

Applejack turned away. "Darn it all, Rainbow, of course I lied! I wouldn't have if you'd just come clean about why it is you don't want folks to know your sweet on me."

Rainbow sighed. "Applejack, we've talked about this a million times...it's been a really long day, can we just...discuss it in the morning?"

Applejack shifted on the edge of the bed; her face still turned away. "Yeah, Rainbow. Whatever you say."

Rainbow heard the familiar crack in Applejack's voice and sat up, climbing across the bed. "Hey, you didn't really think I would ever cheat on you, did you?!"

Applejack's face was tipped forward, her unbraided locks obscuring most of her features. She took a deep breath, then she snapped back to glower at Rainbow. "Well, what in tarnation was I supposed to think!?! You're out there galivanting all over Equestria. You gotta a line of fan-fillies a mile long just waiting to cozy up to ya. And you're going to places that it just ain't...convenient to bring a pony like me."

Rainbow recoiled slightly and then glared, lifting up off the bed. "So, what you think whenever you're not around I'm just smooching random ponies!? What kind of a jerk do you think I am?"

"Then why are we sneakin' around? If it's not so that you can fool 'round behind my back, why is it!? Why don'tchya just admit your ashamed of me and quit toying with my heart!!?"

Rainbow's eyes widened. "What are you talking about?!! I love you! You know that I love you!! And-and you love me too, don't you?"

Applejack turned away.

"Why-why isn't that enough!?" Rainbow demanded.

There was no answer, besides the hard coughing sound of that Rainbow had recognized as her lover trying once more to hold back tears.

Rainbow flew over to Applejack's side of the bed and reached out with one hoof. Then she stopped herself before she reached Applejack's sturdy, shaking shoulders. "I-I know I haven't exactly made things easy." She said, as she stared at the knots in the unstained floorboards. "But I'm not ashamed of you, okay!? I would never be ashamed of you...and-and if it takes me telling everypony how much you mean to me for you to realize that...then-then that's what I'm gonna do!"

With that, she threw open the window and rushed out into the night air.

Applejack stared at the far wall for a long time, listening to the sounds of the wind rustling through the orchard outside. Quit crying, she told herself. Ya ain't got no reason to cry now, even if she don't love you as much as you do her. But the voice in her head, the strict voice which had come to substitute for the voice of her mother from a very young age, was drowned out by the wave of sorrow finally bubbling to the surface. Eventually, unable to handle standing any longer, she lay down next the bed, pulling the covers off the mattress and biting them to stifle the overpowering scream forming in her throat.

Applejack had always prided herself on being strong, self-sufficient. She took care of others. That was the way things were. But right now, she didn't feel strong. She didn't feel self-sufficient. She felt like all the broken pieces she'd been holding onto had just come tumbling out of her stupid mouth and without Rainbow's help she'd never be able to get them back in working order.

Applejack was the most hard-working, patient and loving mare that Rainbow had ever met. If she thought that Rainbow didn't love her, then that meant Rainbow must have been doing a pretty bad job of making her feel loved.

She could still fix things, though. She'd tell Twilight to make some kind of public announcement about the two of them tomorrow and then all of Equestria would know the truth. Rainbow tried not to think about what her parents might say. They had always been so supportive, to the point of embarrassing her. But what if she suddenly lost that support? Or worse, what if it dampened? What if things turned awkward and estranged? No outraged, dramatic declarations but instead slow, uncomfortable greetings to replace the heart-warming moments she'd come to take for granted?

And what about her teammates? They'd made fun of her flying, the thing she was best at. Of course, they'd make fun of her for loving another mare. They might even decide they didn't like her as squad leader anymore, for although Equestria had long been accepting of all types of love, most ponies still expected for mares to fall in love with stallions and vice versa. More than once interviewers had popped the question "Who's the lucky stallion?" Some had even asked when she planned to retire and finally have foals.

No, no pony would sling mud at her door or attempt to have her taken off the Wonderbolts for being a "fillyfooler". But the adoration she'd come to enjoy, the unfiltered exaltation she come to take for granted...that too might wane, rather than disappear. Ponies wouldn't think "There goes Rainbow Dash, the greatest flyer in Equestria." They'd think "There goes Rainbow Dash, the greatest flyer in Equestria...and by the way did you hear that she was in love with another mare?"

As much as it pained her, Rainbow had to admit that she'd put more value in the applause of her fans than the comfort of the pony she wanted to spend her life with. The truth was that she wasn't ashamed of Applejack, she was ashamed of herself. But she wouldn't go one more second with Applejack thinking that somehow she wasn't good enough.

She was almost at Twilight's tower when she saw it. A splash of illumination beneath the full moon, a dazzling array of gemstones sent showering through the moonlight. And something else.

Twilight. Thrown off balance by whatever force had sent her hurtling out of her tower, she would be unable to get hold of her wings fast enough to avoid crashing into the ground. Rainbow intercepted her a few feet from the soil managing to dodge the little shiny bullets which the gemstones had been turned into on the upswing.

"What's going on?" She asked, as she let go of Twilight in mid-air once she had recovered.

Twilight gave her a strange look, her eyes burning with nameless fire. "Ember-" Was all she said, before a dragon crashed into her and drove her down into the ground below.

Rainbow blasted down after her, slamming her hooves into Ember's scaled hide. "Hey! Let go of her! Knock it off, right now!" Rainbow commanded.

Ember swung out with the back of her claw. Rainbow dodged the blow easily. She might not have been as strong as Ember was (not something she'd ever admit) but she was quicker.

Not quick enough though, to dodge Ember's tail.

It coiled around her foreleg and tossed her backward with humiliating ease. Rainbow had a split second to slow her momentum, but her collision with the hard crystal surface of the castle was still a painful one. There was a ringing in her skull and a stabbing in her left wing, but both left immediate focus as she slid free of the wall behind her and realized she was falling. Rainbow tried to glide to the ground, but the pain in her left wing prevented her from fully extending it and she heard Spike cry out, before she hit the ground. Her ankles twisted, her bad wing folded under her and her somersault ended with her shoulder cracking into the broadside of an oak.

"Rainbow Dash!" Spike landed beside her, slapping her awake with a strike of his claw.

Her eyes barely opened. Everything hurt or else was so far beyond hurting it had passed into numbness, which was somehow worse.

Ember was looking down at her in shock. She was used to wrestling with dragons twice her size. She probably had no idea that the bones in the wings of a pegasus were hollow and no conception that the flight of other intelligent creatures might be propelled by something more than magic. She actually looked ready to dive down and help before the blast of purple light engulfed sent her crashing through the front doors of the Castle of Friendship. As smoke bellowed from the producing Ember-shaped hole, Twilight stood up, shaking dirt off her wings, and again her eyes gleamed yet brighter.

A pillar of blue flame erupted from the entrance before Rainbow could point the detail out to Spike and she was only able a to mumble incoherently he dragged her out of incineration range.

Rainbow's feathers curled at the ambient heat as she watched Twilight become a small black silhouette against the azure blaze. Then Ember paused the skin-searing onslaught to take a breath and the last thing Rainbow saw before passing out was Twilight charging horn first through the charred remains of the castle doors.

Diamond Tiara had only been sobbing for a minute before she felt hooves picking her up and carrying her back to the safety of the house. Then she awoke to find herself on the living room sofa, wrapped in a blanket, perched between her parents. They both looked slightly disheveled and more than a little fatigued, but they were also both smiling at her genuinely for the first time in over 24 hours.

"Oh, thank goodness you're alright!" Spoiled said, wrapping her hooves around her grown daughter and trying to hug away the trauma.

"We were afraid...well, thank the stars that Princess Twilight saved us from that awful spell." Filthy said, rubbing the side of his head. "I'm afraid your mother and I don't fully recall what day it is but...did that cat-thing do anything to you?"

"I tell you right now if I ever get my hooves on her, she'll wish she was dealing with a pack of diamond dogs!" Spoiled hissed.

Filthy's expression darkened, but he raised a hoof to quiet her and Spoiled turned to look back at their daughter. Diamond's mouth was open but her attempts to form words were being stalled by the trickling flow of memory. Her eyes were wide, and she gaped like a fish as their faces crinkled with worry.

When she finally spoke, it was preceded by a sharp intake as if surfacing after a long dive. "She...she told me that she'd make me forget Swuh-Sweetie Belle...I...I hated knowing that she didn't...love me." Diamond shrank in. "But forgetting her...it made me forget about all my friends...about e-everything that's important...I...I...ohhhhh..."

She turned to look at her father. "Daddy, Sweetie Belle is in the hospital and everypony thinks that Silver Spoon lost her mind and it's all because of me!"

"No! No, no, listen, none of this is your fault." Filthy insisted. "Your mother and I should have known better than to invite a strange musician in for brunch."

"Besides," Spoiled said, still holding onto Diamond's foreleg almost painfully. "Princess Twilight obviously has the situation under control. I'm sure she'll protect your friends from whatever is going on and you'll be able to make it up with them after a good night's rest."

Diamond looked between them and then shook her head. "No, I...I have to go...I have to find Silver Spoon."

Filthy backed up to the door. "I-I don't think that's a very wise idea. As your mother said, I'm sure the princess is more than capable of handling the situation."

"Dad, I did something terrible and...and Silver Spoon...she-she needs me, okay? All my friends do...I...I have to make things right!"

"No, no, please Diamond..." Spoiled grabbed her. "It's not safe out there! Please, stay here and let us protect you."

Diamond looked between them and then sighed and nodded. Her father relaxed his stance. Then she yanked herself out of her mother's grasp and dove toward the dining room. She landed atop the table and then went flying out through the dining room window, spraying shards of glass across the recently planted begonias beyond.

"I'll be back, I promise!!" She called, staring back through the broken glass at the shocked expressions on her parents' faces. Then she was rushing down the street in the direction of the Castle of Friendship. Twilight was clearly (but hopefully temporarily) out of her gourd. But she had known to track Bard's magic back to Diamond and her family which meant she had probably talked to Silver Spoon which meant she might know where Silver Spoon was.

Diamond was trying to formulate how exactly she was going to convince the immortal and temporarily insane alicorn to divulge Silver Spoon's location, when she turned a corner and almost ran headfirst into Apple Bloom.

"Oh...you." Diamond said.

Apple Bloom stared at her and then at the reflection of the streetlamps on the cobblestones. Then she sprung forward, grabbing Diamond Tiara and shoving her up against the nearest building.

"Why?! Why'd you say them things? What'd any of us ever do to you!?" Apple Bloom demanded.

Diamond Tiara squirmed beneath her grasp. "Please, Apple Bloom, I'm sorry for everything, but that wasn't me! I-I was being mind controlled, alright? But I'm trying to fix it! Please, you have to let me go before it's too late!!"

Apple Bloom ground her teeth together. "How dumb do you think I am? Fine, Diamond! What kinda creature made you say those things about Scootaloo's wings!? Well!? Spit it out!"

Diamond slumped against the wall behind. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you." Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath in preparation.

Apple Bloom's grip slackened, but her voice remained deep and dangerous. "Well for your sake, I better."

When both polite requests and raw force failed, Ponyville's nurses gave up on coercing Rarity into leaving her little sister's side. It was only the call of nature which eventually drew Rarity from of the hospital room, although only after making Nurse Snowheart promise she wouldn't lock the door before Rarity's return.

Rarity had just gotten back from the powder room and was struggling not to think about her disheveled appearance in the sink mirror, when she saw Pinkie Pie standing in waiting area, the strings of a dozen heart-shaped balloons wrapped around both front hooves and a glitter coated box resting on her back.

The wrapping on the box was familiar, but Rarity had been awake for far too long to place exactly how at just this moment.

Pinkie caught her eye and waved one string-bound hoof. Still, there was more desperation than joy in the smile she gave and Rarity instinctively approached with caution.

"Oh, hey Rarity..." Pinkie's voice was lower than normal too. And while Rarity would normally be overjoyed that Pinkie might have finally developed an indoor voice, she was startled by the timing of its deployment. "I-I made a get-well present for Sweetie Belle!" She lifted her hoof again. "But Nurse Redheart said she was asleep."

Rarity thanked her lucky stars that Redheart had interceded before Pinkie woke up Sweetie and the rest of the wing with a get-well-soon-kazoo-concert. "Yes, well...I'm not sure your personal brand of reassurance would be appreciated at just this moment. But thank you for coming anyway." She brightened up, keen to change the subject and hopefully reinvigorate Pinkie a little. "Have you seen Fluttershy by any chance? Everypony else has come by to give their support and well, I'm sure she's very busy looking after the sanctuary but...well, I sort of ran out on her earlier and I wanted to apologize."

Pinkie seemed to sink toward the floor. "That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about. IEarlier today I walked in on Fluttershy talking about her special somepony but now her special somepony is interested in some other pony and she's all sad and it's my fault because I told her to act on her feelings!"

Rarity summoned her kindest smile and put her hoof on Pinkie's chin. "Oh, darling, I'm sure it's not that bad. I know Fluttershy is sensitive to these sorts of things, but I'm sure we can find a million stallions to set her up with if need be. In any case, it's not your fault. These kinds of things just happen in love sometimes."

Pinkie was always the one giving the hugs and nose bumps and getting into everypony's personal space, but now she shied from Rarity's touch.

"That's not it." Pinkie said. "You're Fluttershy's special somepony!"

If a pin had dropped, it could have been heard rolling across the recently waxed floors of the hospital in the moments which followed. Of course, silence was always a luxury when Pinkie was nearby and a distressed Pinkie was even more prone to outbursts.

"I told her you weren't happy because you didn't have somepony for tomorrow's dance. I thought you two could go together. But you've found somepony else and now she's miserable."

Rarity stared at Pinkie's forlorn expression not with unbelief but with an almost total lack of registration. While her face continued to smile long after the light had died in her eyes, her mind whirled, a hurricane of thought struggling to cohere into a meaningful reaction.

Eventually, she regained operation of her lips and after licking them delicately asked. "Fluttershy, is in love...with me?"

Pinkie nodded; her eyes still downcast.

"With...me?" Rarity repeated, her own voice elevating in pitch and volume. A thousand tiny moments were suddenly fitting together, a puzzle piece she'd never noticed was missing now slotting perfectly into place.

Pinkie nodded again. "I just want you two to be happy. But I don't know anything about romance, Rarity. I thought if you just loved some creature enough, they would love you back...I guess I have a lot to learn."

"Thou art too unkind;
Without thine eager distraction
Mine purpose could ne'er so easily be concealed."

Both ponies turned to stare at the figure who had appeared in the entryway. Though she stood on two feet, she was hunched down to nearly pony height. And as all while she scuttled across the floor, she noodled lightly on the strings of her pale-instrument. Rarity's eyes were drawn not to the lute though, but to the cloak which the Abyssinian wore. It was not only impossibly dark, but thin as well. It seemed to melt into the stranger's fur, and the arrangement of stars on it mapped not the night sky as ponies knew it, but some older and intangibly sinister selection of constellations.

"Excuse me, but music is strictly prohibited this late at night." Nurse Redheart hissed, marching up to the Abyssinian.

The cat's smile fell. "Thou art beneath notice,
Unworthy of even mine
Most inelegant irony."

With that, she plucked a string and Redheart swayed as if drowsy, before collapsing at the foot of her desk. Rarity's horn flared and she stepped in front of Pinkie, extending her forelegs to either side.

"Stay away from us, whoever you are! I'm warning you!" She ordered.

The cat was staring at Pinkie though, with something that resembled joy, if filtered through years of the most slime-soaked deprivation. Briefly, her eyes flickered to Rarity, and her laughter was wet with the most overpowering of spirits and spiked with the most cutthroat thirsts.

Rarity used her magic to pick up a nearby flower and vase. It wounded her to destroy such a beautiful arrangement, but the situation necessitated violence. She was paused though, when she noticed the look on Pinkie's face. Never had the pink pony seemed so pale beneath her coat, nor had she shuddered so at the sight of a monster in all their time together. Just as the cat had been looking at Pinkie like a fat fish in her food bowl, so too was Pinkie staring intently not at the creature, but through her, at something beyond the scope of Rarity's view.

"Darling? Are you alright?"

Pinkie's lip trembled and the glittering present on her back slid to the floor with a wet splat, confirming Rarity's suspicions it was cake. Rarity realized at that moment, that the glitter on the box was the same as that which was used on the dress her "secret admirer" had sent her. She didn't have time to process this revelation though, because the music which the cat woman was playing had begun to worm its way into her mind.

It was so pretty...so light and flowing. It reminded her of the silly songs she sang with her mother, before she got her cutie mark, before she'd resolved to break free of her humble circumstances. But it also contained within it the most delicate of classical compositions, the like of which Canterlot's most ingenious melodists would never achieve.

Suddenly the fluffy clouds of love had filled the atmosphere of Rarity's mind, crowding out all other thought and suffocating her aggression beneath a soft pink mist. Fluttershy. She was so beautiful, so soft. Everything about her was soft. Her sleek mane and pronounced tail. Her fuzzy yellow hide, somehow unspoiled by hours of working with the most unkempt of beasts. And so sweet smelling. Rarity had theorized in the past that the only reason Fluttershy didn't reek from the droppings of the often less than cleanly residents of her home was because she perfumed herself. But she realized now that Fluttershy wouldn't need to supplement her own redolence, any more than she needed to comb her mane. She wasn't like Rarity. She didn't need to fake beauty, she was naturally imbued with it, as gentle and graceful as a mare had ever been. Quiet and demure and incapable of committing the gaffes which had plagued Rarity's existence. And kind, so unbearably kind. Rarity had felt that kindness of course, she had felt it intermingling with her soul whenever they channeled the Elements of Harmony.

Now she longed to feel it again, to not just know Fluttershy's company but to dwell within her breast in a soft and warm place close her heart. And to wait horn and hoof on her like the princess she clearly was. Oh Fluttershy, how had Rarity ever imagined any pony else filling the hole in her life? With a dazed smile she let go of the vase, not even noticing the crash of shattered porcelain. She nodded briefly to the panicking Pinkie Pie and stepped over the snoring Redheart on her way out.

She looked only once into the grinning black hole eyes of the cat and mumbled something like an apology for her earlier rudeness. She meant to thank the cat as well, for reminding her of how in love she had always been with Fluttershy, but the words were quite difficult at the moment, and she was too antsy to get to Fluttershy's cottage and make her love known to dally. Still, she resolved to send some kind of gift as means of thank you (perhaps a new cloak, one that didn't swirl and squirm in such a distracting manner) as she stumbled by, too lovesick to walk straight.

"Stop it!" Pinkie demanded, putting her hooves to her ears to block out the music, even though she knew it had no effect on her. "Stop it right now! Leave her alone!"

The cat creature laughed. But there was nothing wholesome about the sound. "Mine crown for any who names
a more cavalier organ than the heart.
Worry not for thy plaything, tis
not her which draws mine courtship."

"You don't belong here!" Pinkie insisted. "I don't know how you got here or where you came from, but you don't belong!" So, just go back wherever you came from and leave me and my friends alone!"

"Make good on thy threat
And in turn I promise,
Not a drop of blood nor a pound of flesh
Shall conclude mine play.
For pain is as temporary as life.
But art is forever."

"This isn't funny!" Pinkie persevered. "You-you don't belong here!! Please, I don't want to hurt you. Just go back the way you came and let us all be happy! That's the way things are supposed to be!"

"Perceptive, thou art indeed.
Though once I played
In the sacred radiance,
I was denuded to the mysteries of Hecate
And beknighted by the muses themselves,
That mine playing might go unobstructed.
Now I wield the strings of fate,
As if I were at Hades' side.
The Mistress of Thanatos,
Bard, the carrion bride." She paused to extend one of her claws, playing a sharp note on the lute which incited a chorus of nightmarish shrieks not only from Redheart but from the various other nurses throughout the building whom she'd no doubt forced to sleep. "But play not at blindness.
Canst thou not see as I?
Is not thine sight unimpeded
By walls forth?
Perhaps thou thought
Thyself the sole oracle of this world.
But we art gemini, thou bright and boorish,
I dark and sublime.
Together we see this facade.
A shadow play on a cave wall,
Its contents props not actors,
Puppets moved by unseen hands.
Still art we not both jesters?
And do we not make jest of this,
Our most contemptuous of circumstances?
Do we not strive both to make our audience laugh?"

"I'm not like you!" Pinkie insisted. "I would never make somepony feel bad just because I'm bored or just to make someone happy!" Pinkie insisted. "And my friends aren't props! They're PONIES!! And-and just because they don't know everything doesn't mean that their stupid either." Her glare lowered. "Now, you have to leave! If Twilight finds you, then she'll realize the truth and then...then she'll never be able to be happy again!"

Bard laughed again and the sound was even more raucous than before. "Worry not, thy sparkling highness
Has been indisposed.
Mine plans art impervious for
This show is not mine first.
Hast thou not heard tell of the Mad Prince Piglet?
Or the Merchant of Venison?
I take pride in mine orchestrations
And they will ne'er be silenced by haughty nobility
On this or any night."

Pinkie's eyes widened. "You did something to Twilight?!" She launched forward, slamming into Bard hard enough to throw her through the nearest wall. The Abyssinian wasn't pushed through the wood and plaster though like she should have been. Instead, she pooled against the pastel surface like an oil slick and re-solidified with a quiver of arcane slime.

With her hooves on the edge of Bard's coat, Pinkie gritted her teeth. "Get rid of it!! Whatever you did to Rarity and Twilight and anypony else, take it away RIGHT NOW!!"

Bard laughed and the stars on her cloak twinkled and danced. "Amusing though I find thy intimidations,
Mine calling is beyond this simple hamlet.
Join mine troupe and thy friend's will returns,
Else these violent delights
Bring murderess ends."

Pinkie stared up at Bard's predatory grin. Then another discordant note on the bone lute was plucked and another rush of nightmare pierced the veil of sleep which had overcome Redheart and her fellow nurses. This time their screams should have been loud enough to rouse one another, along with every other creature in the hospital.

But they did not.

Pinkie lowered her hooves to the floor. "So, you're saying if I go with you and join your band...you'll leave all my friends alone?"

Bard nodded.

Pinkie tried to think of some way out of this, some way to trick the slime cat monster into letting her not have to leave her home and all her friends. But strategy had never been her strong suit. Just as she could see things no other pony could, she also knew things they did not. And she knew that Bard had said "Murderess" not "murderous", which meant that she was planning to make Twilight do something truly unforgivable, to ruin the placid ignorance of Equestria with the inconsolable horror of bloodshed.

Twilight would never recover. She would blame herself forever. Pinkie couldn't let that happen. She couldn't let her friends be turned into monsters because she was too selfish to give them up.

"Thy hour runs short,
How doest thy answer?"

When, halfway through Diamond Tiara's attempted explanation, Apple Bloom realized that what she was describing was too stupid for her to make up, the two hurried in the direction of the Castle of Friendship. They were both shocked by the all-out brawl between Twilight and Ember, which had turned the first floor of the castle into architectural Swiss cheese. Still, they hurried up the half-destroyed staircase within, eager to save their friend before the castle collapsed around her.

They were both relieved to find Silver Spoon seemingly returned to her normal self, albeit intensely distressed at the memory of her most recent actions. They were less enthusiastic about it when Scootaloo appeared from behind the curtains with a mad gleam in her eyes and leaped in Silver Spoon's direction with a bread knife in one hoof.

It was a murder attempt so ludicrously dramatic that it would have been worthy of derision had they seen it in a play. But in real life, it was nothing short of terrifying.

Even with every ounce of magical strength they could summon, it still took both of them to keep Scootaloo's toned but slight form restrained, for she was wild with the strength of vengeance and bucked and squirmed against their grips even as she shouted at Silver Spoon's paralyzed, tear-streaked form.

"I'm going to get you for this!!" Scootaloo declared. "You can hide behind as many ponies as you like, Silver Spoon...I'll find you! I won't let you get away with what you did to Sweetie!"

Both Diamond Tiara and Apple Bloom had tears in their eyes as they tried to calm her. Never before had a pony exhibited such undivided bloodthirstiness in their presence and the only thing which kept them restraining was the remembrance of the pony who Scootaloo had once been and the knowledge of the guilt she would surely feel from her actions when she came to her senses.

"Puh-please Scootaloo!" Diamond Tiara begged. "It's not you, it's the music. Please, you have to fight it! This isn't you anymore than it was her that attacked Sweetie. Please, please fight it. I know you are stronger than I am, and you are stronger than this spell."

"She's right, Scoots! Don't let this evil thing control you no more." Apple Bloom said, pressing her face into Scootaloo's mohawk. "I'm sorry I can't love ya like you love me, but it ain't cause there's anything wrong with you. It's cause there's something wrong with me...I...I'm sorry Scootaloo, but Rainbow Dash loves my sister. If'n you and I got together it'd be wrong...but it's more than that..."

Apple Bloom paused and stared at Silver Spoon. Then she closed her eyes and continued.

"I...I can't love no pony, Scoots. I can't fall in love like you and Sweetie. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry...but that don't mean I ain't your friend! And I'll spend the rest of my life with you if'n that's what you want...just as long as you snap out of it...just as long as I get my friend back!!"

The thrashing of Scootaloo's form slowed and then she stilled beneath their grasps, the rage clearing from her beautiful purple eyes. Apple Bloom's iron grasp transitioned into a tight hug and Diamond Tiara released the pegasus she had once called friend, moving instead to Silver Spoon's side and gently rubbing off her ruined make-up with her hoof.

Scootaloo's eyes swam with tears and she slowly returned Apple Bloom's affection with a light stroking of her mane. Still her eyes were drawn to Diamond Tiara and she narrowed them in undisguised hatred. Then she wrapped her hooves around Apple Bloom and the two leaned into each other, each crying and each reassuring one another that the nightmare was over.

And that everything would be alright.

"How dare you!?" Twilight shouted, as she landed beside the pile of rubble Ember was half buried in. "How DARE you!?!?"

Using her horn, she tossed Ember's still recovering form into a nearby pillar, driving her three inches into the stone before she allowed her to fall to the now soot-stained floor.

"You come into my castle. You break into my room. You try to stop me from helping one of my little ponies!" Twilight marched over, rolling Ember over with a kick of her hoof. "You attack me! You almost kill one of my friends!!" She snarled down at the groaning dragon form currently trying to escape the hoof planted on her wing. "And you challenge my little brother, the dragon I raised, to a duel!? Did you think I would let you take him away from me?! Did you think I'd stand by while you rip him to pieces!?"

Ember raised her eyes to look up at Twilight, too dazed from the last blow to comprehend anything her opponent was yelling at her.

Twilight snarled. One last blast of magic would do it.Deep within, one last shred of sanity screamed for her to regain control of herself. But the music was too loud, it's swell too overpowering. All the acrimony and obsession she'd absorbed had fomented into the worst of both worlds, an infernal torrent anger and undying love which refused to be reined.

Now it was driving her to perpetuate this meaningless violence. It was dancing her to the cliffs of murder, and she was powerless to slow herself down.

"Spike will make a better Dragon Lord than you ever did." She heard herself saying. Then she lifted her horn, ready to complete the incantation.

"Twilight, stop!!" It was Spike. He'd thrown himself atop Ember's crumpled form. He was crying, begging her not to do this, telling her that this wasn't who she was.

She ripped him free of his would-be mate with her telekinesis. He didn't understand the royal imperative. He had no idea of the responsibilities she'd accepted when she became ruler of Equestria, the responsibilities to put down dishonorable creatures like the one before her.

No, no this was wrong! Ember was her friend; this was all just a misunderstanding! Listen to Spike! Don't do this!

But her body wouldn't listen to reason, moved only by the fever pitch of emotion. And Twilight suddenly knew the evil which had been plotted right under her nose. The creature who had crafted these curses had known she would seek out her subjects and attempt to heal them. It had known that the laughter and the love and the loathing would erode her composure until there was nothing left but ill-will.

It was a beautiful plan, the perfect way to doom Equestria without ever having to get your hooves dirty. The dragons would turn Twilight's kingdom to cinders in retribution for Ember's murder and she'd be incapable of stopping them, overwhelmed with the guilt of what she had done.

She clawed at the inside of her own skin, desperate to end the spell coalescing around her horn.

Then as suddenly as it had started, the music stopped. Exhaustion washed over her and logic and dignity limped back into view at last. They were trailed closely by regret, crawling up out of the depths of her core to occupy the space of her fast-dissipating turmoil. With a groan, she muttered the beginnings of what had to be the paltriest apology in the history of pony and dragon relations, before fainting.

The sun was coming up and Rarity was almost to the cottage. Almost to Fluttershy. Why had Rarity ever wanted to live in a place as cluttered and cold as her boutique when a place as warm and inviting this one awaited her?" Out here, at the edge of town, where the bird song was unimpeded by the bark of society, out here, where the stars could be seen in all their glory each night.

And shared, shared with a pony that brought shame to theirs by comparison. Oh, how had she lived in such remote circumstance when love everlasting lurked just around the corner? When the perfect pony to dance with, to lay beside at the end of a long day of sewing?

She paused at the edge of the gate, breathing in the fruits of Fluttershy's labor. She was as hard a worker as any of them, that was for sure. And so much more compassionate than any high society pony ever could be. She was the answer to all the questions which had dogged Rarity, the answer that was waiting for her to sweep in and sweep her off her hooves.

Using her horn to unlock the gate, Rarity lifted a hoof to trot up the path to Fluttershy's home. Then she felt something. Something acrid as stomach bile rising up her throat and filling her mouth. Dread.

She had abandoned her little sister at the hospital. No, it was worse than that. She had left Pinkie alone with that...that...thing. While she was drooling over Fluttershy, one of her best friends was facing unknown dangers.

She looked briefly at Fluttershy's cabin, wondering if she should alert her to the issue. Then she shook her head. There was not a moment to lose. Besides, Rarity had to get a couple things from her boutique before she could confront the monster responsible for all this madness.

"Don't worry, Pinkie," Rarity said, as she teleported away. "I'm coming."

Pinkie had been very specific about the ramifications of her deal with Bard. Not only would the cavorting cat end the spell she'd cast on her friends, but she had to swear (on the stars above), that she wouldn't cast a spell on any of them for as long as she lived. Because the list of ponies who could be considered Pinkie's friends included half of Equestria it meant that it would probably be at least another century before Bard could stir up trouble in the nation again.

But Bard had been more than happy to indulge Pinkie, explaining with well-refined pretentiousness that her plan had never been to bring an end to Pinkie's friends but merely contrive a scenario in which Pinkie would have no choice but to abandon them.

Now she strummed to herself as they marched to the edge of the Everfree Forest, humming a tune which Pinkie might have actually enjoyed listening to if the circumstances been different.

Hoping to make her companion regret the deal they'd just made, Pinkie pulled herself out of the overwhelming loss looming over her and tried to conjure some of her normal energy. "So, am I gonna have to wear a cloak and play a lute and talk really weirdly like you do?"

Bard smiled secretly like a father hiding his foals' Hearts and Hooves Presents. Then she stopped in front of a particularly decrepit tree and drew the terminus of her lute through the air as if making a perfect incision. Where she did, reality split, then parted like curtains in the wind. And beyond...beyond lay a stage of stone, where figures without form writhed in an endless reproduction of the ecstasies of agony.

And beyond them, beyond them lay an audience. A billion quadrillion stars hung in the air, watching and gloating over each tragedy with uncontained glee. Pinkie understood then, when she saw Bard's patrons. Bard was not an Abyssinian anymore. Bard was not even really a creature, the way that even Discord could be described to be a creature.

Bard was merely a conduit for those things beyond, those things which gleamed with millions of centuries of malice, conniving always to reweave fate in the darkness beyond pony sight, beyond even the sight of Luna and her sister and making themselves known in the cruelest and most unpredictable ways. They were older than ponykind, older indeed than anything which could be said to be living.

And Bard was their herald, her being made void by millennia of servitude. That was the reason why she glinted like she did, why she melted into every shadow she touched. She was not even truly on this realm. Just a stain of ink running down the page of the almighty. A touch of celestial sludge left behind to convey the screeching intent of her benefactors.

And oh, how they screeched. They chattered in deafening unison, each star burning and crackling a million degrees a piece for Bard's "plays". Each drunk on the torment of the souls immortalized in tragedy by her interventions and each thirsting for the next production. They were the most vile, voyeuristic things which Pinkie had ever encountered and if her intuition was correct, she would spend her days entertaining them, until the day their light finally dimmed, and the universe at last grew cold.

Pinkie took a shaky breath. It was worth it, if the little patch of unconditional love that her friends called home remained unmolested by their depraved designs.

She took a step towards the portal, her eyes closed. Maybe she would go nutso like Bard. Then at least she wouldn't have to think about where she had come from or what she'd lost. Maybe after the first trillion years it wouldn't be so bad.

There was a flash of bright blue light and suddenly a snarling unicorn was charging over to her and impaling Bard on her horn. Bard laughed as Rarity's horn ripped free, half coated in that same unearthly ooze which had emitted when Pinkie slammed into her.

"What are you doing!?" Pinkie asked, grabbing Rarity and pulling her away from the hungering rift in reality.

"Protecting my friends. And my sister!" Rarity said, tearing free of Pinkie's grasp and charging once more at the burbling monstrosity seeping free of Bard's feline sillouhette.

This time as she stabbed herself into Bard, her magic flared. From her saddlebag poured hundreds of needles, each ripping through the permeable surface of Bard's cloak/skin and sending droplets of noxious sludge splattering across the ground. They were joined by the silver strings of Bard's instrument, ripped from the bone lute with a creaking *SNAP!* and sent latticing through Bard's midsection in a display that would have been violent had the astral horror contained bones, blood, flesh or mortality.

Stepping backwards, Rarity tossed the bundle of slime-encrusted needles and ruined lute strings through the hole in the fabric of existence as if it were a trash disposal and removed from her saddlebags a large jar, which she began scraping the remaining bits of Bard-gunk into.

"I was planning to use this to hold all the thank you letters I usually get from clients around this time of year." Rarity revealed, as she sealed the lid and tied a bow over it to make sure it was shut. Then she stuffed the remains into her saddlebag and turned to Pinkie without paying the slightest bit of attention to the sextillion enraged stars currently screeching from beyond the yawning portal. "Come along, I expect Twilight will want to lock this thing up in Tartarus before it causes any further mischief."

Pinkie wondered briefly if she was even capable of seeing the squirming within the jar or even the portal beside them. Or maybe Rarity was just so awesome that she didn't feel the need to acknowledge either after everything else that had happened today.

Hesitating, Pinkie reached out toward the portal and in the same manner in which Bard had opened it, she zipped it shut, leaving the temper tantrum of the unholy stars to go unheard. She wondered briefly, why it was that she could do this, why it was that she could see the audience and the stage directions and the script just as Bard had, and why she could manipulate reality in the same way which Bard could, slithering between spaces and folding everything between as if it were merely paper.

But she didn't wonder long. She was too relieved to not be trapped in an incomprehensible void for the rest of eternity, performing a painfully predictable and tediously lengthy play for an altogether ungrateful audience.

"After we make sure the rest of the girls are alright, we should have a spa day." Rarity said, carefully removing a piece of Bard from her hair. "Obviously, we can't go to the dance tonight looking like this."

Pinkie glanced at the stains currently clinging to her and Rarity's coats and gasped. "I totally forgot about the dance!"

"Don't worry, darling. I'm confident we'll have just enough time to get ready." Rarity's eyes gleamed at the promise of scented soap and massage chairs, and even more tantalizingly, gossip. "And then you can tell me all about your conversation with Fluttershy and why it is you sent me that wonderful dress!"

Author's Note

This whole story has been rough. It's tested the limits of my abilities to write different perspectives and to tie story threads together. But it was all worth it for this chapter!

6 - Journeys end in lovers

Twilight awoke to find herself in bed, the covers pulled tightly over her and Cadence sitting on a nearby stool.

"Wha-where am I? What happened to Rainbow Dash and Ember?!" Twilight tried to sit up and but immediately lay back down to avoid being sick in front of her sister-in-law.

"You're in your bedroom in the castle, Twilight. Spike had to take Ember to the hospital and I thought it best that the two of you have some time apart after all that's happened."

"Cadence, I didn't...I didn't mean-"

"I know, Twilight. I know you well enough to know that violence is not in your nature. But also, your friends explained everything to me. They wanted to be here with you, even Rainbow Dash. But I figured you'd need some time alone as well." Cadence said with a wink.

Twilight shuddered. "I-I failed...it's my job to make sure everypony is safe, Cadence and I didn't just not make sure they were safe...I...I put everypony in danger."

Cadence sighed and her horn began to project a soothing blue light. The tide of bile rising in Twilight's throat subsided and the constriction around her lungs loosened. "Twilight, when you and your friends weren't able to get to the Elements of Harmony to defeat Chrysalis, when it was me and your brother's love which repelled her army, was that a failure? What about when you couldn't bring the Crystal Heart to me and Spike had to do it for you? Did you fail then?"

Twilight looked down at her lap uncertainly.

"Celestia picked you and your friends to protect the kingdom because she knew that she wouldn't be able to do it alone. Being the princess of Equestria doesn't mean relying on your own strength, it means relying on the strength of your subjects." Cadence smiled. "From what I hear, you saved at least four ponies from losing their minds. If that isn't a success, I don't know what is." She leaned closer and lowered her voice. "And if we can forgive Luna for trying to block out the sun, and Discord for almost destroying Equestria, twice, then I think we can forgive you for almost starting a war with dragonkind."

With that, she slid off the stool. "Now, you need to get some rest. I will deal with Ember and every creature else for a little while."

Twilight's guilt didn't seem to fully abate but she nodded, too tired and too comfy thanks to Cadence's enchantment to refuse a chance for more rest.

As she exited the room, Cadence wove another spell over it, one which Twilight had used not too long ago to make sure that Silver Spoon's rest would remain uninterrupted. Then she took a deep breath. It would take every ounce of diplomatic training she had to smooth things over in the next few hours.

It was turning out to be a very long Hearts and Hooves Day.

"If I ever get my hooves on that dragon-!" Applejack began.

Rainbow laughed and reached out and grabbed Applejack's hoof. "Relax. Tenderheart said I'd be back up in the air in a few weeks."

"She coulda killed you, Rainbow!" Applejack insisted.

Rainbow smiled. "You're so cute when you're worrying about everypony."

Applejack looked away. "It wouldn'ta happened if I hadn't kicked ya out."

"Hey. None of this is your fault, okay?" Rainbow said, wincing as she leaned further forward to touch Applejack's cheek. "And you didn't kick me out. I left."

"I'm sorry for all the stuff I said last night." Applejack began. "I shoulda been honest with you about not liking how often you were away. I shoulda been honest I was afraid of losing ya."

"I don't blame you." Rainbow said, lowering her second hoof. "I've been a pretty lousy marefriend all things considered." She looked back at Applejack. "I've never been ashamed of you...I was too busy worrying about what other ponies think, to realize I was hurting you."

"I shoulda told you I was hurtin'." Applejack said, looking down. "I'm just glad I didn't lose ya." With that, she leaned closer and tightening her grip on Rainbow's hoof as she nuzzled her neck.

Rainbow's expression softened and she closed her eyes as she rubbed her chin against the soft blonde mane of what had to be the best marefriend in the world.

The door to the hospital room opened then and she had to fight the instinct to pull away from Applejack and cover up the affection with some lame excuse. It was Scootaloo, with Tank under one hoof. She blushed at the sight of the two of them but then gave Rainbow a reassuring smile, mirrored by Tank's good natured one.

It was Applejack's turn to try to pull away when Scootaloo was followed in by Rainbow's parents, both rushing to past to check her over and ask what hurt and demand to know what they could do. But Rainbow didn't let her go. She needed all the strength she could get.

"Get away!" Ember hissed, lashing out with her tail and all four of her claws to dissuade Ponyville's nurses and to free herself of the thick covers constricting her movement.

"Ember, they're just trying to help!" Spike implored, grabbing her right claw to calm her.

"I don't need their help!" Ember insisted, tearing free of his grasp. "And I certainly don't need yours either!"

Spike flinched but still reached out to take her claw again. Ember ignored him, climbing off the bed and ripping the flower-patterned hospital gown off her blackened scales with a roar.

"Ember, please-!" Spike begged, as she slid off the bed. "You're still hurt!"

Ember whirled back toward him with her teeth bared. Then the fire died in her throat. She lowered her head and turned away, stomping past Ponyville Hospital's cowering nurses and rocketing up through the ceiling above with a shriek of rage.

"And has she always felt this way?" Rarity asked.

"I don't know. I just know that she was super sad when she heard you were going with somepony else!" Pinkie said. She sulked on her side of the jacuzzi, despite being surrounded by bubbles in desperate need of a good popping. "But there is no other pony! It's all my fault! You were just so depressed when I came to see you the other day, I wanted to make you happy again no matter what and I messed everything up again-"

"But it worked." Rarity said with a smile. "You gave me a present that lifted my spirits and then you got me a date for the Hearts and Hooves dance. I think you did rather wonderfully, Pinkie."

Pinkie rubbed her hooves together. "But I almost ruined everything! If you hadn't come and saved me from that big meanie cat-"

"But I did." Rarity said, lifting Pinkie's chin. "You helped me and I helped you. That's what friends do, Pinkie."

Pinkie shifted a little, staring at her reflection in the water. Then a smile returned to her face and Rarity thanked the stars that she was starting to act normal again. Being around Pinkie when she was sad, was like being around Fluttershy when she was angry. It wasn't just concerning. It was unnatural.

"So, you are going to go to the dance with Fluttershy then?" Pinkie asked with a smile.

Now it was Rarity's turn to frown. "Well, listen, Darling...I know you think that the two of us would be perfect for each other..."

"But you are perfect for each other! It's just like Applejack and Rainbow Dash. They're Loyalty and Honesty, and you're Generosity and Kindness. It's kismet!"

Rarity's frown deepened. "Rainbow Dash and Applejack are...together?"

"Yepperoni! They were being silly and not wanting to tell anypony though until just now so I kept their secret!"

"And how exactly do you know they just told somepony?"

"My Pinkie Sense, duh!" Pinkie answered.

Rarity took a moment to process this information. In the past 24 hours, she had believed that Rainbow Dash was interested in her, then learned that Fluttershy was also interested in her, then learned that Rainbow Dash wasn't interested in her at all.

"But they told you about their relationship?" Rarity asked, feeling a little left out that Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were able to confide in Pinkie but not in her. She hardly gossiped about ponies behind their flank these days.

"Oh no, they didn't tell me! I was spying on them to plan parties for them, and I figured it out. You don't get to be the number one party-planning pony by not picking up on peculiar particulars like that!"

Rarity nodded and made a mental note to talk to Twilight about Pinkie's rapidly apparent need to stalk all of them, a behavior she found far more disturbing than Pinkie's lopsided matchmaking attempts. "The matter is Pinkie, that I'm not sure if me and Fluttershy are as...compatible as you think."

"Whatt? Why not?"

"Well, the problem is...well, she lives with all those animals..."

"Yeah, think of all the cute little clothes you can make for them!"

"...and we're both very busy, her with the shelter, me with my business..."

"Plenty of ponies don't see each other every day! My Grandma Pie only saw her husband one day a week because the rest of the time he was down in the mine! But doesn't mean she didn't love him or that they didn't support each other. Besides, Fluttershy has always been there for you in the past, why wouldn't she be able to be there for you in the future?"

"...and then there's Discord."

Pinkie grinned. "I know, right! You, Fluttershy, Discord and a house full of animals. Can you imagine how fun it will be?"

Rarity imagined and then wished she hadn't. "It's very kind of you to want to make us both happy, darling."

Pinkie's smile dropped. "Oh." She looked back at the water, the frizz rapidly leaving her soaked curls. "So, you don't like Fluttershy, then, huh?"

Rarity squirmed. "I'm just...hesitant, about doing something that could ruin our friendship, darling..."

Pinkie brightened up. "Oh, that's silly! We've all been through too much for something silly like love to ever make us stop being friends! We've been kidnapped, possessed, mind-controlled, drained of all magic and stripped of our cutie marks. Of course you'll still be friends. This just means you'll get to kiss each other too!"

Rarity considered the words. Then a little smile appeared on her face. "Very well, Diane. I will attempt to pursue this matter with Fluttershy, but I make no promises."

Pinkie squeed so loudly that Aloe probably thought the hot water pipes had another leak.

"But..." Rarity said, putting a hoof over Pinkie's muzzle with a menacing smirk. "You have to do something for me."

Pinkie grinned. "Of course, Silly-filly! That's what friends are for."

Rarity chuckled darkly and Pinkie's grin lapsed slightly.

"Umm, can I ask you a question?" She asked.

"Of course," Rarity said, sliding up and out of the jacuzzi and toweling off carefully.

Pinkie moved to the edge of the jacuzzi, her eyes drawn to the slightly shifting saddlebag in the corner of the room. "How did you do what you did to that meanie cat? I mean, I thought that I was gonna get sucked into a vortex and psychically preyed on until the end of time. But you didn't even flinch!"

"Oh, that's easy darling." Rarity said, floating the jar up and out of her bag, so that she could better regard its pulsating contents. "I almost lost my little sister yesterday. Do you really think I was going to let some creature steal one of my friends just because it was an eldritch monstrosity?"

"I'm sorry I tried to stab you..." Scootaloo said, although her tone failed to reflect her words.

Apple Bloom glared at her and then glanced back at Silver Spoon, who was half hiding behind Diamond Tiara.

"It's okay." Silver said. "I don't blame you."

Apple Bloom's glare only deepened and Scootaloo looked pathetically over at Silver Spoon. "Could you just...not mention it to Sweetie Belle?"

Silver Spoon nodded. "Of course."

"I'm sorry too, Scootaloo..." Diamond Tiara said. "I know I said a lot of terrible things to you when I was younger...I told myself that if I apologized for them it would only make you uncomfortable...but that was just so I didn't have to face what a bully I was. I-I should have told you how sorry I was...then maybe you would have known something was wrong when I started acting strange..."

Scootaloo's frowned and then looked away. "It's okay...I know that wasn't you..."

Diamond Tiara wilted. She knew that it wouldn't be that easy. They weren't foals anymore. They couldn't forgive as easily as they once had. She knew that some things, once said, could never be apologized for. Still, even if words were insufficient, she wished there was something she could do which would show Scootaloo how sorry she was. Or better yet, something to soothe her own bruised conscience, something that Scootaloo would never connect to her.

"I'm just glad you're all back to our normal selves." Apple Bloom said. "I almost lost all my friends in one day and...well, I was pretty scared is all."

The other three shared a look but before anypony could begin to say "Apple Bloom, you know we'll always be your friends", the pony they were all waiting appeared.

"Girls!" Sweetie Belle's smile couldn't have been less wide than the day she got her cutie mark and Apple Bloom rushed over to share a classic Cutie Mark Crusaders hug with her.

Scootaloo was more hesitant, rubbing her hooves together and looking like she might run. Finally, she spoke, the words busting out. "Are-are you still gonna be able to do magic?!"

Apple Bloom stared at Scootaloo in horror, but Sweetie just smirked. "They're going to have to fill part of it with crystal is all. They said it's a 97% chance to work, or something like that."

Diamond Tiara let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. Silver Spoon on the other hand, remained still, her eyes on the floor.

"We don't have to talk about it...if you don't want..." Apple Bloom said, glancing between Sweetie and Scootaloo.

"I'm sorry..."

The words were supposed to have come from Silver Spoon, but instead they came from Scootaloo. She was just staring sadly at Sweetie Belle's horn.

Sweetie looked like she might be angry. "It's not your fault, Scoots."

Silver Spoon was on the edge of tears and looked like she might bolt. Diamond Tiara grabbed her before she could and gently squeezed her whithers. "It's not her fault either, Sweetie. I knew something was wrong with her, but I didn't tell anypony, because of how...self-obsessed I was..."

Sweetie's expression grew indecipherable, as she marched up to Diamond Tiara. "I know." She said. Then she pulled both Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara into a hug. "I'm just glad both of you are better."

Diamond Tiara didn't think she could fall any lower, but that moment made her want to sink into the floor and just wait for the janitor to mop her up.

"I'm so sorry..." Diamond heard her best friend whisper. Sweetie nodded a little and then gave each of them a tender squeeze before she turned back to her friends.

"It's okay, Scoots...even if the Crystal doesn't work or anything...I'm fine with it. I've thought a lot about it and I'm alright with it, okay?"

Scootaloo looked slightly less like she wanted to murder Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara for a moment. But she looked away before Diamond could figure out exactly it was that she was thinking.

"Yeah." Apple Bloom said, stepping over to Sweetie. "No matter what, you're still our friend."

Scootaloo gave a little nod and Diamond saw the tiniest bit of heartbreak in Sweetie Belle's eyes, before she tried to smile.

"We should get going." Diamond said, nudging Silver with her shoulder.

Silver looked at her and then at Scootaloo, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. For as long as they'd known them, the three ponies had been like one. Their cutie marks were even all the same, for Celestia's sake. But at the moment they looked...different. Like they were standing close together, but they were each miles from the others. Diamond Tiara hadn't realized until that moment how invested in their relationship she was, but it felt like staring at a foalhood playground left to rot.

That would not do. There had been too many tears in the past few days. She would not allow them to draw apart, because of her mistakes.

"C'mon," She whispered to Silver as they exited the hospital. "I've got a plan."

Silver looked surprised, but at the moment was too distraught to turn away a distraction.

"RAGH!"

Ember tossed another stone, watching it disappear into the center of the lake with a plume of water. She was too angry right now to skip stones properly. But skipping stones was the only thing which calmed her down.

Sure, she could go on a rampage, set fire to something, order her flock to invade Ponyland. But that would just prove Twilight right, just prove that she was like every other dragon. Violent. Greedy. And stupid, stupid, stupid! She never should have come here. She should have known that ponies would never view her as anything but a threat.

And Spike...he was like a pony too, wasn't he? He'd probably told Twilight about her crush on him and how much it scared him. He'd come to her rescue of course, but that was because that was what a good pony would do. A good dragon would have watched her be crushed by an opponent and known that if she could be beaten, she didn't deserve the scepter.

He would never give up Ponyland for lava and Roc attacks. Even if he didn't want Twilight to kill her, he was still just as scared of her as ever. He was probably only pretending to her friend just to keep her from burning down the kingdom. Suddenly, the moment where he'd given her the scepter, where he'd passed up on becoming the new Dragon Lord made so much more sense. She'd always thought it was because he was selfless or perhaps, in daydreams, that it was because he liked her and believed in her.

Now she knew better. His pony friends had probably devised the whole scenario, set her up to become the next Dragon Lord so that she would owe them, so that they knew that the next Dragon Lord wasn't the biggest or the strongest...but the most naive. And then the moment that she disagreed with their leader, the moment she stepped out of line and showed her true claws, they tried to execute her.

She snarled, ripping apart the stones at her feet with her claws and then letting loose a plume of flame 30 meters into the air. She would show them. She had worked to be Dragon Lord all her life. She wouldn't let them take it away from her. She would hold the trials again if she had to. She would win the scepter again, this time without pony interference. No, she wouldn't burn Equestria down, but she would make it clear to Twilight and her scheming friends that she was not a puppet. And she would build a horde so big and so strong that Princess Twilight would never be a threat to her again.

Ember lifted off the ground, the heat in her chest turning from smoldering self-loathing into searing rage. She would show them. She would return the Dragonlands to the greatness they'd once been and they would regret trifling with her. She would return fear to their-

"Rough time at the hospital huh?"

Ember whirled around to find the pinkest, prettiest alicorn she'd ever seen, standing a few feet below and looking up at her with a simple smile.

"My daughter, Flurry, she has a thing about needles." The alicorn said. "My husband has to hold her hoof when it's time for her shots."

Ember swooped down and grabbed the alicorn by her horn. "Get out of here! CAN'T YOU SEE I WANT TO BE ALONE!?" The shout was emphasized with another plume of fire, this one narrowly missing the princess' beautifully combed mane.

The princess took a deep breath and then spoke in that infuriating way that ponies thought was supposed to calm you down but really just dug under your scales. "It's okay, Dragon Lord Ember...I did not come here to spy on you or to harm you while you were still healing."

"NO!" Ember shoved the alicorn backward. "YOU CAME HERE SO YOU COULD RUB IT IN MY FACE! YOU CAME HERE TO LAUGH ABOUT HOW YOU DEFEATED ME AND THEN HAD THE AUDACITY TO OFFER ME HELP, AS IF WE WERE STILL FRIENDS!!"

The alicorn shook her head. "No. I came here to apologize and to heal your wounds, if you'll allow it."

"NO! No more pony magic! No more stupid, pretty princess ponies...JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!!" Ember roared.

"It hurts, when a creature betrays you...especially when you thought that they loved you." The alicorn said, sitting down. "You know that the queen of the changelings once kidnapped me and impersonated me? I was sure that my fiancé, my husband now...I was sure that he'd know the difference between the two of us. When I was down there in the caverns under Canterlot, I was every day that he'd burst in to my rescue..."

Ember snarled. "I don't care!! I JUST WANT TO BE ALONE!"

"You want to be alone, Ember, because you're hurt. And because when you grew up, if a dragon was hurt, they'd have to roll a boulder in front of their cave, so that no creature tried to steal their hoard. But I'm not here to steal from you, or to take advantage of the fact that you are hurt...neither were the ponies at the hospital and neither was Spike. All of them just wanted to make sure you were alright, because they care about you."

"THEN WHY!? WHY DID THEY HUMILIATE ME!? IF YOU WERE MY FRIENDS, WHY DID YOU LET YOUR LEADER ALMOST KILL ME!?" Ember screeched, more fire coming out in little gusts that almost scorched the alicorn's nose.

"No pony wanted that to happen, Ember. Twilight was cursed at the time; she couldn't control herself...any more than my husband could control himself when the changeling queen was devouring his mind. A very bad magical creature tried to make Twilight hurt you because it knew she would never forgive herself...do you understand me? None of this is her fault, or Spike's fault. They didn't lure you here, this wasn't a trap, and you are not our enemy..."

Ember hung limply in the air. "How can I trust you...how can I ever trust any pony after what you did to me?"

"It's hard...when creatures hurt you, when they disappoint you...you're not sure you can ever trust any creature again..." The alicorn said. "But the ability to trust creatures, knowing that they might not trust you...that's strength, Ember."

Ember turned away and stared at her tear-stained reflection in the lake. She had never cried in front of a pony before. She had never cried in front of a dragon either. It hurt, but it also felt good somehow.

"I came here as a piece offering, Dragon Lord." The alicorn said, using her magic to levitate off her tiara and place it down on the ground close to her hooves. "Twilight is a good princess and a good pony, who would never cause harm intentionally...but if this personal slight is too great to be forgiven, please...take my life."

"Wha-what!?" Ember whirled around, rage pumping back into her that this...this pony would think she would ever-

"I don't want my daughter to grow up in a world where actions don't have consequences." The alicorn said, as she bowed. "As I understand it, your citizens may not believe that you are capable of protecting them, if they find out you were defeated by an alicorn. So, I offer you, my life. Once you have slayed me, your honor will be restored and Equestria will have paid its debt."

Ember stared down at her, in disgust and horror. "No! No! I would never...I...I'm not gonna punish you for what Twilight did! That's wrong!"

The alicorn smirked. "Oh, why?"

"Because...because you weren't there! You didn't make Twilight do what she did! And besides, there's nothing...honorable about killing a creature which won't fight back." Ember declared.

"What about one creature who was there? Who tried again and again to stop the fighting...who put himself in harms way to protect you?" The alicorn asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Ember was about to tell the alicorn to go fly a kite. Then she realized who she was referring to. She sunk to the ground. "Spike..." She said, her voice raw from yelling.

"He still cares about you, Ember...as much as he cares about his sister...if you ask him, he will go with you."

"He...he..."

"He did nothing wrong." The alicorn said, sitting down beside her. "He cares for you deeply, as you care for him. I have felt it in his heart. He does not seek to change you, but he has made you better. And at the moment he is worried for your wellbeing as no dragon ever has."

"How would you know?" Ember snarled.

"Oh, didn't I mention? Hello, Dragon Lord. I'm Cadence, the Alicorn of Love..." Cadence said, bowing her wings slightly in the traditional manner of dragon greeting. "I'm Twilight's sister-in-law."

Ember stared at her. "You...you knew I wasn't going to hurt you, didn't you?"

Cadence lifted slightly and did her best to hide her smirk. "I thought a leap of trust was needed on our part, to re-assure you of our devotion to diplomatic harmony."

Ember stared at the ground. "You think if I get together with Spike...you think that will just solve all our problems."

"Oh, no...love doesn't solve all the problems in the world. In fact, it's responsible for most of them." Cadence said, standing up. "But what we be worth without it?"

"Are you...sure about this?" Pinkie asked, glancing down at the strange garment which Rarity had insisted on fitting her with.

"Oh yes, with just a little fitting...here...annnnnnd here...you will look absolutely perfect." Rarity said, between the pins in her teeth.

Pinkie shifted. "But...it's so...serious."

Rarity rolled her eyes. "Darling, not every dress has to have pieces of cake on it...trust me, take a break from the baking and the party supplies for one evening...stop worrying about everypony but yourself...just...let yourself be seen and loved..." She paused and looked away. "That's what everypony deserves."

"But I don't have a date for the dance..." Pinkie said, prodding at the silky-smooth fabric.

"Not yet." Rarity said with a grin.

"Where are you going?"

Scootaloo paused. She'd been just about to ask herself that question. She'd wanted to go join Rainbow and her family at Sweet Apple Acres. But she wasn't sure that she could be around Apple Bloom right now. Not because of what Apple Bloom had said to her last night, but because she knew that Apple Bloom would want to ask...about this morning...and Scootaloo couldn't deal with that. Not after everything that had almost happened.

Still, she wasn't particularly enthusiastic to find Silver Spoon still on this plane of existence and asking her questions.

"What do you want?" Scootaloo groaned.

Silver stared at her hooves. "I just...I thought you'd be with Sweetie Belle..."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Scootaloo demanded.

"Well, she's in love with you, isn't she?" Silver said. "Just like how Diamond was in love with her and how you were in love with Apple Bloom." She paused. "And how I was in love with Diamond..."

Scootaloo hated how perceptive Silver Spoon could be. "Hold up, okay? I liked Apple Bloom...before...I knew what I now know, alright? But Sweetie Belle is not in love with me, okay? And even if she was, after what you did to her..." Silver flinched. "...I doubt she is now."

Silver looked up at her and pushed her spectacles up her muzzle. "Why?"

Scootaloo stamped the ground. "Because it's my fault, okay!? You only attacked Sweetie because she hit Diamond Tiara...if she didn't...care about me so much..."

"You don't think Diamond was wrong..." Sweetie said, her eyes widening.

"What? No! I-"

Silver stepped closer, beginning to cry again. "You-you think because of your wings...you don't deserve to be loved..."

Scootaloo looked away. "You don't know what you're talking about. Just...go away okay!?"

"Scootaloo, I am truly sorry about what me and Diamond Tiara said to you...and I'm sorry if any other pony ever made you think there was something wrong with you...because of your wings...because of who you are."

"I said go away!!" Scootaloo yelled, ashamed to feel tears beginning to gather in her eyes as well. "I don't need you to tell me to love myself okay?! I'm fine! I was fine before you...you..."

"Go ahead...yell at me...I'm the one you should be angry with," Silver Spoon said. "Not yourself...I...I didn't know what I was doing...but I still did it..."

"But it's not your fault!" Scootaloo yelled, suddenly unable to control the tears. "And if it's not your fault or Diamond's fault or my fault, whose is it? Sweetie Belle is never gonna be able to do magic the way she could before...that's what the nurses said...whose fault is that, Silver? It has to be somepony's, because it's not fair...Sweetie...she's so kind, she never deserved...she-she..."

Silver Spoon stepped closer. "Like you deserved to have your wings?"

Scootaloo turned away again.

"I'd never been in love with anypony...before that curse was cast on me..." Silver Spoon said. "And I-I don't think that thing I had was love...not the way love should be anyway. But I do know...that I miss it. Even if Diamond didn't love me back, when Princess Twilight took it away...it felt like I was losing one of my legs..."

Silver looked away. "I don't know much, Scootaloo, but I know that Sweetie Belle loves you...the way you are...not the way you could be...and I know that she'll still punch anypony who hurts you like that...because she cares about you."

Silver took a deep breath. "And...I know that love is a terrible thing to let go to waste..."

With that, she turned, marching back in the direction of town and failing to notice when Scootaloo glanced back at her.

Applejack sat at the dining room table, listening to Granny swapping embarrassing stories with Windy Whistles while Big Mac and Bo played horseshoes out front. She turned to look at Rainbow, who, despite one wing still being in a cast, was trying to swat her mother and get her to stop talking about the time she tried to break into a Wonderbolt show while she was grounded.

She smiled and curled closer to the pony she loved, feeling her delicate feathers tickle her face as she rested her head on Rainbow's shoulder. Rainbow leaned back, their manes mingling as they listened not just to the laughter which bubbled all around them, but to the beating in the other's chest.

They would miss the dance tonight. But Applejack couldn't imagine anything more romantic than this.

Fluttershy sat at the edge of the arena, watching pairs of every gender and species joining in a synchronized and terribly formal looking dance. She glanced down at her gown, the one that Rarity had made for her for the Grand Galloping Galla and which she had painstakingly cleaned after getting it so dirty.

She remembered her and Rarity bonding over how stuck up both the guests and the menagerie animals were as they ate at Donut Joe's. She remembered Rarity's hoof almost touching her own and how she had felt like she might fly into a hurricane to have another moment like that.

She had always been willing to do whatever Rarity wanted her to. To become a model. To run a whole store. To step out of her comfort zone, if it meant that she got one of those wonderful Rarity smiles which lit up her whole, already radiant face. This was just another step, another chance to prove that she had grown as a pony. She could dance with a pony she liked in public, that she wasn't too shy to have a good time on Hearts and Hooves Day.

Still, she was glad that it had been Rarity who invited her. After all the confusion and rejection of the past few days she was still fighting the inkling deep inside that this was all some terrible joke. A tiny voice deep inside was telling her that Rarity would show up and see the old dress and laugh at Fluttershy's terrible fashion sense and then everypony else would laugh too, in unison, just like they were dancing, and she would run home, crying all the way and never be able to show her face in town again.

But she had learned not to listen to that terrible little voice. Rarity had assured her that her previous date was just a mix-up caused by the wacky magic shenanigans which had been going around town in Fluttershy's absence and that Pinkie had explained the whole situation.

Fluttershy felt ashamed, that she had to have Pinkie talk to Rarity for her, like they were still school fillies or something. Rarity deserved a pony who was confident, a pony who was good in social situations like she was. A pony who-

"Darling!"

Fluttershy turned and almost fainted. Rarity's dresses were always beautiful, even when Fluttershy didn't fully understand why. After the incident with this particular dress, Fluttershy had felt so torn up about abusing Rarity's generosity and almost ruining her career, that she'd made an active effort to suppress what little she knew about fashion.

But this dress...it was almost as mesmerizing as the pony who wore it. A beautiful lavender gown, with wildflowers of every color tied into the belt and collar and naturalistic patterns looping all over it.

Fluttershy looked back down at her own dress and immediately knew how much of a mistake this was. She couldn't keep up with Rarity. She was too beautiful, too stylish. Everypony was staring at her and soon they'd be staring at Fluttershy too, and Fluttershy didn't know anything about dancing either and-

Mwah!

Rarity kissed Fluttershy on the cheek. "I just wanted to tell you darling how beautiful you are tonight. And I wanted to let you know that no matter what happens tonight or any other night...you and I will always be friends."

Fluttershy was staring into Rarity's beautiful amethyst eyes and realizing very suddenly just how much she wanted to be much more than that.

Ponies were unsure about what happened next. Most said that Rarity leaned in for another kiss and Fluttershy energetically welcomed her. However, Octavia and DJ-PON3, who had been hired to perform the music for that evening, would always claim that it was Fluttershy who initiated the next kiss, shocking Rarity with the volume of her passion.

As for Fluttershy and Rarity, whenever this particular moment was brought up...well, they would always just look at one another and start giggling.

"Are you sure about this?"

"Of course, I am." Diamond Tiara said, as she adjusted the gown she had insisted on giving Sweetie for the dance tonight.

"It's a little...risque, isn't it?" Sweetie asked, shifting under the gaze of the mirror.

Diamond smirked and leaned closer. "It's beautiful, just like you are..."

Sweetie blushed and Diamond returned to her wardrobe, from which she removed a tiny crown, glistening with rhinestones.

"Oh, Diamond...I...I can't take your back-up crown..." Sweetie said.

"Of course, you can. And you can keep it too, until you get that crystal, alright? You said you wanted to hide the crack in your horn and you deserve to feel pretty tonight..." Diamond said, careful placing the tiara which was slightly smaller but no less fantastic than her own, onto Sweetie's head.

"Okay. But only if you promise you aren't doing this to make up for what you said when you were cursed, alright?" Sweetie said.

Diamond rolled her eyes. "You know me and Silver already feel like dirt, right? You don't have to keep rubbing it in with how much kinder you are than us."

"Diamond, I'm serious...I don't blame you, okay?" Sweetie insisted as Diamond pulled out her make-up case.

"I'm sure you don't, but I do, alright? So let me make it up to myself, alright?" Diamond asked, as she opened the case.

Sweetie glanced down at the assortment of eyeshadow, lipstick and rogue. Then she sighed. "Fine. Just don't make me look like Rarity, okay?"

Diamond rolled her eyes. "Trust me, Sweetie, by the time I'm done with you...no pony is going to remember your sister even exists, alright?"

Sweetie watched herself transform in the mirror. She had always liked pretty things, but she had also always felt they didn't belong to her, that they were somepony else's.

"Are you...are you sure about this?" She asked as Diamond finished curling her eyelashes.

"Of course, I am." Diamond said, stepping back from her masterpiece. "Everypony deserves to feel beautiful sometimes."

"But...about you and me..." Sweetie began.

There was knock on the door and Diamond held up a hoof to dismiss the topic of conversation as she moved over to the door and opened it up. Standing in the hallway was Scootaloo, not at all looking ready for the dance, coated in dust and mud and holding a small bouquet of daisies in one hoof.

"I...I heard that Sweetie was here..." Scootaloo began, out of breath. "...and I wanted to talk to her."

Diamond smirked and stepped out of the way allowing the lovebirds to share an unencumbered view of each other.

As Diamond Tiara and Sweetie Belle spent the next few minutes trying to revive the fainted Scootaloo, one asked the other "Too much?" And they began to laugh.

Spike sat on the roof of the new Golden Oaks Library, watching the proceedings as Rarity and Fluttershy accepted the "Best Dancer Trophy." He looked down in his claws at the picture of Rarity which he had kept on him for the past few years. Then he dropped it, watching as it fluttered to the ground and was blown away down an alley by the breeze.

"Should I be jealous?"

Spike almost fell off the roof with surprise when he found that Ember had landed right behind him without a sound and was grinning down at him.

He shot up to his feet. "Ember, are you-"

She held up a claw to his lips. "Rule number 1; we don't talk about what happened yesterday, unless I bring it up, okay?"

Spike stared at her claw and then nodded.

She leaned in closer. "Rule number 2...you tell me if I'm ever being a bad friend, alright?"

Spike stared into her eyes and nodded again, slower this time.

She pulled her claw away. "Is your pegasus friend alright?"

He nodded. Again, slowly. "She knows you didn't mean to hurt her..." He said, looking away.

Ember cringed. Then she forced herself to smile. "Look, I've got all the crystals I could ask for out of this trade deal, so I was planning on heading back."

"What? I mean...oh, okay...ummm...you talked to Cadence then?"

"Yeah, she had some pretty choice words to say about you." Ember said with a wink. "But I figured all this lovey-dovey pony stuff might not be for me. Besides, if I don't go soon, some new monster might show up and then I'll never get away."

Spike nodded. "Have a safe flight then...I'm...sorry about everything, Ember."

Ember turned and raised her wings. Then she groaned. "Ugh! Aren't you going to tell me to stay?"

Spike frowned. "Wha-why would I-?"

"Because you love me, you idiot!" Ember said, folding her arms. "That's what Cadence told me."

"Oh." Spike blushed. "Well, uh, yeah...I mean, I'm not happy you're going, but I...I wasn't going to stop you..."

"Isn't that what you ponies do though!? You rush to stop some creature from leaving and profess how much you want them in your life?"

Spike thought about this for a moment and then said. "It's just...I...thought you hated me and this place and...I know you have a lot of work as Dragon Lord, so I didn't want to-"

Ember groaned and ran her claw across her face. "Okay, just ask me if you can come with me then!"

Spike paused. "Go? With you? To the Dragon Lands?"

"Yeah, fire breathing dragons, lava everywhere, bloodthirsty monsters where-ever you step and not a lot of demand for dragons who can crochet...sound like fun?" Ember said.

Spike glanced back at the dancing ponies. "Uh, can I say goodbye before we go?"

Ember sighed. "Yeah, sure, fine. Just y'know...hurry up, I was hoping to make it dramatic and...well, it's too late, just go and get it over with, alright?"

Spike nodded and opened his wings to fly off the roof. Then he stopped, right at the edge and ran back over, wrapping his claws around Ember's midsection.

"I'm glad you're alright." He said into her belly. "I'm sorry if I'm not good at this romance stuff, I've never had any pony...I mean...no creature has ever liked me back so..."

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, well, that makes two of us..."

Then he turned and leaped off the edge flying down and disappearing into the bright festivities. Ember watched him go with a strange warmth in her chest and her stomach. Then she smiled. "Classic ponies."

Twilight stood at the edge of the celebrations, watching her friends and neighbor's dance. That was a nicer way to think about them. Neighbors, not subjects. It made it easier to believe they could handle things on their own from time to time.

Rarity and Pinkie had saved the day. And Twilight had almost done the unthinkable. Why hadn't she trusted her friends instead of trying to handle everything herself? Well, her thinking had been somewhat altered. Still, she remembered how she'd underestimated Pinkie only a few days ago. It was hard to remember sometimes that an intelligent, determined pony dwelled underneath those cotton candy curls sometimes. But Twilight was ashamed she had forgotten how resourceful any of her neighbors were.

"Feeling better?" Cadence said as she appeared beside her with a plate stacked with heart-shaped cookies.

"I shouldn't be here. I'm ruining the festival..." Twilight said.

Cadence sighed. "Twilight, do your friends blame you for what happened?"

"No! But I'm-I'm the Princess of Friendship, I'm supposed to-" Twilight began.

Cadence looked sad for a moment. "Twilight, if they don't blame you, why do you?"

As the thought percolated in Twilight's mind, a familiar silver coated earth pony approached Cadence. "Umm, Princess?"

"Yes, dear?" Cadence asked.

"I have a friend who, uh...I think she isn't interested in love, not like most ponies are at least...but she's the one of the nicest ponies I know, and I'm worried she doesn't have anypony to be with right now, and I know her two best friends are going to be dating soon. So, anyway, I was hoping you could talk to her maybe and-" Silver Spoon said, rubbing her hooves together.

"Tell her that it's alright if she doesn't have a special somepony and that she doesn't want one?" Cadence finished. She smiled at Twilight. "You have a wonderful little community here, Twilight. I'll have to come back here sometime soon."

With that, she winked at Silver Spoon and lifted off, disappearing into the reddish pink sky and flying off in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres without having to ask for directions.

Twilight stared at Silver Spoon for a moment and Silver Spoon shifted and said "Thank you...for everything, Princess."

Twilight was about to respond, when she felt a familiar claw tugging lightly at her leg. "Oh, Spike...umm, have you seen Ember around at all?"

Spike took a deep breath. "Yeah, actually...she's already talked with Cadence so she's heading back to the Dragon Lands...I thought I might go with her...maybe stay for a little while."

Twilight remained quiet.

"Not because of what happened, I swear! It's just...you and me have been together for so long...I mean, I'm an adult now, right? I-I should want to be around other dragons, to...figure out what it is that I want, right?"

Twilight looked away. "I...Of course, Spike...you-you don't have to apologize...I...I just want you to be happy."

"I know." He hugged her and realizing how long it might be before she was next able to hold him, she wrapped her arms over his shoulders and folded her wings tight.

"Just...be careful, okay? It's a scary world out there."

"I know..." He said with a laugh. "And don't worry...I'll be back before you know it, okay?"

Twilight smiled through her tears. "Okay..."

As he flew up into the air he turned once to wave back at her, and she was possessed to yell after him "Don't forget to write!"

She didn't know if he heard him. All she knew was that she could see Ember joining him, high above Ponyville's streets and the two dragons swerving and soaring to side by side into the horizon. She sighed then and took a deep breath. He would be alright. She had taught him everything he needed to know. She didn't blame him either, if he couldn't return to their little routines after all he'd seen.

She'd known this day was coming. Still, she'd never thought it would be this day.

She wondered then, what was next. Well, the world wasn't as safe as she'd once thought, so perhaps investigating the motives of the mysterious stranger who'd instigated all this chaos might adequately distract her for the next few months.
She would have to have Pinkie give her a proper description of the thing. And maybe visit New Abyssinia, see if they'd knew anything about it and hopefully not nearly murder their current leader.

But if there were more creatures like the one that Rarity had defeated...well, it wouldn't do to wait for them to make themselves known. Maybe a trip to Silver Shoals wouldn't be out of order either. Luna and Celestia had fought all manner of creatures before becoming the leaders of Equestria. If they didn't know anything about Bard, then maybe one of the Pillars would.

She was about to head over to the School of Friendship and see if Rockhoof was around, when she noticed that the dancing had stopped. All the creatures who'd been slow dancing only a few minutes ago had now formed a circle and were clopping their hooves together and whistling. She pushed through the outside of the crowd to see what it was they were applauding.

It was Pinkie. But Twilight hardly recognized her. Her hair's normal wildness had been almost, but not quite tamed by a series of gold pins. But it was her dress which drew Twilight's attention. A beautiful maroon piece, with little hearts running along the trim.

And she was blushing. In all the time that she had known her, Twilight didn't think she'd ever seen Pinkie blush before. She wasn't aware that Pinkie was physically capable of blushing, but there was something so profoundly adorable about the sight that she instantly wished to see it again.

Pinkie's gaze shifted from the smile she was sharing with Rarity and Fluttershy to Twilight and her eyes lit up just as they had the day they first met. Then she sprang forward, grabbing Twilight's forelimb and dragging her into the circle of the dancers. There was a great cheer to see the Princess of Friendship joining the festivities and Twilight stumbled at first trying to match the rhythm. In all her magical and political research, she'd never memorized the etiquette of the traditional Canterlot dances.

Neither had Pinkie though, as she took Twilight's hooves in her own and danced a strange, but nonetheless energetic jig that was as enticing as it was entertaining. And in that moment, while high above the stars watched and deep within fear festered, nothing mattered except the pounding of their hearts and sound of the other's laughter.

All Aboard stepped off the platform, eager to remove his uniform and return to his tidy cottage for the two days he had between shifts. No, Van Hoover was not the largest or the most exotic place which the Friendship Express traveled through each day. Still, it was quiet. You could be sure that no monsters would be in its near future.

As he strolled along Foal Harbor, he noticed a strange weight in one of his pockets and dug into it. Out came a strange coin, a token of an even stranger creature. It was bigger and heavier than a bit, which meant it was probably worth something to somepony. But something about its indecipherable engravings made him uneasy.

He ended up dropping it into the hat of the first busker he passed, and it wasn't until over a week later, when the Vanhoover Star published Princess Twilight's statement that "anypony with information regarding the Abyssinian described below should come forward", that he realized his mistake.