Equestria Copes

Chapters

Chapter the First: The Room
Chapter the Second: Judgement
Chapter the Third: For Equestria
Chapter the Fourth: Ponies of the Cloth
Chapter the Fifth: Angel's Guardian
Chapter the Sixth: Saving Discord
Chapter the Eighth: Mending Fences
Chapter the Ninth: Opening the Gate
Chapter the Tenth: Common Ground
Chapter the Eleventh: Fooling Yourself
Chapter the Twelfth: Dishonest
Chapter the Thirteenth: Fallen Away
Chapter the Fourteenth: Not Alone
Chapter the Fifteenth: Patches
Chapter the Sixteenth: Going Down
Chapter the Seventeenth: It Didn't Have to be Like This
Chapter the Eighteenth: Diamond in the Rough
Chapter the Nineteenth: Long Faces
Chapter the Twentieth: Opening Up
Chapter the Twenty-First: Edge of a Broken Heart
Chapter the Twenty-Second: Faithless
Chapter the Twenty-Third: Building Blocks
Chapter the Twenty-Fourth: Pick Yourself Up
Chapter the Twenty-Fifth: Regrouping
Chapter the Twenty-Sixth: The Other Applicants
Chapter the Twenty-Seventh: Tartauros
Chapter the Twenty-Eighth: Damnation
Chapter the Seventh: Spirit of Kindness

Chapter the First: The Room

Tick... Tick... Tick...

The silence in the small room had an inordinate amount of tension behind it. The only thing that could break the uncomfortable silence was the subtle ticking of the clock on the wall over the door. Nopony made a sound, neither the scrawling scratch of a pen against paper, nor the click-clack of keys against a keyboard, or even the tapping of a hoof on the surface of the desk. No sighing, no humming, not even so much as loud breathing. It was just silent.

Tick... Tick... Tick... Tock...

"That's it!" growled Rainbow, shoving her chair backward. "I'm going to go find out what's taking so long."

"Oh, no ya don't!" shouted Applejack, grabbing Rainbow's tail before she could leap all the way over the table. "That young... stallion?... asked us to wait here, and that's what we need ta do. Not cause more trouble and wind up stuck in a different waitin' room. Slow yer roll and simmer down."

"It has been three and a half hours," pouted Rarity. "After two days of waiting in that line, you'd think they'd be at least a little bit ready for us already..."

Twilight placed a hoof on Rarity's shoulder. "Good things come to those who wait," she said, rubbing her back. "I'm sure they're just a little bit backed up. Given a little time, I'm sure they'll be back soon. We just have to be patient."

"Patience would be a lot easier if we had something to do," groaned Pinkie. "I'm so bored! At least with the waiting in line, it was exciting, because even though we weren't doing anything, we were moving! I could pretend that I was about to see a concert, or a play, or a bearded filly! Sitting here... feels more like awaiting test results on whether that mole is malignant or benign!"

Twilight's eyes shot open. "You have a mole?! We need to show that to a doctor, right away!"

"Uh, Twilight?" snorted Applejack, "Ah don't think that'll be necessary..."

Twilight stopped for a moment. "Oh. Right. Well, given the chance, I'd still like to be certain."

"I'll find an oncologist and schedule an exam right away," saluted Spike. "Just as soon as we find out why we're here."

Fluttershy curled up a little tighter.

"You've been awfully quiet, dear," noted Rarity, placing a hoof on hers. "Is everything alright?"

Fluttershy didn't look up. She just shook her head.

Rarity stood up and walked over to her, hugging her from behind. "It'll all be okay, Fluttershy. We're all a little bit nervous."

"I'm not!" snorted Rainbow.

"Oh, please, Rainbow," shot Rarity back. "You're so scared that Applejack needs to hold your tail for comfort."

"That ain't why Ah'm holdin' 'er tail..."

"That's why she pushed it closer to you before she took off, darling. She knew you'd grab her; she's just too proud to admit when she wants to be held."

Rainbow growled, but did not refute the claim.

"I know why we're here," muttered Fluttershy.

Everypony turned to look at her.

"We're here because we're not going to make it in."

Silence once more pervaded the room, the only sound once again being the clock. Tick...Tick... Tick...

"What do you mean?" asked Spike, finally.

"Think about it," insisted Fluttershy. "Everypony else in that line was sent right through when they provided their credentials. Their identy was verified, and they walked right through the gate. We were asked to step aside and wait, and when we were all gathered together, we were brought here by armed guards, and told not to leave. Either this is our punishment, to wait for all of eternity, or they're devising a special punishment, just for us. If they were going to let us through, they would have done so."

Rainbow settled back into her chair. "That's... a really good point. What do you think we did that was bad enough to deserve to be sent to Tartauros?"

"I know what I did," answered Fluttershy. "I didn't set up a sitter for Angel Bunny."

"That doesn't sound so bad," notes Twilight. "If that's the reason you deserve to be punished, I don't think you're going to be suffering for very long."

Fluttershy shook her head. "Angel is at the cottage right now, having not eaten in two days. Nopony's going to feed him because I didn't set it up, and he's going to starve to death, and it's all my fault!"

As she broke down in tears, the others looked at each other. They couldn't really blame Fluttershy for feeling this way, as she was kind of right. If nopony fed Angel, he would starve. That, or he'd escape the house and find another place to live, as he was very smart and strong-willed. Part of that strong will was having Fluttershy to look after him, though. Knowing that she was there to keep him sheltered and fed likely gave him the strength to lead, without having to worry about the consequences.

Tank was in a similar scenario. Applejack's family was still around, and Winona technically belonged to Big Macintosh as far as the paperwork was concerned, so she was fine. Owlowiscious and Peewee were pets only in the loosest sense of the word, and were mostly just wild animals that provided companionship, so they were fine. Gummy was still in Sugarcube Corner with the Cakes and Sweetie Belle could take care of Opalescence in a pinch. Tank was supposed to come out of hibernation in the next month or so, but he'd still need somepony to come collect him from his terrarium when it was time.

"I think... maybe we should all be punished," said Pinkie, placing her hooves on the table.

Twilight furrowed her brow. "Why?"

"To stand in solidarity with Fluttershy," answered Rainbow. "Duh."

"Y'all are bein' ridiculous," spat Applejack. "Does any pony really think Fluttershy deserves to be sent ta Tartauros just fer fergettin' ta feed a bunny known for bein' able ta take care a' itself? Fluttershy, of all ponies?"

"I suppose I should have to agree with Applejack, ladies," admitted Rarity. "If Fluttershy, of anypony here, doesn't deserve to be let in, then which of us actually does deserve to be allowed entrance?"

"Not me!" shouted Pinkie. "What kind of sick, twisted version of paradise has no Fluttershy? Not any paradise I'd want to be a part of!"

"Then it's settled," nodded Twilight. "We're all going to Tartauros to answer for Fluttershy's negligence. The seven of us are going to stay together."

"Six."

Everypony turned to Spike, staring at him.

"I'm not going with you," he sighed. "I'm going to stay right here, and I'm going to make a case, and I'm going to find a way to bring you all to the paradise you deserve." He sniffled as tears welled in his eyes. "Even if it means giving up my place, it'd be worth it to know that you all..."

He shook his head, unable to finish.

Chapter the Second: Judgement

Everypony turned to look as the door slid open. Through the opening, a rather tall, thin creature walked, completely upright, like the beings encountered by Twilight when she visited Canterlot High School through the mirror portal. Its face was completely obscured by its hood which was crowned with a silver halo on its brow, and its body by robes. The only parts of its body unobscured by cloth were its claws, both of which were covered in metal plates, like armour. In its hands, it held a large binder.

"Finally!" grunted Rainbow. "Do you have any idea how long we've been waiting here?"

"Patience, Rainbow," urged Twilight, holding up a hoof. She then turned to the figure. "It has been quite a long time. We were wondering when you would come back for us, or even if you were going to come back for us."

"My apologies for the wait," it answered in a feminine voice. It seemed to echo backwards, as its words sounded quiet at first, then bounced back louder and louder until it hit just above a speaking volume. "There was much to do in preparation for your arrival."

"Four hours of preparation?" snorted Rarity. "That's quite a length of time to go with neither word nor water. If this is how you begin all of your eternal damnations, it's very well executed."

The being summoned a chair and sat down. "Damnation?"

Twilight nodded. "We've already figured out that there's some reason we weren't allowed in, and that we must have done something horrible without realizing it. I'm aware that I can be fairly negligent when I'm not paying attention, like that time I completely ignored Moondancer's party and drove her to shut out everypony around her. I was a pretty bad friend before I came to Ponyville. Who knows who was hurt when I accepted the role of Equestria's princess?"

Rarity sighed. "I must admit that I'm not above throwing a temper-tantrum."

"Ah'm stubborn," snorted Applejack bluntly.

"I act without thinking, all the time!" shouted Pinkie.

They all turned to Rainbow, who just kind of sat there for a moment. "Don't look at me; I'm the best."

"My beloved Angel Bunny is going to starve to death for my recklessness," sniffled Fluttershy.

"...I see..."

"And so we've decided," concluded Twilight. "The six of us are all going to be punished for our actions. Whichever one of us has performed so poorly as to bring the others down with us, we'll forgive. But we can't do that if we're separated. So give us your worst. We'll face it together."

Tick... Tick... Tick...

The creature cleared its throat and clasped its claws together as it leaned forward. "Do you know where you all are?"

"In a waiting room," answered Twilight, "at the gates of Tartauros. We are about to face our judgement and be punished for our crimes against all of Ponykind."

The creature shook its head. "It seems you have not been informed of what is happening. And it seems that in addition to that, some other things were done wrong. Allow me to correct a few things."

With the snap of its claws, a box protruded from the wall, upon which, a door opened, and several glass bottles rolled out, coming to rest in front of each of them. For Rarity, sparkling water. Fluttershy was given spring mineral water, Rainbow and Applejack were each given cider, Pinkie Pie punch, and Twilight a coconut and pineapple juice. Even Spike was served, being given spicy tomato juice with a single stalk of celery.

"Let me put you at ease. I have not come here to assign you any punishment. If it is your wish to leave this place and go to paradise, you need only to walk through the door through which you entered and inform the gate guard that you've spoken to me and decided not to accept my offer. No judgement shall be cast upon you for doing so. You have certainly done enough within your lifetimes to be afforded that amount of luxury and comfort."

"Is there more cider there?" asked Rainbow, almost slamming her empty bottle on the table.

"As much as you can drink."

"I'm sold!"

As Rainbow once again tried to fly off, it was revealed that Applejack had never released her tail. "Hang on, there!" She turned to the robed creature. "What's this here offer ye'r talkin' 'bout?"

"I'll admit, I haven't heard the offer, either," shrugged Twilight. "Or if I have, I either didn't recognise it or don't remember it."

The creature opened the binder and placed a single claw on the page. "I'll not go over all of the rules or give the entire speech at this particular moment in time, but the short version is that I'm offering you a job."

"Doing what?" asked Rarity. "I'm not one to shy away from hard work, but I would need to know what I'd be doing before I agreed to do anything."

"Well, I can't give you the exact details, as how you go about it does depend on you, but basically, you've been selected because you exemplify the qualities that we want to see in the world."

"It looks like you just have to keep doing what you were already doing," clarified Spike, having snatched the binder and flipped through several pages. He was speedreading, just like Twilight had taught him. "It looks like there are going to be some complications, given that we're all dead, but there are lots of ways around that. Methods we'd have to learn, techniques we'd have to employ, and a boss we'd all have to report to, but other than that, we're pretty much going to be the will of the seven elements of harmo-- Seven?"

"There are six elements of harmony, Spike," reminded Twilight. "I remember that, at least."

"There are seven," answered the creature, retrieving the binder. "Would I have brought Spike in on this if he didn't show a quality that we found to be important?" The creature stood up and walked to the door. "I will be leaving a guardian next to the door. If you need anything, just ask. Think it over, and if you want to help, then ask for me by name. If not... you know where the gate to eternity is."

Twilight took the binder as it was offered to her. "How do we ask for you? We haven't been given your name."

The creature chuckled, perhaps even smiled under its hood. "I am Vesper Evenstar."

Chapter the Third: For Equestria

After Vesper left, there were several minutes of silence from the girls as Spike read, in full, the terms of their agreement. The binder itself was not so thick, only two centimetres, and contained within seven copies of the contract. It was less than fifteen minutes to go over everything.

"Uniforms?" gasped Rarity. "Oh, I do hope they are customisable. It would be just awful to wear the same thing every single day."

"That guy at the gate was wearing something different than Vesper," Rainbow pointed out. "Pretty sure there are different uniforms."

"That could be for a number of reasons," offered Twilight. "It could be for different ranks to determine who has the most authority, or it could be based on their exact job. Different tasks require different protections, after all, so if Vesper is doing clerical work, just cloth is fine, while, as a gate guard, one might want more armour."

"I definitely want something lighter," snorted Rainbow. "Something I can fly in."

"If they give us requirements for the uniforms, I'm sure I could find something to suit you," chuckled Rarity. "My mind is already aglow with a cacophony of designs."

"Some of which might be irrelevant," reminded Applejack. "Remember, we don't know what uniforms we're gonna hafta wear."

"I just hope it's something better than what they're wearing," added Pinkie. "White is just sooo boooring! I wonder if they have anything in pink?"

"I'd definitely have to agree with you that a splash of colour is required," agrees Rarity. "It's almost Labour Day, after all. Who would want to wear white after Labour Day? So tacky..."

"I don't see any further details," calls Spike, having been skimming through the wording. "Nothing about colour, shape, or cloth variety."

"Then it's settled," answers Rarity. "If I know anything about contract negotiation, it's that any amount of vague language in a contract that goes into dispute is automatically in favour of the recipient of the contract, and is counted against the presenter. No specifications on the uniform means we may decide the details."

"Unless there's a listed rule that says otherwise," reminded Twilight. "Don't forget, the first subsection of this section, page fourteen, section seven, subsection A, paragraph one, states that: "Any and all rules pertaining to the mandates of paradise shall be adhered to." It's possible, even probable, that we can't just wear "whatever we want.""

"Nevertheless, no such mandates have been presented," assured Rarity. "If they wish to enforce such rules, said rules must be presented and made clear. It is simply unfair to make us follow rules without telling us what rules we have to follow."

"What about profanity?" asked Applejack.

"Begging your pardon?"

"Growin' up, Ah never knew what language was bad language until Ah used it in front a' Granny. It's not like she'd a' given me a list."

"Applejack does have a point," agreed Twilight. "I think it might be reasonable to ask for a rulebook before we agree to anything."

"That's not at all what Applejack was saying!" interjected Rainbow. "What she means is that, without a rulebook, we can't know whether or not we're breaking a rule until we're punished for it."

"No, Ah was suggesting that the rulebook may not contain all a' the rules..."

"In my experience, Rules are meant to be bent," snorted Pinkie. "If they say "no loud music," does that mean you can play loud jazz, because they don't consider it to be a real form of music? Or how about this: Music requires instruments, and there are none. Just a washtub, a broomstick, and a couple of rubber bands. Not a real instrument, and therefore, not real music. And I find it almost unreasonable to classify fireworks as music."

Twilight held up her hoof to quiet them all down. "Let's not forget, everypony, that this is supposed to be paradise. There should be a fair amount of leeway, so long as we are neither negligent nor malfeasant. If we are caring, kind, and at least try to follow the rules as we are given them, we should be fine. Not to mention that, even if there are rules about what we can and cannot wear, Rarity can make it work."

"Long as I can fly, I'm in," stated Rainbow plainly, placing her hoof in the center of the table.

"Ah can't fathom sittin' around and waitin' fer all eternity. At the very least, it's somethin' ta do." Applejack pushed her hoof in.

"Twilight's right," smiled Rarity, reaching for the center. "I'm sure I can make it all work out."

"I already said I was in," agreed Spike. "I'll make sure it all works out."

Pinkie shoved her hoof in the center. "Fun with my closest friends? I couldn't ask for a better afterlife!"

"Then it's settled," smiled Twilight, placing her hoof on top of the others.

Once again, everypony turned to Look at Fluttershy, who still seemed afraid. "You can go on without me," she sniffed. "I'd still rather pay for my crimes."

Rainbow furrowed her brow. "Seriously?"

Fluttershy nodded. "No matter how many ponies I help, it won't change the fact that I abandoned Angel. And that's assuming I can even help them in the first place! I'm not good at dealing with other ponies' problems already, and doing this is just inviting more failure. I'd just slow you down..."

"That's nonsense, and you know it," snapped Applejack. "Everypony here knows that ya did yer best, and that's all that anypony can ask a' ya. We all know ya'd do anything ta make sure Angel is well taken care of."

"I'll go check on him, myself," snorted Rarity.

That drew Fluttershy's attention. "How?"

Spike flipped back a few pages. "It's in the contracts that our role is to ensure the safety of Equus and its citizens. I'm guessing Angel counts as a dependant, and Rarity does have the option to make a judgement as to who may or may not need protection. If she thinks Angel may be in danger, she is allowed to break orders, so long as doing so does not compromise her mission."

Fluttershy's eyes went wide. "You mean...?"

Twilight nodded. "According to the rules, you can go check on angel whenever the creature you're in charge of does not need immediate help."

Fluttershy's hoof shot to the center. "I'm in."

Chapter the Fourth: Ponies of the Cloth

It took a fair bit of convincing for Vesper to allow Spike to change clothes in the same room. He was still behind a privacy curtain, but at the very least, he could talk while they were putting on their new uniforms.

"While I am quite happy to see that not all the robes are shades of white," sighed Rarity, "I must admit that I was not expecting the armour to be a necessary component."

"It's pretty cool, though," smiled Rainbow, flexing her left front leg over and over again, the metal plates clicking and clacking against each other.

"I'd have thought you'd take issue with the fact that there aren't holes for your wings," noted Twilight. "Mine certainly didn't."

"You didn't try putting it on, did you?" asked Pinkie. "Even I have wings, now!"

"Please hurry, girls," urged Fluttershy. "I want to make it back to Equestria as quickly as possible."

"Ah'm ready," answered Applejack, jingling the rings holding up her curtain. As she stepped out, her long amber robes flowed along her body. All four legs were clad in a simple white metal plate without a lot of moving parts. Her hood covered most of her face, save for her snout, and was topped with a pale gold circlet, barely visible under her hat. Most notable, however, was a stack of eight spikes on her back that each spewed a long tendril that formed the shape of a pair of wings.

Fluttershy stepped out next. Her robes were pastel yellow, but only covered her head and torso. Much like Applejack, she was armoured, but rather than white metal plates, her shoulders and hips were adorned with large green shields that came down to her elbows, and her entire back was covered in a matching plate. She had been afforded cloth gloves and socks matching her robes. Her hood was capped with a pink circlet.

"GRR!" shouted Pinkie, bouncing out from behind her curtain. Her bright pink robes were covered in little bells, and her armour was a pink-gold chainmail, so every step she took let out a soft jingle. Her crown was also pink-gold, but from it hung several more bells that jingled as she turned her head. "Don't I look absolutely fearsome in this?"

Applejack couldn't help but chortle. "Sure... but didn't ya say ya had wings?"

"Oh, yeah!" Pinkie took a deep breath and pushed out her tentacular wings, which unspooled like party blowers.

Fluttershy arched her back, and a few tendrils slid out of the edges of her back plate. "I think we all do."

"But not nearly so cool as mine!" boasted Rainbow, sliding out into the open on her knees while playing air guitar. Her armour was intricate and made up of several moving parts, making it easy to move around in deftly. Rather than a full robe, she was fitted with a jerkin, done up in the colours of her mane and tail. She had the most metal on her by far, including wearing a helmet instead of a hood. It was still fitted with a circlet, sky blue against her cobalt armour. And rather than simple tendrils, her wings were jets of flame that shone in every colour of the rainbow. "Can you believe how awesome this looks?!"

"My turn!" sang Rarity, grabbing the curtain, but then moving away. "Unless Twilight or Spike would like to go first?"

"I'm not sure how this is supposed to go on," answered Twilight. "I'll be another minute, I think. Go ahead."

Spike poked his head out, showing his white-gold circlet, and then pulled his head back in. "Go ahead. I'll catch up."

Rarity's curtain flew aside. Much like Rainbow, her armour was made up of a lot of small parts. Unlike Rainbow, almost none of them were embellishments. From beneath her long, flowing pastel pink robes with their blue filigree, her legs were covered in small overlapping scales, which, while appearing white at first, showed that they changed colour depending on how the light hit them. Her wings were colourful, reminiscent of her time in Cloudsdale. Her hood wasn't closed, but she wore a porcelain mask designed to fit her face exactly, without completely covering her mouth and nose. Her circlet was, so far, the only one that wasn't closed, as it was open in the front, like a backwards horseshoe, with silver leaves adorning it. "A real shame to have my mane covered, but it's the only way the mask would stay on."

"Aha!" exclaimed Twilight. "That's how it fits together!"

Twilight pulled the curtain aside and stepped out into the open. Her outfit seemed to be all cloth at first, with the only exposed metal being sabatons, but as she moved her legs, it was clear that, beneath her lilac robes, a sheet of some kind of chainmail protected her. Her gold circlet was adorned with five spikes, the center of which was the largest, all of which were adorned with stars. Her face was completely obscured by her hood, and the tendrils of her wings pointed forward like claws.

"Wow. Nice crown," noted Pinkie. "Do you think you'll qualify as a princess here, too?"

Twilight just shrugged. "Who knows? It's just the outfit I was given. Maybe they thought I'd be more comfortable this way?"

"It does suit you, though," smiled Rarity. "Okay, last one. Spikey-wikey?"

"Go ahead without me," he said, not coming out. "I'll catch up."

"Don't be silly, Spike!" urged Pinkie. "We want to see what your uniform looks like!"

"It's nothing special," he called back. "It's very normal."

"None of these outfits are the same," snorted Applejack. "Ah sincerely doubt yours is "normal." Even if it is, Ah don't know which one of us is in the "normal" uniform. Why don'cha come show us?"

"Promise not to laugh?"

"I make no such promise," stated Pinkie.

Rainbow elbowed her in the ribs. "I do. Nopony's going to laugh at you. Come on out."

Spike grabbed the curtain and pulled it aside, bracing himself for their laughter. He was wearing just an orange tabard, with a riveted wooden shield on his back. He didn't even have a hood, just the white-gold circlet.

"So, why would we laugh at you?" asked Twilight. "You look the most like your old self out of any of us."

"But I don't have any cool armour," he pouted. "You all look super strong, and I look... normal."

Twilight put a hoof on his shoulder. "You look great, Spike. You have for a long time. What you're wearing is not going to change our opinions of you. Come on, let's go tell Vesper that we're ready."

Chapter the Fifth: Angel's Guardian

Fluttershy crashed through the window to her cottage.

Rather, she would have, had she not phased right through it with no impact. The shock caught her off-guard, and she was in the root cellar before she realised she'd come through the floor.

She backtracked a few paces, bringing herself back upstairs. "Angel? Angel, where are you?!" she called. "Mama's here, Angel! Come down for your dinner!"

No sound was heard. In a panic, Fluttershy darted from room to room, though there weren't many rooms to begin with, looking for any sign of Angel Bunny, or worse, what remained of him. She found him upstairs on the bed, curled up like he was when he was angry with her.

"Angel! There you are!"

She darted over to him and scooped him up, but he remained where he was. She tried again, but her hooves just went right through him. She was, after all, just a spirit of kindness.

She lowered herself to the edge of the bed, as she had countless times before. He was still alive, she could see that. He was breathing, though it was a little unsteady.

"Angel?" she said softly, trying to put a hoof on his shoulder. "Can you hear me?"

No response.

"Can you even feel my presence?"

He shifted slightly. That wasn't a yes, but more importantly, it wasn't a no.

"Oh, Angel... I'm so sorry. I never meant to leave you all alone like this. You know I always wanted what was best for you."

He sniffled.

"I'm going downstairs right now, and I'm going to give you some food and water."

Fluttershy moved to the stairs and walked down them, realising that she could have just as easily slipped right through the floor, but unwilling to do that until she was more comfortable with her status. To her shock, Angel's food bowl was overstocked, and his water was just fine. He had food, he had water, he had safety, he had a warm and comfortable bed to sleep in... He was fine.

Why was he fine? Who was coming in here to check on him? She wasn't mad that somepony had stepped in, she just wanted to know who to thank. Somepony had come to his aid, and that somepony deserved to be rewarded for their efforts.

As if on cue, the front door opened and closed. Fluttershy turned to exit, wanting to see who had come to Angel's aid. To her shock, it was the exact creature she had been sent to deal with.

Discord trudged through the house, carrying on his shoulder a sack of corn. He set it in the pantry, then returned to the kitchen. He sighed when he spotted Angel's food dish, still untouched. He sighed and picked up a carrot before making his way upstairs, and Fluttershy followed him.

Of course, Discord was always welcome in her home. Or at least, he had been when this was her home. He tended to be destructive, and perhaps a little bit hurtful, but since he was reformed, he wasn't intentionally causing harm, just throwing temper-tantrums.

But that didn't explain why he was here, now. Sure, he and Fluttershy were friends, but he was under no obligation to care for Angel Bunny.

"Still waiting?" he asked, sitting on the corner of the bed.

Angel pulled the blanket tighter around himself. He and Discord were not very friendly with each other. Fluttershy had tried to be patient with them, but one way or another, they just didn't see eye-to-eye.

Which is why Fluttershy found it so surprising that Discord would do something like this. He didn't like Angel, or at least, if asked, would admit to enjoying tormenting him. So then why was Discord troubling himself with taking care of Angel?

"I've brought you something," said Discord, placing in front of Angel the carrot he took from his food dish.

Angel just kicked the carrot away, not even looking at Discord.

"I guess you're still not hungry," sighed Discord, picking up the carrot and bringing it back to the stairs. "Why would you be? It's only been three days since you last ate anything. I'll just put this back in the kitchen for you..."

Fluttershy watched as Discord left the room. She turned back to look at Angel, then sighed. She wanted him to eat, to leave her bed and go on, but he wouldn't budge. At the very least, Discord was doing the bare minimum to look after him.

She turned to follow Discord. If she hurried, she could catch him before he left for Chaosville. Except, when she made it past the door, he wasn't opening a portal. He was just... walking away, dragging his tail behind him. Not flying, floating, slithering or even sauntering. Come to think of it, he hadn't even used any chaos magic while he was in her house. Part of her even wondered if he could even still cast chaos magic.

Nevertheless, she followed him. She called out to him twice, but he couldn't hear her. Part of her wondered if she should go back to Vesper and ask for help; for guidance on what she could do, but decided against it. She would watch for a bit, come up with a plan, and see if she could enact it before bothering her boss.

Discord didn't go far. Once he was out of town, there was a small plot hidden from Ponyville's view by a small hill. To call it a campsite was generous, as it was barely much of anything. A small frame, wrapped in cheesecloth and covered with leaves sheltered a stone plinth, behind which sat a tarpaulin. A tin can sat atop it to keep it from blowing away, and a pit of ash sat in the middle of a ring of stones.

Discord grabbed the can and dropped a few bits into it. He then set it aside and wrapped the tarp around himself, then lay down atop the plinth, curling up just as Angel had.

Fluttershy was aghast. Why did he need bits? Why was he even holding onto them? Why was he sleeping here, and not in Chaosville? Why didn't he use his magic? Did he even still have his magic?

Fluttershy shook her head. She had to save him. She owed him that much, and also, it was her job.

Chapter the Sixth: Saving Discord

For the next hour, Discord just lay there, not doing much of anything. He was breathing, he was blinking, but he wasn't fidgeting or fussing or twiddling his thumbs. He just stared ahead, letting time pass. Occasionally, he would sigh, but it wasn't the kind of sigh where he was asking for attention. He seemed genuinely hurt.

Fluttershy was definitely confused. Discord and Angel weren't friends. Why was it that Discord was caring for Angel, and why was he so upset that Angel was mad at him?

Eventually, Discord drifted off to sleep, his breathing stabilised and his eyes closed. To Fluttershy's amazement, a bubble appeared above his head, showing images in his dream.

Fluttershy was horrified by what she saw. It started off with the last time she saw Discord before the events leading to her death, followed by every step he had taken to ensure that she and the others went to solve their last problem together, to the very moment everything had gone wrong. She watched the colour drain from his face as he rushed to pick up her broken body, saw the terror on his face as he realised that he had caused this, and felt the crushing weight of responsibility that he had to be experiencing in that moment.

As the dream started from the beginning, Fluttershy noted that Discord pulled his tarp closer to him. Very obviously, he was haunted by his decisions. He had created the last problem; brought together the villains under a single banner, and set them loose upon Equestria. She didn't know why he had done so, but that didn't matter. He was causing complications on both sides to create an even match, and when it all went wrong, he had felt it. He had never meant for her to die. That was an unfortunate accident. An accident that he rightfully blamed himself for, but one he had never intended to cause.

As she placed her hoof on his shoulder, she found that it didn't slip through. He was cold to the touch, but she left her hoof there.

"I don't know if you can hear me," she said, gently rubbing his shoulder. "I don't even know if you want to hear my voice, but there's something I need to say.

"I'm not going to tell the other girls about this. They deserve to know, but I'm going to keep this just between you and me. Twilight has made it clear that intent doesn't matter as much as the actual events; That it doesn't matter what you were trying to do, but what you actually did do. If you were trying to show off how fast you could go and ran into somepony, just trying to look cool doesn't mean your victim is uninjured.

"But I have to disagree. Intent matters a lot, and I would even go so far as to say that it's more important than the actual events. Without intent, there would be no actions. Without desiring to make a change, no change would happen. And while sometimes, you may fail to do what you set out to do, and ponies could end up injured or even dead, I don't believe you intended to cause any real harm."

Discord shuddered in his sleep as Fluttershy rubbed his back. He was watching himself picking up her remains again.

"I can't pretend to know why you did what you did. Perhaps you knew something we didn't. Perhaps you were afraid that we weren't ready, and you set this up to make sure that we were. Perhaps you wanted to gather up all of Equestria's enemies and lock them away so that they weren't a problem anymore; to turn all of our foes into just one so that we could more easily be rid of them. I'm even willing to believe that you did all of this for the good of Equestria. Because if our destruction was your intent, you wouldn't be beating yourself up over it now."

She leaned forward and kissed his forehead. "I forgive you, Discord. You didn't mean for this to happen, obviously, and you have justly accepted your fault in all of this. However, you've also started to move towards fixing the mess you made. Maybe not the best steps, as that would be finding somepony to watch over Equestria, but you've found somepony to watch over Angel Bunny, and that's a baby step in the right direction."

She looked up at the dream. It was still just as haunting as it had been when it started. "Let's see if we can fix this, hm?"

Placing her hoof on the dream bubble, Fluttershy stopped the image and replaced it. No longer was it the series of events that had landed Discord in this funk. He was no longer watching her die over and over. What she had in mind was something else. Into his dream, she injected some of her own memories of trying to make Angel eat when he was grumpy, making some of his favourite foods, and brushing his fluffy tail.

After a few loops of that, she added in a few scenes of Angel doing nice things for her; making sure she took time out of her day to care for herself when she'd spent all day taking care of other animals, pushing her to do a better job, driving her to improve herself, and taking care of her when she was sick. He really was sweet, when he wanted to be.

The final touch was replacing her hooves with Discord's claws. He was now the one cuddling with Angel Bunny on a cold, dark winter's night, snuggled up in front of the fireplace.

He seemed to be sleeping a bit more soundly, now. Fluttershy didn't know if she'd actually done the right thing, or if she'd even helped, but she'd planted the idea in his head that he and Angel could be friends in the future. She definitely wanted them to be closer to each other, but she'd be okay with Discord just ensuring that Angel made it to a good home. And also, she wanted him to stop blaming himself for what happened. It was not good for him to dwell on that, and he would be better served by moving forward and working to make Equestria better. In her absence, she was counting on him.

Chapter the Eighth: Mending Fences

Twilight came to rest on the ground as graciously as ever. Her funeral, as well as that of her friends, had been held right away to ensure that they were properly interred, and a rush was ordered on their statue. As she looked up at the plinth, only her own statue had been put in place, and not even finished. Were it not for the cutie mark, she'd be unable to tell that Fluttershy was right next to her, as she was just a body with wings at this point, and with Twilight having no wings yet, she knew it was far from over. Then again, she hadn't even been dead for a week yet. That they even had a marble plinth with anchor points was kind of impressive, let alone almost one and a half bronze sculptures.

Vesper had sent her here to deal with feuding royalty. She knew that she had a lot of unfinished business, as her responsibilities were to all of Equestria, but it was possible, even likely, that Luna and Celestia has been working to fill those roles. In fact, that's what she was expecting; Celestia and Luna arguing over how to rule over Equestria after having a taste of their retirement.

She looked around, and they were nowhere in sight. Perhaps she needed to go find them? Vesper has said that the targets would be around here, and she would know them when she saw them.

"Again with this?" came a familiar voice, but not either of the princesses. "How many times are you going to show up here?"

"For as long as it takes to pour forth my feelings," came another familiar voice. This one very familiar.

Twilight hid behind the plinth. Vesper had told her that she could not be seen, but she really didn't want to risk being seen by the bearer of the second voice. That would be a problem, as much as she wished it wasn't.

"I'm just saying, you've been pouring your feelings out here twice daily," continued the first voice. "It's not healthy to live in the past."

Thorax walked into the room, a large bouquet of flowers on his back. "I think you'll find that it's healthy to grieve. What's not healthy is bottling it up. And I'll not be bullied into anger. This is a place of reverence, I'll have you know."

Ember followed him in. "I'm not trying to make you angry. I'm trying to tell you to leave. Go home, Thorax."

"I will," he answered. "Just as soon as I'm done grieving."

"You can grieve at home."

Thorax took the bouquet from his back and placed it in front of Twilight's statue with the countless others. There were flowers for everyone here, though Spike was offered mostly gems and crystal flowers from the crystal ponies. Rarity had mostly roses, Pinkie Pie carnations, Fluttershy tulips, Twilight orchids, Applejack had a lot of yarrow and angelica, and Rainbow Dash didn't have flowers as much as trophies and medals. Right out front and most easily notable, three medals of valor, awarded to Spitfire, Fleetfoot and Soarin, and left for her memory.

"So could you," replied Thorax, almost accusatively before stopping to regain his composure. "Why are you here?"

Ember shrugged. "Same as you, I suppose. I'm here to grieve for the fallen."

"You say that, but every time I come by, you're not grieving. You're standing out front, just waiting for me to show up. Don't you ever leave?"

"Hey, I have every right to be here," growled Ember. "This is a public place!"

The guards, a dragon and hippogriff in particular, readied their spears. "No fighting in the mausoleum!" the hippogriff guard shouted.

Ember snarled, but recomposed herself. "I have not had the opportunity to grieve properly," she admitted. "There is something that I must do, but I have to wait for the conditions to be correct."

"And what conditions might those be?" asked Thorax.

"I'm not telling you," snorted Ember. "What, you expect me to just spill all of my secrets?"

Thorax shook his head. "Not all of them, no. I just want you to stop gatekeeping the mausoleum. I'd like to remember Twilight on my own, without you or anyone else looking over my shoulder."

That struck a nerve with Twilight. She had thought he was here to pay homage to Spike, first and foremost. After all, Spike was the first one to befriend him, and was the catalyst that kept Thorax moving forward. Twilight hadn't spent as much time with him as Spike had.

Then again, her time with him recently had probably been more intense than his time with Spike. The big reason she didn't want Thorax to see her was because they had been building a relationship together. Unofficially, they were dating, having just decided to try it out in secret before Celestia and Luna retired. It had been... complicated, but they had held to the belief that when this trial was over, they would be able to relax a bit and explore their connection. It was Twilight in the end that had changed their relationship status, though it wasn't by her choice. She hadn't dumped him, but the result was the same. His heart was broken.

"Perhaps I should keep looking over your shoulder, then," snarked Ember. "Maybe then you'll listen to what I said and go grieve in your own home."

Thorax bowed, placing his pincers at the statue's hooves. Twilight could feel them, as if they were really touching her hooves. She wondered if all instances of somepony touching her statue would have this effect, or if it was some other variable that was causing this. Maybe it was just those she was close to? Maybe just this particular statue? Maybe just when she was around to see it? Who knew?

"What, you're not going to answer me?"

Thorax shook his head. "This is no place to start an argument."

Vesper was right. In that moment, Twilight knew who she had to protect. It was both of them. And she knew just how to do it. She flew up to Thorax, waved her hoof in his face to make sure he couldn't see her, then placed her hoof on his shoulder and whispered into his ear.

Thorax sighed. "Ember?"

"I'm still here."

"Hopefully not for long..."

Ember snarled. "Is that a threat?"

He shook his head. "It's an invitation. Come to dinner with me."

Ember's jaw dropped. "Really?"

"Unless you think your conditions are about to be met. You should eat something. And if fighting with me is going to help you deal with your feelings, then we should do it somewhere that's not here."

Ember stopped to consider the offer, then smirked. "You're on."

Chapter the Ninth: Opening the Gate

The three of them walked around Ponyville for a bit, just walking in relative silence. Occasionally, one would make an innocuous comment, the other would not really respond, and they'd go right back to not talking.

After half an hour of wandering, Ember finally spoke up. "We've gone past this place twice. Do you even know where you're going?"

"I thought you'd suggest something," retorted Thorax. "The changelings mostly eat feelings."

"You asked me to dinner! You're supposed to be the one coming up with a plan!"

"You've always been more assertive," reasoned Thorax. "I figured you'd pick someplace. Or at least, if I picked, you'd say no."

"This was your idea," snorted Ember. "You wanted to go to dinner. Why didn't you think this through? What have you been doing this entire last half hour?"

Thorax fell silent and looked away. Twilight wanted to help him, of course, but she had to admit, she hadn't been thinking about it, either.

After a few seconds of quick thought, she grabbed Thorax by the chin and raised his eyes to a sign. "Go there."

As if he had been told that this was a good idea, Thorax smiled. "Let's go there," he pointed.

"Fine."

The two walked into the place; a small two-story cafe called "Grapevine." They were promptly seated and given menus, which they perused quietly. Twilight joined them at the table, though she wished that she had been afforded a chair. Being just a spirit, it was unreasonable to expect the hostess to give her one, nor could she move one over on her own, and she was too inexperienced to will one into existence for herself.

As the silence grew uncomfortable, Twilight placed a hoof on Ember's shoulder. "Talk to him." She knew that Thorax was trying to open her up and help, and even if he wasn't, he would if given the chance. She also knew that Ember wasn't going to open up without some coaxing.

Ember cleared her throat. "What are you going to order?"

Thorax took a deep breath. "Well, probably just something to drink, but don't let that stop you from a meal. It's my treat."

"You're not going to eat anything?"

"Well, I'm a changeling. I have a changeling's diet. That means feeding off of emotions, and with Equestria grieving, my options are limited. I've been taking in a lot of sadness lately, but there's not a lot else to pick from. Even if I found somepony happy, I wouldn't dare take that away from them."

Ember lowered her head a bit. "Is that why you're spending so much time at the mausoleum? You're so full of sadness at the end of every meal that you have to expel it somehow?"

"That's part of it," he admitted. "But like I said earlier, I'd like to be alone with Princess Twilight's statue. There's something I need to say to her, and to her alone."

"Oh yeah? What's that?"

Thorax smirked. "Something for her alone to hear. Not for you."

Twilight had an inkling of what he wanted to say. Their relationship had been good, and since he could sense her feelings, he knew she felt that way. He might have felt differently, but he didn't show it if he did. He was always supportive.

"Suit yourself."

"What about you? What were you hoping to say to her?"

Ember shrugged. "Nothing."

"Surely, you must have wanted to say something..."

"Yeah. To Spike."

Thorax nodded. "What did you want to say to Spike?"

"Something for his ears only."

Twilight didn't know if Spike had a romantic relationship with Ember, or any kind of relationship that they were trying to keep secret. Spike had never said anything about it, even when Twilight had told him that she was seeing Thorax. If they had a secret relationship, it was kept very securely.

They ordered their drinks, and Ember a side dish; hay fries with topaz flakes. They had started to open up a bit more, but for almost an hour, they just talked about small things; the weather, what they were working on, what they were planning for their respective kingdoms once they returned to them, and anything else that was already public knowledge.

While Twilight was glad that they were talking and remaining civil, she had the distinct feeling that progress wasn't being made. They were dancing around the problem, rather than fixing it. She didn't want to force them to spill their secrets to each other, but she did want them to trust each other a little bit more.

After thinking it over, she nodded, ready to implement her plan. Placing her hoof on Thorax's shoulder, she told him to "Tell her about your relationship with Spike."

Thorax nodded. "You know, I owe a lot to Spike."

"Oh? I knew you were friends. He spoke highly whenever he spoke of you."

"Did he ever tell you how we met?"

"Not that I recall."

Thorax nodded and poked at an ice cube with his straw. "He was out in the tundra, looking to kill me. To him, I was just a monster. I looked like one, too. To be honest, I think he was just scared of me. Who wouldn't be, right?"

"You? Scary?" Ember chuckled. "I find that hard to--"

Thorax slammed his hooves to the table, transformed into his most hideous, frightening form, and hissed and growled at her, snapping his new claws in the air around her as fire blazed in his eyes.

And just like that, he was back to normal. "I've softened up my edges over the years. I wanted to be better, and so I have been."

Ember, like a lot of the cafe patrons, was shocked by the transformation, and was now speechless, having partially recovered. "I see..."

"If Spike hadn't seen that I could be like this," he gestured to himself, "then I have to wonder if all changelings would still be considered monsters."

"Sir," stated the manager, trying to remain calm, "I'm going to have to ask you to leave. We don't tolerate that kind of behaviour here."

Thorax nodded and reached into his purse to pay for the drinks and Ember's fries, plus a bit extra for the outburst. "My apologies. I hope I earn your forgiveness someday." He turned to Ember. "I'll see you at the mausoleum in the morning, I guess..."

As he went to leave, Ember paid a bit more, not wanting to underpay on his account and rushed after him, and Twilight followed.

Chapter the Tenth: Common Ground

The trio walked to the city limits and yet further, out into the open countryside. Thorax held his head low, and Ember followed behind him, very occasionally chiming in.

"I had no idea you could do that," she said when he finally came to a stop. "That was actually pretty cool."

Thorax sighed. "I don't like showing that side of me. It scares everypony around me."

"It didn't scare me."

Thorax turned and narrowed his eyes at her.

"Okay, fine, just a little..."

He turned off the road and sat down. "I would say that I didn't mean to scare you, but... that was my intent. Not to be malicious, but just to show what I used to be."

"You used to look badass."

"I'm sure you don't appreciate the softer, more gentle look that the changelings have now, but if changing the way our system works means changing our appearance, then it's worth it. I even like the new look."

"It certainly helps you blend in with ponies better."

Thorax nodded. "Were it not for Spike, most changelings would still look like that. We'd have managed to conquer Equestria when Chrysalis kidnapped Twilight and her friends, and I'd have starved to death in the icy caverns beneath the Crystal Empire. All of that was made possible by Spike."

Ember took a deep breath and sat down next to him. "Did I ever tell you how I became the Dragon Lord?"

"Spike did," answered Thorax. "He was named Dragon Lord, and he gave that honour to you."

Ember nodded. "In short, yeah. There's more to it than that, but without him, I'd have never been able to take my place as ruler of the dragons."

There was a short pause, then Thorax laughed.

"What's funny about that?!" growled Ember.

"No, not that," chuckled Thorax. "I was just remembering something Twilight told me about the reclamation of the Crystal Empire. In order to ascertain whether or not Twilight was fit to rule, Celestia sent her to reactivate the Crystal Heart, and Spike made that happen, too."

"...So?"

"Spike decides who becomes royalty."

Ember paused for a moment, then shared in Thorax's chuckle. Twilight hadn't even considered that. Spike was directly responsible for instating multiple rulers across multiple species. He was a very important dragon, not just to her, but to the whole world. She already knew that Equestria was worse off without him, but had not stopped to look at how important, exactly.

After a moment of silence, Thorax looked around. "Can I tell you something secret?"

"You can tell me whatever you want," shrugged Ember. "How I'll respond is another story."

"Would you keep something secret if I asked you not to talk about it?"

"That depends. How juicy is the secret?"

Thorax shook his head. "Forget it..."

Ember sighed. "Fine. I swear, on my honour as Dragon Lord, that I will try not to spill this secret of yours. I swear to Spike."

Thorax was shocked at the fact that she would swear it to Spike. "I guess that's good enough..." He took a deep breath, then reached into his purse. "Twilight and I were seeing each other before... well, you know... We were keeping it secret at first, mostly to see if there was a connection, but then we decided to put it on hold. She was dealing with the well-being of Equestria, after all, especially against Chrysalis. During lulls in the action, I'd sleep at her place... in her bed... And you know, I could sense how she felt about me. I felt the same." From his purse, he pulled out a small box covered in black felt. Popping it open, he held it out to Ember.

"You're kidding..."

He shook his head. "I'm not. I was going to ask her to marry me."

Twilight put her hooves to her mouth as her eyes began to well up. She would have said "Yes."

"Of course, first, we'd have to pull ourselves out of crisis mode, and then at least four months of public courtship before I could propose in public, and then several month of pretending to plan the wedding, which we would have already planned out."

"Really? You think you'd have planned it out by then? Four months from now, assuming she had made it back?"

Thorax shrugged. "Twilight is... was... really good at planning and organising things. If I had proposed to her, she would grab a fresh binder and start putting ideas into it that very evening. Within a week, she'd have stuffed it to full and would have six proposed guest lists, twelve different cake designs, fifteen dresses that she can pick and choose pieces from, and over a hundred games between the bachelor and bachelorette parties. Favourites are highlighted in yellow, not sure in blue, needs more data in pink."

Twilight's smile could grow no larger. Thorax had even memorised the criteria for highlighting she used. He really and truly cared about her.

Ember took a deep breath and then released it. "Is that what you wanted to be alone for? You wanted to give her the ring?"

Thorax nodded. "The ring, and a kiss. I know it's just a statue, but... she was special to me."

Ember snorted a puff of smoke out of her nose. "Well... I suppose I should show you this..." Ember pulled from her own bag a gold necklace with inlaid rubies.

"What's that?"

"It was a gift for Spike. Dragons aren't known for mourning the dead, but Spike deserves it. I was waiting for his statue to be put up, and then for privacy so that I could put it around his neck without appearing weak, by dragon standards. I need to at least look powerful..."

Thorax looked up at her. "Those are your conditions?"

Ember paused. "...Yeah..."

Thorax was silent for several minutes, then stood up, offering his hoof to Ember. "Meet me at the mausoleum in a week. I have a few connections, and I'll see to it that Spike's statue is up, and you and I will have opportunities for private grieving."

"I still don't want to do it in front of you," Ember snarled. "I can't look weak in front of another leader."

"I already know what you plan to do," Thorax smiled. "I swear to Spike that I will not breathe a word of what happens in that mausoleum."

Ember took his hoof and stood up, then pulled him into a tight hug. "Tell anypony I did this, and I'll kill you..."

Thorax chuckled and rubbed her shoulder. "Not a word to anyone..."

That was it. Seeing them now as closer friends, Twilight knew her work was done. They could handle the rest without her interference.

Chapter the Eleventh: Fooling Yourself

Applejack skidded to a stop in her living room. Well, her former living room, anyway... Vesper had told her that the pony most in need of her help was Apple Bloom, and there was no way Applejack was going to let her kin be in need.

From the living room, she bolted up the stairs to Apple Bloom's room. She wasn't there. She wasn't in the bathroom, Big Mac's room, Granny's room, or even Applejack's old room.

She finally found her in the kitchen, washing dishes. Applejack breathed a sigh of relief upon finding her sister, but then remembered that she had been called here because Apple Bloom was in danger. She rushed over to the sink to make sure there weren't any sharp knives Apple Bloom could cut her hooves on. None. No broken glasses, no shattered plates... Everything seemed safe.

Applejack had helped to raise Apple Bloom, and she knew she had done so properly. She had been there to see her grow into a fine young mare, and any fine young mare such as Apple Bloom could surely handle doing the dishes safely, even without Big Mac watching her.

"Vesper must a' been wrong," concluded Applejack. "Apple Bloom is fine."

She turned to leave, to go back to Vesper and report that nothing was wrong to fix, but as she hit the doorway, she stopped. Vesper was an angel. Allegedly, one of the more powerful ones. Surely, she wasn't mistaken?

"Then again," she thought aloud, "it might be a good idear ta keep an eye on 'er. See what she does." Maybe Apple Bloom wasn't in danger right this very second, but that didn't mean she wasn't about to be. And to be fair, it was possible that Applejack had missed something. It was safer to just double-check.

As Apple Bloom finished the dishes, she grabbed her bag from the hook by the door. It jingled a little bit, which set her head on a swivel, but upon hearing the silence, gently lowered it down and opened it. Four glass bottles were inside, each one protected by a sock. Looking around, Apple Bloom took each bottle out, rushing them over to the sink, flushing them out of whatever little bit was left inside of them, filling them with soapy water, shaking them, and then rinsing them.

Applejack sniffed one of the bottles. Hard cider. Probably from Big Mac's store room. Why did Apple Bloom have them?

She stuffed them back into the bag and hoisted it up over her shoulder, taking them down into Big Mac's cider cellar. She placed the empty bottles back on the rack of clean, empty bottles. Big Mac had never bothered to count these up. They were just empty bottles, after all. She walked past the brewing equipment, the racking equipment, and the bottling equipment, going straight for the stock.

This tended to rotate as was necessary. On any given day outside of the big cider sales, there could be anywhere from two hundred to six hundred bottles, depending on when the batches were ready and when the orders came in. He would sell them by the half-dozen, or ship them in 36-bottle cases, and the first to be made were always the first ones out.

Every batch was a little bit different, as the apples were always a little bit different, depending on the weather, if they had to be picked early, if they had to be picked late, what pesticides needed to be used to deter swarms, and even their size. The batches were always different in some way, but Big Mac was a professional. He could make the cider taste almost the same every single time.

That was probably the reason Apple Bloom could stuff four bottles of the stuff into her bag without reasonably suspecting that she'd be caught. Each one was wrapped in a sock and placed beside her books, then her bag was sealed, and she quickly made her way swiftly but silently up to her room.

Applejack placed her hoof on Apple Bloom's shoulder. "Now, Ah know we done taught ya better 'n that, Apple Bloom! Ah can't believe this! Ya gone an' stole from yer own family! That's one a' the most dishonest, fool things ya ever done did! Y'all went an' made me all frazzled! You go down and put those bottles back before Big Macintosh notices, an' maybe Ah won't tell on you!"

Normally, such a thorough tongue-lashing would set Apple Bloom on course to correct her behaviour. She could fix this on her own, as long as she had a reason to do so. This time, however, she didn't rush off to fix the problem. She didn't even trudge. Instead, she sat back against the door and just started weeping.

Obviously, Applejack felt bad about making her sister cry. If Apple Bloom was happy, it would make Applejack happy. But she stood her ground. Apple Bloom had done something inherently wrong, and she had to work her way towards being forgiven.

Apple Bloom continued to sob and sniffle quietly until there was a knock on her door. Applejack turned to look at the desk clock. 6:31 AM. Big Mac usually woke up at 6:30, and Applejack would be woken up at this time, too, as he made his way down the hall. For Applejack, this was the second wake-up call, as she had a desk clock of her own, and she was usually brushing her mane at this time.

Falling as silent as she could for fear of Big Mac hearing her, Apple Bloom moved across the room to blow her nose and wipe her face. She then stepped out into the hallway and rushed to the bathroom to wash her face in the sink. Other than the fact that her eyes were red, it was hard to tell that she'd just been crying, and even if somepony were to notice, she could pass it off as having lost her sister. She had a good reason for crying.

"Apple Bloom, ya need ta come clean," Applejack reminded her, putting a hoof on her shoulder again. "Big Macintosh will fergive ya, but ya have ta tell 'im now. The longer ya wait, the harder it's gonna be."

Apple Bloom lowered her head and wiped her face again before looking up into the mirror, scrunching up her face in disgust, and walking out.

Chapter the Twelfth: Dishonest

Applejack followed Apple Bloom closely as she made her way down to the breakfast table. Big Mac was already frying up some eggs for breakfast, and as they were going, he was shredding potatoes and onion for hash browns.

"Mornin', Big Mac," groaned Apple Bloom, climbing up into her seat. "Sleep well?"

"Nope," he answered in his usual tone.

Applejack turned to look at Big Mac. She hadn't been particularly worried about him. He was in mourning, obviously, and he definitely looked worse for wear, but he was acting under the correct assumption that, right now, his family needed somepony to lean on, and as hurt as he was, he was going to be their rock; the pillar that held them up. Big Mac was special like that. Sure, he would grieve and fall apart in his own time, but he knew that lying in bed all day, bawling his eyes out would not be good for his family, or for Sweet Apple Acres, and as long as they needed him, he was going to keep as steady as he could.

For a very brief moment, Applejack stopped to consider whether or not Big Macintosh was capable of handling that news. He was tough, for sure, and he could handle a lot, but right now, he was recovering. Now may not have been the best time to bring up another crack that he would have to patch before it all broke apart.

Big Mac worked fast and efficient, serving up a plate for Apple Bloom in minutes. At the same time, he had a plate for himself, and one more for Granny Smith, who was making her way down the stairs.

"Mornin', Apples," sighed Granny, taking her seat. She was surprisingly doing okay. Not great, as there was a deep sadness plastered all over her face, but despite that, she seemed healthy. She was being well-kept, and that was probably part of Big Mac's doing, combined with the wisdom that came from being alive as long as Granny had.

For a time, nothing was heard but the sound of forks clicking against plates. Usually, the kitchen would be sufficiently lively, but given recent events, Applejack could understand most of the silence. She was unsure if she should try again to convince Apple Bloom to admit her theft, or if she should wait, so right now, she was waiting.

"So, Half-pint, what's yer plans fer today?" asked Granny.

Apple Bloom swallowed her food. "After school, Ah'm gonna go see Scootaloo. Then Ah'll come back an' do mah chores."

Granny Smith rubbed her chin. "Didn't ya go see Scootaloo yesterday, too? As I recall, ya had another friend. Sweetie Belle, weren't it? Don't she need yer help, too?"

"Yeah, but she's managing. Sweetie Belle has her parents ta help 'er out. Scootaloo has her aunts, I guess, but it's not the same."

Granny nodded. "P'raps I should pop in fer a visit; see if they need anythin'..."

"No!" Apple Bloom nearly bolted across the table, but then composed herself. "That won't be necessary. Ah have a handle on it..."

Granny seemed unconvinced, giving Apple Bloom the same disapproving glare Applejack would receive whenever she'd lied to Granny. "Well, if'n you're certain... How 'bout you, Big Mac? Chores?"

"Eeyup."

"Well, make sure ya take it easy. Applebuck season's comin' right up, an' we can't have ya hurtin' yerself an' bein' outta commission."

"Eeyup."

"Now, Ah know that ye'r gonna need some help, so Ah called in yer cousin ta come help ya. Braeburn's gonna stay on the couch fer a week or two, dependin' on how long it takes ta buck all them apples an' tidy up Applejack's room."

Apple Bloom's eyes went wide. "Applejack's..."

Granny reached her hoof across the table, patting Apple Bloom's arm. "Now, don't you worry 'bout that. We ain't sellin' it or givin' it away. We're just cleanin' it up a bit. Applejack wouldn't want us ta just forget about 'er, but we'd be insultin' her memory if'n we let all a' her stuff end up caked in a layer a' dust. It's just cleanin'."

Apple Bloom settled down. Very clearly, she was upset by the fact that anypony was going to touch Applejack's room. Applejack herself took little issue with this. Granny had her photo album and a laundry list of stories, so her memory would persevere in her family's hearts. Clearly, they were all hurt by her passing to some degree, which means she mattered to them a lot. All of her belongings could be set aside until needed, and she'd be fine with that. Even having her possessions used by her family meant invoking her memory, and she would be glad to be of assistance to them even after her passing.

Big Mac scarfed down the last of his breakfast and took his plate to the sink, rinsing it free of debris and heading for the door. As he opened it, Applejack grabbed his shoulder. "Apple Bloom has been stealing cider," she stated plainly. She had made up her mind. Big Mac needed to know.

Big Mac turned and looked at Apple Bloom, then at her bag on the floor, then back to her. He nodded and walked out.

He knew. He had already known that Apple Bloom was stealing from him. Meaning he either didn't care, was allowing it for some inexplicable reason, or he was simply too drained at the moment to be able to do anything about it. Maybe Granny knew already, too, as she had known Apple Bloom was lying about something.

Applejack followed her sister to school and watched her all day long, waiting to see what she did with the bottles. Everything seemed to be completely normal, save for the fact that Scootaloo wasn't in class. Granted, a lot of kids weren't in class, but given the national tragedy that had just occurred, that made some sense. What didn't make sense was that her family knew she was fibbing, and worse, stealing, and was doing nothing to stop it.

The school day passed without incident, and Ms. Cheerilee left the room to a personal memorial in her office of how impactful Twilight had been to the education system of Equestria. She'd always been on good terms with Twilight, anyway, and they both wanted for their students to learn and grow, so that amount of respect between them was understandable.

Meanwhile, Apple Bloom was off. All four bottles were still sealed at this point. However, Apple Bloom wasn't headed to Scootaloo's aunts' house. It was a bit of a shock to find her going all the way back to Sweet Apple Acres and going straight for the Crusader Clubhouse. Applejack followed her in, and was shocked by what she saw there.

"What in tarnation?!"

Chapter the Thirteenth: Fallen Away

Rainbow coasted to a stop, her hooves slipping through the roof as she expected. Through the shingles, sealant, tar and rafters and down into the building, she poked her front hooves, then her head, then the rest of her body. Down a bit further to the floor, and she was able to stop herself from sinking through the floorboards. Cool that it worked, but she'd rather hover. Hovering was more fun than standing, and she felt that she could be a bit more expressive if she used her hooves to accentuate her words.

Rainbow looked around. She knew that Scootaloo was still hopping from caretaker to caretaker occasionally. Sure, her aunts were here in Ponyville, now, but they weren't free from their other responsibilities just because they had moved their house. Besides, as Scoots had put it, she kind of missed exploring the various minute differences in culture from family to family. So even if she didn't have to couchsurf, she was still learning something from it all, and that was making it worthwhile.

That's why Rainbow wasn't shocked to find out that Scootaloo was here, of all places, and not at home. While Rainbow would have preferred that Scoots stay with her aunts, as that would provide a bit more solid support, and likely result in her not needing help, the fact that Scootaloo was off on her own, trying to handle the situation with just her own strength was commendable.

What was not commendable was that she was failing. There was a fine line between wanting to do something under your own power and refusing the help of those who cared about her. One was independence, the other was recklessness.

"Alright, Squirt. Playtime's over. I appreciate you wanting to handle problems on your own, but it's time to let somepony else take a crack at it."

The collapsed pile of blankets in the corner barely moved. The tag on the end flipping in and out was the only indication of life beneath it.

"Come on, Scoots. Up and at 'em! I'll even be generous and show you how I overcome problems like this. Starts with a good breakfast, so let's go make some eggs and grits!"

Rainbow tried to pull back the covers, but they kept falling through her hooves. She wondered if this counted as "trying to be too forceful." Vesper had warned her that she had to be subtle. Thinking on how to be subtle, she spotted the open window, flew out, and after gaining some distance, turned and flew right back in, opening her wings to force a stop. The result was exactly what she'd hoped for. She'd created a gust that blew back the blanket.

Scootaloo whined and curled up a bit tighter. "R-Rainbow..." she whimpered, clutching whatever she held in her hooves tighter.

"That's right, Squirt! It's me, Rainbow Dash! Your honourary big sister and saviour of little fillies everywhere! And I'm here to rescue you!"

"I'm... sorry..."

Rainbow looked down at Scootaloo. She was definitely looking worse than usual. Her usual tenacity and chipper attitude was gone. Hopefully, it was just tucked away somewhere, and not lost forever. One of Rainbow's favourite things about Scootaloo was her refusal to give up, but she seemed to have done just that.

She wasn't looking desiccated just yet, but she was definitely thinner than Rainbow remembered. Her coat was pale, and a little bit dull. Her mane was thin and sweaty, and her whole body was shaking.

"Alright, now listen here, Scoots. You're obviously sick, probably with grief. I don't normally recommend this, but you're going to the hospital."

Scootaloo reached back, groping around for the blanket. She'd have found it, too, if Rainbow didn't blow it away with a strong flap of her wings.

"I can't take you there myself, but I can make it harder for you to stay here. Now, we can do this the easy way, or we can do it the hard way!"

Scootaloo gave up her search and just brought her hoof back to what she was holding. Rainbow had forgotten to look at what it was, and she couldn't pry Scoots's hooves apart to look, for the same reason she couldn't yank off the blanket.

"Looks like we're doing this the hard way..." Rainbow narrowed her eyes and planted herself in the window, flapping her wings to send in air, and blowing through her pursed lips to create a chill wind. Bare minimum, she needed Scootaloo to sit up. That was the first step. The final step in this plan was taking her to a doctor. It was all of the other steps between these two that she'd not thought through yet.

To be fair, it was working. Scootaloo started trembling, and then, shivering. It wasn't lost on Rainbow that she could potentially harm Scootaloo by doing this, and she really didn't want to, but if it had to be done, it had to be done. She wanted Scootaloo to be happy and comfortable, but she needed her to be healthy.

Scootaloo twisted and contorted around, trying to find a more comfortable spot to evade the wind, and all of her other problems, but Rainbow was resolute, keeping the gusts right across her skin.

Eventually, it worked, and Scootaloo stood up, at least to her knees. She dragged her body over to the window and yanked it closed, removing Rainbow's ability to create a gust. She then slumped to the floor.

"You're really making this difficult, Scoots. Up on your hooves!"

Scootaloo did no such thing. Instead, she pulled out the bottle she'd been cradling this whole time. Rainbow immediately recognised the smell; hard cider from Sweet Apple Acres. She tried and failed several times to swipe the bottle away, but if she did anything, it was little more than make it shake in her hooves, and that could just be the malnourishment.

As Scootaloo chugged down the last little bit in the bottle, she let it fall to the floor. It wasn't far to fall, and the bottle hit a rug, so it didn't break, but the look on Scootaloo's face was heartbreaking. With tears rolling down her face, she wrapped her hooves around her legs and started sobbing. "I'm sorry," she repeated, "I'm so, so sorry, Rainbow... I can't do it..."

That did her in. Rainbow sat down next to Scootaloo and wrapped a wing around her shoulders. She didn't know what to say, but she wanted to tell Scootaloo that everything was going to be okay, that if she tried really hard, she could do whatever she wanted, and that believing in herself was the way to start. But she couldn't.

The door swung open and Apple Bloom walked in. "Apple Bloom?!" gasped Rainbow.

Applejack phased through the door, and her eyes immediately fell on Rainbow Dash. "What in tarnation?!"

Chapter the Fourteenth: Not Alone

"What the hay, Applejack!" shouted Rainbow. "I'm working over here!"

"No, Ah'm workin'!" retorted Applejack. "Ah'm here under orders from Vesper."

"I'm the one Vesper sent to this location! I'm here to save Scootaloo!"

Applejack turned and looked at Scootaloo's malnourished body. "Bang-up job ye'r doin'..."

As if on cue, Apple Bloom pulled out the still-sealed bottles of hard cider from her bag, looking around to see if there was anypony watching.

"Why is your sister carrying alcohol? More importantly, why is she acting like she stole it?"

"Prob'ly 'cause yer little fascination there put 'er up to it!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Don't go blaming Scootaloo for Apple Bloom's actions! From what I can see, she may be the one that's been poisoning Scootaloo!"

Apple Bloom uncorked a bottle of the cider and brought it over to Scootaloo. "Here's some more a' that "medicine,"" she said, putting the bottle in Scootaloo's hooves.

As Scootaloo lifted the bottle to her lips, Rainbow tried once more to swipe it away, culminating in nothing.

"Ya can't hope ta do it that way," insisted Applejack. "No wonder Scootaloo's in this state!"

"She was like this when I arrived!" corrected Rainbow. "Except even worse, because she was bound up in a blanket. I managed to drag her out of bed, probably for the first time in awhile!"

"Oh, toot yer own horn louder, why don'cha?! Ah saw Apple Bloom ta school an' made sure she did her learnin'!"

"So, you watched her the whole day?"

"Eeyup."

"Then how come you didn't notice that she stole a bunch of alcohol?"

"Ah did!"

"Then how come you didn't do anything about it?!"

"How's come Scootaloo's still here?"

"Hey, at least I tried to make her move!"

"R... Rainbow Dash?"

Scootaloo's voice immediately called Rainbow's attention away from Applejack's meddling. "It's okay, Scoots. I'm here. I'm listening."

"That's right!" called Apple Bloom. "Ah am Rainbow Dash!"

All attention turned to Apple Bloom, who was wearing a Rainbow Dash Fan Club wig, cardboard wings, and blue face paint.

Scootaloo buried her head in her hooves. "I'm sorry," she wept. "I couldn't do it..."

Applejack turned to Rainbow. "What's she talkin' 'bout?"

Rainbow shrugged. "Beats me. I've been trying to answer that question all day."

"Well, what haven't ya forgiven 'er for?"

"Nothing!" shouted Rainbow. "If it was that easy to figure out, do you really think I'd spend half the day trying to come up with an answer?"

"Ah reckon not..."

Apple bloom sat down next to Scootaloo. "It's okay, Squirt. Ye'r good at other stuff."

"But I still can't fly!" Scootaloo whimpered. "I wanted to help you! To... to do what needed to be done, but I'm not... I'm not good enough! I'll never be good enough!"

She broke down into a sobbing mess right then and there. Applejack turned and looked at Rainbow, but it was hard to see her face through the helmet. Still, the fact that Rainbow lowered her head was evidence enough that she felt shame over what Scootaloo had said.

"Did you ever say that she wasn't good enough?" asked Applejack.

"Never," answered Rainbow. "I said the opposite, in fact. Because I knew she felt that way, and I wanted her to try her best, regardless of whether or not she thought she'd make it."

"So why do ya look so guilty, now?"

Rainbow shook her head. "Because who's going to offer that encouragement, now? Who's going to stand in front of her, hoof outstretched, encouraging her to reach for the stars, while standing amongst the stars to show her that they can be reached?"

"You sound like a crazy pony..."

"Well, maybe I am," admitted Rainbow. "But that's what she wanted; to be like me. And I wanted to show her how to do it."

Applejack snorted and turned back to the fillies they were supposed to be watching.

Apple Bloom was helping Scootaloo drink more. "That's it. This stuff'll make the hurt go away. Ponies use this all the time ta ferget their problems."

Scootaloo eagerly took another swallow, then hesitantly finished the bottle before curling up on Apple Bloom's shoulder. "I don't want to hurt anymore, Rainbow... Without you, I... I don't know who I am anymore..."

Rainbow put a hoof on Scootaloo's shoulder. Scootaloo reached for it, but her hoof went right through Rainbow's. "You're Scootaloo," Rainbow said confidently. "You're the bravest, fiercest, most awesome filly in all of Ponyville. Maybe even all of Equestria!"

"I'm nothing," she sniffled. "Nothing but a failure. I can't save anyone!"

"Do you know what bravery is?" asked Rainbow, tightening her grip on Scootaloo's shoulder. "It's when you know you're ten laps behind, and you can only make up seven before the race ends, and you still fly, anyway! It's knowing that the other Buckball team is twenty points ahead with only five minutes remaining on the clock and doing everything you can to close that gap! It's..." she looked back at Applejack. "It's knowing that you can always depend on your friends to pull you out of a jam." She sighed. "I'm not brave, like you, Scoots. I hid my cowardice behind always being the best. I poured my heart and soul into being better so that I never had to be brave."

Applejack nodded, and placed a hoof on Scootaloo's shoulder, too. "Ah think that, as Equestria's bravest little filly, y'all wouldn't be afraid ta face yer problems head-on. But now, Ah can see that ya need a bit of extra help."

Rainbow moved her hoof over to Apple Bloom's shoulder. "Sometimes, the best thing we can do for our friends is to not help them. Don't abandon Scootaloo, but encourage her to stand on her own four hooves. She has to be able to move forward on her own. But also, be there to catch her if she falls. Pick her up and set her back on the right path, but always remember; she has to be able to stand on her own if she ever wants to support somepony else."

Applejack followed Rainbow's hoof once again. "Y'all know that ya need ta take good care a' yer family. They need ya, and when they're hurtin', ya have ta make it right. Coverin' up problems ain't the same as solvin' 'em; y'all know that. But don't forget, yer friends are like yer second family. Ya need ta take care a' them, too."

Apple Bloom closed her eyes and lowered her head. She hadn't been listening to Applejack all day, but the Apple Family was a stubborn bunch. Perhaps they'd at last made it through?

Chapter the Fifteenth: Patches

For the longest time, nothing happened. Scootaloo didn't take another drink, Apple Bloom didn't say a word. They just sat there next to each other, staring across the room.

"Ah need ta tell ya somethin', Scoots," sighed Apple Bloom, finally.

Scootaloo looked up at Apple Bloom.

"Ah'm not..." she took off the wig. "Ah'm not really Rainbow Dash."

Scootaloo didn't say anything. She just stared.

"Ah'm real sorry, Scootaloo. When Ah saw how much it hurt ya ta know she was gone, Ah... Ah constructed this lie ta make ya feel better."

Silence followed.

"When Ah went inta yer room an' saw ya tearin' everythin' down, Ah panicked. Ah told ya this stuff was medicine, but... It jus' drowns everything out. Ah was more content ta see ya witherin' away than blowin' up, but... Ah was so stupid. It's the same thing, just... slower. This stuff ain't medicine. It's poison. An' Ah've been usin it ta drown your sorrows because... it makes me feel better about not dealing with mah own..."

Apple Bloom sighed and looked up at the rafters. "Applejack's gone. She's not comin' back, ever. Ah never thought for one second that mah big sister would ever leave me like this; that Ah'd have this emptiness inside that Ah'd need ta fill, but... What Ah'm doin' ain't workin'. It's just makin' more problems for me ta deal with down the line."

Finally, Scootaloo responded. Not with words, but by vomiting into Apple Bloom's lap.

"Ah s'pose Ah deserved that... Come on. Let's help you up..."

Apple Bloom hoisted Scootaloo up onto her shoulders with all of the strength Ponyville had come to expect from the Apple Family. Scootaloo just mumbled, unable to form complete words. At a brisk gallop, it didn't take long to reach the farmhouse, where Big Mac grabbed her and took her upstairs. Granny Smith was in town, so it was Apple Bloom that ran off to bring the doctor, who came and went without much fuss.

He'd called Apple Bloom "brave." He was a doctor, so Apple Bloom knew she should trust his words, but he was wrong. She wasn't brave. She certainly didn't feel brave.

The medical diagnosis was easy enough; Scootaloo had a bad hangover and malnutrition. She'd been drinking and not eating. Normally, this would call for her to be taken into protective care, but given the fact that the Apple Family was known for their hospitality and strong moral compass, it was assumed that none of them would force this on her, nor that they would allow this to happen on their watch. She was safe, for now, and in good hooves until proven otherwise.

Big Mac was downstairs now, preparing apple and cabbage stew, something soft and easy to eat, and well-known for being healthy for your kidneys.

Meanwhile, Apple Bloom was curled up in the bathtub, having just finished washing the vomit off of her legs. She had decided that she was just going to sleep here, tonight. Scootaloo was going to use her bed, and that was good. She'd been sleeping on the floor for just under a week, and she needed something to support her. Besides, Apple Bloom couldn't stomach the thought of being comforted right now. She didn't feel that she deserved it after what she'd done.

After an hour of sitting like this, there was a knock at the door. "You okay in there, half-pint?" came Granny's voice.

"Yeah," Apple Bloom lied.

"No you ain't. Ah'm comin' in."

Before Apple Bloom could object, the door opened, and Granny walked in, sitting down next to the tub. "You wanna tell me what happened to that little filly in yer bed?"

Apple Bloom nodded, but the words didn't come out. She wanted to tell Granny everything, to spill all that had happened, and to be punished for her involvement in Scootaloo's sickness. But she couldn't bring herself to say it.

"Well, let me see if Ah can guess..."

Granny's wisdom and insight was unmatched, as she guessed exactly what Apple Bloom had done. Every single accusation was like a knife in her back, and she was in tears before the end. Still, she nodded when Granny reached the end of her tale.

"Apple Bloom, ya know yer family loves ya. Ya know we're gonna look out fer ya. But this is gonna take a long time ta blow over, ya hear?"

Apple Bloom nodded again.

"Ah know yer brother an me didn't seem ta shed that many tears when yer sister passed, but do ya know why?"

Apple Bloom shook her head.

"It's because we both knew that it wouldn't do us any good. An' also, because we knew that, if Applejack was lookin' down on us right at that moment, she'd be mighty displeased ta see us hurtin'."

Apple Bloom shuffled her position slightly.

"It ain't right, what happened... Bad things happen ta good folks all the time. Ah've raised you kids ta understand that, in times like these, where things seem ta be goin' bad left an' right, ta always lend a helpin' hoof ta those in need. An' right now, yer filly friend is in need a' help. An' you? Ye'r in need a' guidance."

Granny Smith dropped her hoof into the tub, offering it to Apple Bloom. Rather than taking it, Apple Bloom stood up on her own and hugged her granny. "Ah'm sorry, Granny. Ah'm so, so sorry..."

"Ah know, half-pint... Ah know..."

Applejack followed Apple Bloom into her bedroom. "How's she doin'?"

Rainbow ran her hoof over Scootaloo's sleeping mane. "She threw up again, but she's managing to keep most of it down."

Applejack nodded. "Ah believe Apple Bloom's been set straight. If nothin' else, Granny'll keep 'er in line from now on."

Rainbow nodded. "Tell Vesper that I'm going to stay with Scootaloo for a bit. She still needs to do a lot of recovering, and I want to stay by her side."

"You can tell 'er yerself," snorted Applejack. "Ah'm stickin' around, too."

"You sure?" asked Rainbow. "They might think we've both gone rouge."

Applejack nodded. "This is more important."

Rainbow wrapped a hoof around Applejack's shoulders and pulled her into a hug. "Thanks."

Chapter the Sixteenth: Going Down

When Rarity arrived in Ponyville, she was quickly able to find Sweetie Belle. That was her target, after all. Not by sight, as Sweetie had wrapped herself in a cloak and was keeping the hood up. Then again, it'd be pretty difficult to recognise Rarity in the outfit she was wearing, too. No, she could feel it. She was drawn to her.

"Sweetie Belle, I've been told you were in trouble," Rarity called to her.

Sweetie Belle didn't respond, just continuing to walk away.

"Oh, right..." Rarity moved closer and placed a hoof on Sweetie Belle's shoulder. "Sweetie Belle, you need to tell me what's wrong."

Sweetie pulled her shoulder away and started running faster, causing Rarity to have to speed up to keep up with her. It was very rarely that she was able to even touch Sweetie Belle's shoulder, much less strike up a conversation with her. She could barely say her name before Sweetie Belle pulled away.

Finally, Sweetie Belle slowed to a stop, in an area Rarity did not recognise. It was a very drab location, with a concrete floor and ceiling, and haphazardly-mortared brick walls. It also smelled awful. Why would Rarity have ever been here? More importantly, why was Sweetie Belle in here now?

The sound of hooves clopping against the floor echoed through the chamber they were in as a big, burly stallion approached. He looked and smelled like he hadn't bathed in a long time, nor had he shaved, and the way he eyed Sweetie Belle set off major alarm bells in Rarity's head.

"Run!" commanded Rarity, placing herself between the stallion and her sister.

But Sweetie didn't run. Instead, she pulled off her cloak and set it aside. She had bruises and scabs all over her body, and her voice was hoarse. "I'm ready."

"Then let's do it," said the stallion. "The mattress is just over here..."

Rarity swallowed hard, doing everything she could to keep Sweetie from doing what she was about to do. But as the mattress came into view, a rolled-up raincoat acting as a pillow and a bunch of rags threaded together to act as a blanket draped unceremoniously over the top, she turned away. As much as she wanted her sister to turn around and leave, she couldn't bring herself to watch what was about to happen. What had happened that would force Sweetie Belle down this gruesome path?

"Why does it have to be so big?" she grunted.

"I can't change the size of my body," the stallion breathed. "Just upright is good enough. Then you can show me how good you are with your hooves..."

Rarity felt sick to her stomach as she started to hear the impact of flesh hitting the ragged mattress. There was nothing more grotesque than what she knew in the back of her mind must be happening this very moment.

"Come on, Sweetie Belle, work it! Make sure you switch up your position. You'll know you're doin' it right if you feel yourself starting to sweat."

"It feels..." panted Sweetie Belle, "...harder than it did yesterday..."

"That just means you're improving. Keep going."

Where had Rarity gone so wrong? Where had her parents gone so wrong? Why was Sweetie Belle doing... this?

"Don't slow down, now," urged the stallion. "At least last until the end of the first round."

"This is... really tiring," gasped Sweetie Belle.

"Just one more big push, and then we can take a break. You can handle it."

The pace quickened, with the impacts coming more and more frequently until a small bell rang. Rarity dared to look at the situation behind the corner, expecting the worst.

It turned out to not be at all what she thought. The stallion had rolled up his mattress and stood it on end, and was holding it upright for Sweetie Belle to use as a punching bag. With the ringing of the bell, Sweetie moved over and sat on a stool while the stallion rolled the mattress back onto the ground.

"Thanks again for teaching me how to fight, Knuckle Duster."

"Not a problem, kid. Let me know when you're ready to pick it back up again."

She was boxing. Rarity had thought that... No, it didn't matter what Rarity had thought. Sweetie Belle had been striking a rolled up mattress, in an attempt to become better at fighting. Which meant that she was fighting. Which meant that the bruises and cuts on her body were not from being battered and forced to perform acts against her will. They were from fighting.

"Your blows were stronger this time," Knuckle noted. "I'm guessing she hit you again?"

Sweetie Belle nodded and indicated a fresh bruise. It was still red, having not turned purple yet.

"Did you hit her back this time?"

Sweetie Belle shook her head. "Everypony was watching me. I didn't want to make a scene..."

"Sounds like you already made one," he chuckled. "Rather, it appears that a scene was already made. Everypony was already watching you."

"Yeah, but that's the problem. Since they were all staring at me, I needed to be able to prove that I was strong enough to defend myself, or I'd just end up being made fun of again, like pouring salt on the wound that I was already beat up."

"You're probably stronger than she is by now," commented Knuckle. "Your form has definitely improved, too."

Now feeling slightly more confident that her sister was in good hooves, Rarity approached Sweetie Belle and placed her hooves on her shoulders. For once, Sweetie Belle didn't pull away, but she didn't react otherwise, either. "Who's been beating you up?"

Sweetie Belle sighed and hopped down from the stool, grabbing her cloak and pulling a bottle out of it, from which she drank. "Okay, let's do it."

Knuckle moved to the foot of the mattress and gestured for her to take her position. She lay down on her back with her knees bent and her hooves behind her head. He took hold of her ankles, and she started a set of sit-ups, touching each elbow to the opposite knee. She may not have answered Rarity's question, but she was thinking about it. She could tell by the determination in Sweetie Belle's eyes. She was going to hit that other filly, and she was going to mean it. That's why she'd come here. She was refusing to continue being a victim.

Chapter the Seventeenth: It Didn't Have to be Like This

Rarity had to say there was something that hadn't changed about Sweetie Belle: she wasn't afraid of ending up a mess. By the end of her workout, she was all sweaty, a little bit dirty, and definitely smelled awful. They finished their session with Knuckle Duster once more rolling up the mattress and holding it in place while Sweetie slammed her hooves into it over and over again. She even managed to knock her trainer back half a step with everything, and he was four times her size, and much heavier.

She once more donned her cloak and thanked him for training her, even going so far as to re-extend an offer to come to her place for dinner. He declined, of course, as having a grown stallion show up to have dinner with a filly would raise all kinds of red flags, but Sweetie Belle probably wasn't thinking of that. She was probably just being nice and inviting somepony she considered a friend to dinner. At the very least, somepony she trusted.

Rarity followed Sweetie Belle out, keeping a close eye on where exactly they were. In fact, she popped her head up through the ceiling to find out where they were in relation to Ponyville in general, and they happened to be right below Carousel Boutique.

Of course, Sweetie Belle had to take the long way out, exiting through a sewer drain. It was starting to rain, so she pulled her cloak even tighter before galloping off home. She was still staying with their parents, so it wasn't a long walk. Not as long as her walk in had been.

"Hey, Sweetie Belle," called their dad from the couch. "Good day at school?"

Sweetie Belle didn't answer, just going upstairs and slamming the door.

"I guess not..."

Rarity shook her head. Their father could be clueless sometimes.

She went upstairs to see Sweetie Belle exiting her room. As she ducked into the bathroom, Rarity could reasonably presume that she was going to take a shower. After all, Rarity's first priority would have been a shower, and while Sweetie Belle didn't mind the dirt as much, even she knew when it was time to shower.

Rarity, and also their mother, entered Sweetie Belle's room. Rarity had failed to convince her sister to talk about the filly that had beaten her up, and figured she'd look around her room and see if there was some indication in there. Their mom, on the other hoof, just walked in to leave a sandwich on her desk. Sweetie Belle had neglected to come to dinner the past few nights, and had been eating in her room and just taking the empty plate down to the kitchen. She was eating more than usual, too.

Unfortunately, there was nothing out in the open. Rarity was unable to open any drawers, open any books, or remove things from their places. She found a pink sliver of photo paper under the pillow, but it was just the corner that she could see.

When Sweetie Belle came back in, she was smelling much cleaner, and rather than wearing her raggedy cloak, she was in a white, fluffy bathrobe. Her bruises and split lip were far more visible in this light than they were in the sewers, and as she sat down and ate her dinner, she sighed and started to calm down. Only after her dinner was finished did she grab her backpack and pull out her schoolwork.

Sweetie Belle was no slouch when it came to her education. She was quick to finish her homework, and Rarity, having nothing better to do, made sure she was answering everything correctly, even insisting that she double-check the answers when she wasn't sure. They managed to catch two mistakes this way.

Regardless, it was late when she took her plate downstairs, grabbed another half-sandwich from the fridge, ate that, and put her plate in the sink. Their parents were already in bed, and she didn't make much noise. To some degree, Rarity wished she had been like this before; quiet, reserved, easy to manage. But at the same time, she didn't want Sweetie Belle to lose her happiness and creativity. Where was the jovial soul that used to love being heaped with praise? Why was she so against being seen now?

As she went back to her room and tucked into bed, she pulled out the photograph from underneath the pillow. It was Diamond Tiara with her eyes scratched out. She flipped it over and added a tally mark, now totalling four.

As she drifted off into her dream, Rarity saw what was happening, finally. Sweetie Belle was remembering being beaten up by Diamond Tiara. It seemed as though she'd advanced from just making fun of her to physical violence. The fact that many of Ponyville's adults, as well as most of the rest of Equestria, were still recovering from their tragedy meant that nopony was stopping it. Diamond Tiara could do whatever she wanted, and there was no risk of Rarity standing in the way. And then she would call attention to herself so that Sweetie Belle would end up being chastised for hitting somepony else.

"Sweetie Belle, you really should know better," sighed Rarity. "I don't blame you for wanting things to be better, but this isn't going to help."

Rarity left Sweetie Belle to her rest. She could do something about the dream, and try to fix it, and perhaps even convince Sweetie Belle not to do what she was thinking, but there was another option. She could, and would try to, cut the problem off at its source.

She made her way to Filthy Rich's manor and let herself inside. Diamond Tiara was already asleep, and she didn't have a care in the world. In fact, she was having a dream where Sweetie Belle was her servant, and was glad that she had "learned her place."

Even Rarity wanted to punch her lights out by now. She could forgive Sweetie Belle's lack of patience when she was even worse. But that did not justify Sweetie Belle's plans.

Rarity took a deep breath. There was a way to fix this. It was going to be complicated, difficult to pull off, and disastrous if it went wrong, but there was good news to be had. Rarity ate situations like that for breakfast.

Chapter the Eighteenth: Diamond in the Rough

Rarity only just made it back to Sweetie Belle's room before her alarm went off. She didn't make it in time. Sweetie Belle was the last step in her plan. She was going to appear to her in a dream and convince her to do what had to be done, but now she would just have to do the convincing on the way to the kitchen.

Rarity placed her hoof firmly on her shoulder. "Sweetie Belle. Before you go to school, I need you to take the brownies downstairs and go to the front of Barnyard Bargains. Wait for Diamond Tiara, then give them to her. Do not hit her. I promise, I will make it okay."

Sweetie Belle seemed to shiver a bit as she brushed her mane. She'd been tossing and turning all night, and it was a mess. She'd been keeping it clean, anyway, and tried to avoid damage to it, and as she brushed, Rarity stood behind her and guided her hooves, making it feel just a bit easier and flow just a bit smoother.

Sweetie Belle hopped down from her bed and grabbed her cloak. It was still smelly, but she could deal with that. She just didn't want to be seen.

Rarity placed her hoof on the cloak. She needed Sweetie Belle to be seen.

Sweetie Belle tugged until the cloak ripped. The sound was agonising to Rarity, but it had to be done. It was for the best. She may have even felt worse about tearing it if it was kept in better condition, but she couldn't make a new one to replace it. Or could she?

She shook the thought from her head. Now wasn't the time to rush to her boutique and inspire her employees... former employees... to put something together for her sister. She had more important things to do at this particular moment.

Following the frustrated filly downstairs, she directed her attention to the kitchen. There was a box of brownies on the table. It had the SugarCube Corner logo printed on the box. The Cake family had been shouldering a heavy burden, putting off their loss of Pinkie Pie to honour her memory by trying to cheer the town up. To that end, they'd been delivering "Find Your Smile" brownies free of charge, with extra funding from the mayor. It wasn't working as well as they'd hoped, but it was helping a little bit. And perhaps it would even drum up business later.

"Grab a few," urged Rarity. "Take them to Diamond Tiara."

Sweetie Belle had to be pushed a few more times before she walked into the kitchen. Grabbing a paper lunch bag, she stacked four brownies into it and then folded up the top. She muttered under her breath that she must be out of her mind to take these to Diamond Tiara, as there was nopony less deserving of them, but she did it anyway.

She made her way to Barnyard Bargains and sat down on a bench nearby. Diamond Tiara, like most students, was offered time off from school in response to the tragedy. Optional time off, as classes were still going on. Sweetie Belle had taken the first three days, but had broken down in the middle of day four, opting to just pick up her homework and go home to do it on her own time. She didn't want to fall behind, but she didn't want to disrupt the class. Diamond Tiara had also taken the time off, but in Sweetie Belle's eyes, she'd taken it like a vacation.

Before too long, Diamond Tiara walked out of the front door. She'd arrived early with her dad, and now she was going to the park for the day.

Sweetie Belle stood up and approached. She scowled, but Rarity urged her to calm herself, telling her that everything would be okay.

"Well, well," snickered Diamond Tiara as Sweetie Belle approached. "Look at who we have here..."

"It's "whom,"" muttered Sweetie Belle under her breath.

"What was that?"

"I said, "Let's make peace,"" Sweetie Belle said, holding out the bag. "I brought you something."

Diamond Tiara swatted it out of her hooves. "I don't take handouts. What, do I look like one of the poor to you?"

Sweetie Belle started clenching her hoof, but Rarity took hold of it, calming her down. "I said nothing of the sort. You were doing so well, and I want to be friends again. I just thought that--"

Diamond Tiara swiped at her face. "You thought? Leave the thinking to ponies better than you! If I wanted your pity, I'd ask for it!"

It was time. Rarity pushed through the wall. She'd done enough setup, and now it was time to spring her trap. At her urging, Filthy Rich looked down at his wastebasket, and upon seeing that it was full, he opted to take it out. There was a bit of winding to reach that point, but he was out the door and ready to look up, just in time to see his own daughter hit Sweetie Belle in the face.

"Diamond Tiara!"

The sudden bark from her father's lips instilled such an intense fear in the filly's face that she turned white as a sheet. He was angry, and he narrowed his eyes at her.

"H-hi, daddy..."

He stepped to one side. "Both of you, my office, now."

Sweetie Belle picked up the bag and followed Diamond Tiara to the office. She wasn't happy about being blamed for this, but she knew better than to whine about it.

Filthy Rich followed them back to his office and rolled back the security footage. What he saw and heard was very damning for his daughter, but not so much for Sweetie Belle. She seemed to be generously offering Diamond Tiara a brownie to avoid a fight, a fight that she was already losing, judging by her scarring. Thanks to Rarity's interference, Sweetie Belle had not thrown a single punch.

After watching it three times, Filthy Rich asked to see what was in the bag. Four brownies, three of them damaged. One that Sweetie fell on, one soaked in morning dew from hitting the ground, and one that had taken both forms of damage.

He left, telling them both to stay right there, and came back a minute later with a box of cookies, which he placed in front of Sweetie Belle.

"I do not condone what happened out there," he stated plainly. "I cannot take back the damage done to you, and I am embarrassed that it happened in the first place. You were trying to be kind to my daughter, and to give her some brownies. As you are well aware, she's pretty broken up about what happened to Princess Twilight, and also to your sister. Please, take this box of cookies, to compensate you for the brownies lost, and I would appreciate it if we could just forget that any fighting happened. And do you know what would help us forget that it happened?"

Sweetie Belle shook her head.

"If it never happened again. Let us not be reminded of this incident by not living through it a second time."

"Sixth," corrected Sweetie Belle. "I understand what you mean, though."

Rarity nodded. Sweetie Belle had still been struck by Diamond Tiara, but she hadn't struck back. And yet, she had come out the victor. Such was the power held by the spirit of generosity. Perhaps it could even bring Diamond Tiara back from this path she'd fallen back down. Only time and effort would tell.

Chapter the Nineteenth: Long Faces

Pinkie Pie bounded into the room, her robes jingling a simple, but jovial song. Her original intent was to kick open the doors and alert everypony to the party she was putting together, and start implementing pieces of it as she thought of them. Party planning was serious business, but she always kept a few emergency party events ready to start right away. She could start up some music at the drop of a hat, command streamers to cover the ceiling with her party cannon, and the confetti launchers hidden in her mane were reloaded at the end of every month. If she needed a party right this second, she could have one. And right now, she needed one. Her targets were dour, sour, and in need of her power.

Sive for Pinkie Pie, who could not be heard by the other occupants, the room was silent. The only sound audible to either party was the turning of pages and the frustrated sighs that followed.

Pinkie had expected this from Luna. At least, she'd halfway expected it from Luna. Celestia, on the other hoof, was typically more jovial. However, she seemed even more upset than Luna. Whereas Luna looked glum and defeated, Celestia looked angry. Not the furious, violent kind of angry that burned down villages leaving nothing more than a smear of ash and a pillar of smoke, but a subtle, silent angry, like a volcano ready to burst and obliterate everything in its path.

"Okay," breathed Pinkie. "A surprise party is out of the question. But... I'm gonna need you two to smile."

They stuck to what they were doing, not budging so much as a centimetre.

Pinkie took a deep breath, and then tried to exhale from her shoulders. Her wings unfurled, buzzing and making noise as spectral confetti flew around the room. "Tada!!"

Nothing.

"Huh. This is a more intense grumpiness than I'm used to. But I guess Twilight did just die recently. And the rest of us, too, I suppose..."

After scratching her head for a bit, the jingle-jangle of her crown stopped. She rushed out of the room, making a beeline for the kitchens. A good meal with a great big dessert would put them in a good mood. Celestia loved cake. That was a fact so well-known that there was a cake shop in Canterlot called "Royal Icing" that accepted all forms of currency, and did fantastic business with foreign dignitaries that wanted to buy her favour. And it usually worked.

After planting the idea in the chefs' heads, Pinkie went up to the head maid and sent her to clean up the princesses' rooms, and even suggested leaving scent oil diffusers with lavender scent oil in there, to make the rooms more pleasant. She also went to the tailor and ordered new dresses, to the florist to send them flowers, and even found a local band to play music for them.

This was Pinkie Pie's bread and butter. If she could not directly influence the princesses and bring smiles to their faces, then she would have to fall back to her answer to all of life's problems; throwing a party. And if she couldn't directly invite them, then she would need to make it happen another way. After all, she had all of the pieces for a successful party. She had music, gifts, food and drinks, two guests, and a place for those guests to go when the party was over. All she had to do now was put it all together.

When she returned, she felt as though she had missed something important. Not with planning the party; she'd done an excellent job with that. She was certain that she'd missed something between the two sisters. Luna was now crying quietly, an occasional tear running down her cheek, and Celestia was absolutely seething as her eyes scanned the book she was reading. If looks could kill, she was glaring daggers into the page so hard that they ripped through the pages and embedded in the table below.

The door creaked open, and a guard poked in his head. "Highnesses?"

"What?" growled Celestia through her teeth.

"There's a group here to see you. Something about wanting to play at the Grand Galloping Gala?"

Celestia sighed. "I don't know if there's even going to be a gala this year," she said bluntly. "Now is not the time for a party."

Pinkie's jaw dropped. She was very much insulted, and she stormed over to Luna, putting words in her head that were then forced out of her mouth.

"With all due respect, my dearest sister, t'would be a bad idea to cancel the gala. We should hold it, and we should host it."

Celestia turned and glared at Luna. "Now? Of all the times to host a party, you think that now is an appropriate time?!"

Pinkie kept shovelling in words. She'd overstepped, and now she needed to keep digging. "What better time could there be? Everypony is ashambles, morale is low across the country, and nopony is feeling great right now. A party, especially one so grand and galloping as the gala, would ease their minds and hearts."

"You would hold a celebration so soon after the passing of Twilight and her friends? The monument to their memory is yet unfinished!"

"How long must we wait?!" shot Luna back. "We have been hurt, yes. But that is no reason to refuse our citizens joy! Joy that they need now more than ever!"

"How can you feel joy at a time like this?!" sniped Celestia. "Our greatest hope for Equestria is gone! Vanished overnight! Twilight was the perfect candidate; she was going to rule over Equestria with all of the intelligence, grace, and understanding that we had given her! Now she cannot, and we have to start over from the beginning!"

Luna pulled free of Pinkie's grasp and placed her hoof on Celestia's shoulder. As soon as it touched, Celestia swatted it away.

"You didn't know her like I did!" Celestia growled. "Don't you dare try to diminish her value by saying she can be replaced!"

"Such words did not leave my mouth."

"You were thinking it."

Pinkie took a deep breath. All of this was very, very wrong. She'd placed her faith in the planning of a minor party to lift their spirits, but this... This was going to take a miracle.

Chapter the Twentieth: Opening Up

Celestia, unfortunately, stormed off after the fight. This was a bad turn of events, but Pinkie would just have to deal with them separately. She knew all too well the consequences of trying to be in too many places at once. And while she knew that Celestia needed her more, she stayed with Luna. It would be easier to cheer Luna up, and having one happy pony would make it easier to cheer up the other.

Luna truly believed part of what she'd said, with the rest coming directly from Pinkie Pie. The citizens really did need something to look forward to in order to summon forth hope for the future. Perhaps it was a bit too soon, but there was still a month and a half to plan the gala, and it was time to start putting things together.

So while she wasn't really in the mood for it, Luna set her own feelings aside and put on a brave face. She stepped into one of the castle's many washrooms and scrubbed her face with cold water. She then fixed her mane before making her way to the throne room.

When she arrived, the band was already there, instruments in hoof. They waved to her, and she gave her best polite smile. It wasn't very convincing, obviously, as the musician that had the violin asked if she was feeling well.

"Might I be honest with you?" she asked. "That is to say, If I were to confide in you, would you keep it to yourself?"

There wasn't actually any need to ask this question, as Luna had seen their dreams, and knew well that he feared her wrath. Furthermore, were this secret to spread, it would do no damage. Still, it was nice to see them nod, affirming what she already knew.

"Things have been... complicated... since Princess Twilight's unfortunate passing. I've not been feeling particularly well since."

The violinist turned to the others, and then back to Luna. "I mean... we can come back later, if you're not feeling up to it."

Pinkie pushed Luna forward. "No, no, that won't be necessary. I will hear your music now, and not have to worry about it later. It is, after all, the duty of a princess to serve her subjects."

As she made her way to the throne, that she might sit and listen, the door opened, and in walked a member of the serving staff. He had a cart with several of Luna's favourite dishes on it, none of which she'd eaten in the last week. He had a second cart with Celestia's favourites, which he left by the door, since she wasn't here.

Luna's stomach growled as she looked over the food. The mere sight of the grilled cheese (swiss and pepperjack with chopped spinach in the middle on sourdough, toasted in garlic butter) and tomato soup (spicy from the peppers and sweet from the carrot) improved her mood.

She turned to the musicians. "Do you mind if I eat while I listen? I have yet to dine today. Very busy, very hectic."

"Oh, not at all," the violinist said. "I mean, it's a party. We have to assume that at least a tenth of the guests are snacking at one point or another. We've never auditioned that way before, but if it would please you, princess, we don't mind having you listen as much as somepony at the catering table. It might even grant some good insight."

Luna nodded and pulled the cart up in front of her. "I shall try to remain quiet. Begin when ready."

The band started playing. The song started off as a slow, macabre affair, then started to pick up the pace right away, turning jaunty with just a bit more tempo. It was subtle, but such was the preferred music for the Grand Galloping Gala.

Luna listened while she ate, starting by dipping her sandwich in her soup. It would crunch if she ate it as it was, and she wanted to hear the music. In her opinion, it was already a step above what was normally performed.

The sound had a dark side to it, as one might have come to expect, but there was also a brightness to it, a sort of goofy vibe that urged Luna to cheer up. The tune accepted that things were bad now, but that the listener should look towards the future.

Luna was finding that the song spoke to her, and when the bass gave way to a secret trombone, she nearly choked on her sandwich. That had come out of nowhere, and while it wasn't unpleasant, it was certainly a surprise. Not to the guards, of course, as they'd checked the instruments before summoning the princesses, but it definitely shocked Luna.

The band stopped playing to check on her, but after the confirmation that she was okay, they resumed their song from a few bars earlier, at the beginning of the bass section.

They played a few more songs for her, all of them having the same theme; melancholy mixed with hope. It gave Luna a promise that things were going to improve, and she'd be able to find her joy again. In fact, at the end of the third song, as she was eating her zucchini bread, the corners of her lips could barely be seen rising up and curling. She was happy. Not very happy, but there was something there had had not been before. Even this tiny speck of musical enjoyment was a thousand times more valuable than the fake grin she'd flashed just to be polite.

Just as the music was coming to a close, the doors opened again, and in walked Celestia, fuming.

"Sister!" called Luna. "Come, sit! I have listened to the band play, and I have found that they are quite good!"

Celestia sneered at them. "Good? I have yet to hear anything good from them. Everything they've played sounds like a joke."

Pinkie dove in and tried to push Celestia back. Everything was going so well a moment ago. Luna was enjoying herself, the band was glad to see her enjoying their works, and Pinkie was waiting for that moment when everything would snap into place, and for a moment where Luna would display proudly her well-deserved and hard-won smile. She could not let Celestia take that away from her.

Chapter the Twenty-First: Edge of a Broken Heart

Celestia sent the band away, demanding that they go home or be arrested, and Luna demanded that they wait in the hall outside of the throne room. The guards were quite confused by the conflict of orders, so the band was bound in cuffs and confined to the hallway. If Luna was successful, they could be unbound and set free, having committed no crime, or if Celestia was successful, they would be brought down to the dungeons and processed, charged with... civil disobedience? That was unclear at this point, but everypony was kind of hoping that Luna would pull through.

"I can't believe that you would think that this was okay!" growled Celestia. "Did she mean nothing to you?!"

"She meant much to me!" pleaded Luna. "We had our disagreements, but I cannot deny her importance in Equestria's progress!"

"Then why are you diminishing her memory?!"

"I'm not!"

"You are! She hasn't even been gone for a week, and you're planning a party!"

"I'm not celebrating her death!"

"Aren't you? You could have fooled me!"

"I am grieving!" whimpered Luna. "I do feel pain at Twilight's loss! I feel it the same way you do!"

"No you don't! How dare you compare your pain to mine?!"

"Celestia, please, I--"

"No! Luna, this is it! I've had enough of your distasteful music and your blatant harassment! I will have no more of this!"

As Celestia stormed out of the room, she found that several new ponies were standing in the hall, mostly around the band. She could feel the fear in their gaze, all looking at her as if she was a monster.

Pinkie leaned up against Celestia, propping herself up by her elbow against her shoulder. "You know, there's an easy way to make this right... If you want to see this problem fixed, just nod. I can make all of this problem go right away, if, and only if, you let me take some control. I want to help you, they want to help you, we all want to help you." She leaned in close, and whispered in her ear, "Even Twilight wants to see you happy again."

Celestia was still for a moment, but then she sighed and lowered her head.

"That's half a nod!" squeaked Pinkie. "You have to follow half of my plan, now!"

Pinkie dashed over to one of the guards and pushed him forward. "Your highness, several of these small business owners would like to talk to you about the Grand Galloping Gala. I have told them that it's been cancelled, but they'd like to petition to have it reopened."

Luna stepped forward. "Sister, I beg of you to reconsider. Look at your citizens and see how much they want; how much they need something to look forward to. Would you drag them down with you, when they're doing all they can to lift your spirits?"

Celestia took a deep breath. "You collectively have twenty minutes to change my mind."

This was it. Pinkie had her hoof in the door. She just had to keep pushing, and the door would open.

Everypony was too nervous to go first, so Pinkie pushed the florist forward. "H-hi. I'm... I'm Magnolia Steel, and I run a flower shop on sixth street."

Celestia said nothing, just staring her down.

Magnolia took a deep breath. "And I-I... I think that the gala should go on because... um..."

Pinkie took a step toward Luna, wanting to command her to help her out, but Luna needed no further help. She placed her own hoof on Magnolia's shoulder and nodded at her, affirming that she was at her side in this.

"A-actually, I had a few arrangements that I brought, if you'd like to see those?"

"Let us go and see them," smiled Luna. It was at least partially genuine, though Pinkie would have preferred more. "Where are they?"

"In the dining hall."

The group made their way to the dining hall, with Luna and one guard staying behind to uncuff the musicians and then rushing to catch up.

As the doors to the dining hall opened, Celestia's eyes went as wide as dinnerplates. The florist, of course, already knew what she'd put together, and the tailor had also seen what was in here when she dropped off the new dresses sitting next to the table. Behind the dress rack sat a very large cake, with a tall stack of pancakes sitting near Celestia's place setting.

There were eight different styles of bouquet, each of which featured lavender heavily. Some were designed for their looks, others for their scents, but every single one had a long, purple horn sticking out of the top over everything else. But that wasn't what drew their attention.

At the center of this display was a posterboard, imposed on which was an image of Princess Twilight Sparkle. Except, it was a little bit lumpy, because it was all done with flowers in a hasty manner. But it looked like her, in the form of a garden patch that had been stood on its end.

Celestia turned to look at the dresses. While the motifs were primarily that of Celestia and Luna, there was definitely a strong influence from Twilight's tastes. They were covered in stars that ran down to the purple hemlines. Celestia's dress would have looked just as good on Twilight, if it had been in her size, and the same was true of Luna's dress.

Celestia lowered her head, and as Luna placed a hoof on her shoulder, she sat down. Tears were running down Celestia's face, and she started sobbing.

"So, uh..." the violinist started, "we all seem to be thinking the same thing; that this year's Grand Galloping Gala should be held. Not to celebrate the passing of Princess Twilight, but to celebrate instead the many things that made her so wonderful. She was a very important pony, and we'd all like to remember what was important to her. She meant a lot to everypony here. That's why we'd like to dedicate this year's gala to Princess Twilight's memory."

Luna nodded along. It was a good idea. What better way was there to honour Twilight's memory than to celebrate what made her so beloved by her subjects?

Celestia sniffled and looked up. She was smiling, even if it was tinged with hurt. Her suffering was incredibly strong. So strong, in fact, that she hadn't stopped to consider the suffering of her subjects. She couldn't muster any words, but she gave a strong nod. The gala was back on. And more importantly, her heart could start healing.

Chapter the Twenty-Second: Faithless

Spike's claw touched the pavement and he looked around. He didn't see anything going wrong. He looked up the road, then back down, and there was nothing out of the ordinary. The streets were a bit busy, but not dangerously so. Anypony that needed a bit more help with something could reasonably expect it to be taken care of.

He leaned up against a wall, waiting for whatever it was he was supposed to be waiting for. Vesper had told him, "You'll know it when you see it." Well, he didn't know what he was looking for, so, he just kind of... looked. As he looked, he noted that there was a little colt sitting on a bench, reading a comic book. Power Ponies. Not the same issue he'd ended up inside of, just a regular print of pages.

Suddenly, his mind flashed back to that day. More specifically, the morning of that day, when he was trying to help, but the girls had it handled, and he wasn't needed. And now that he'd thought of that, he couldn't help but feel that same sensation wash over him again. He could not shake the feeling that all of the others were off doing important things for the good of Equestria, and he was assigned to stand at this street corner and do nothing, just staying out of the way while his friends did all of the important work.

He took a deep breath. Twilight wouldn't let that happen. He remembered exactly how that comic had ended. He'd proven that he was useful, something Twilight had told him several times that day. Even several hundred other times, she'd reiterated that he was her number-one assistant. He was always there when he was needed, and always ready to help a pony in need.

"Except, there's nopony in need here," he sighed. "Which means I'm not needed, which is why I wasn't given any cool armour, and why I was sent out here..."

He took the circlet off of his head and looked at it. It was very plain, lacking any of the cool flourishes that adorned the others. His outfit reflected in it, just a plain orange tabard that didn't even reach his knees. Everypony else was given armour, but not him. He didn't need it, because he wasn't going to be doing anything important. Because he wasn't important.

He set the circlet down on the ground next to him and looked up at the sky. The weather was nice. The sun was shining, though mostly blocked by clouds to keep it from being too hot. The birds were chirping, flowers were blooming in window boxes, and everypony seemed happy, without a care in the world. At least, without much need to care. Sure, somepony in these buildings might have been having trouble opening a jar of pickled eggs, but that really wasn't an emergency.

Suddenly, there was a loud crack just up the road. A large wagon carrying two very tall boxes had just broken an axle, and it was starting to tip over.

Immediately, Spike ran over, pressing his full weight against the side of the cart, doing everything he could to hold it in place long enough for everypony to clear out of the way. Four pegasi joined in, holding the equipment up for the operator to find something to place under the wagon to add support to it.

Once Spike was sure that the wagon wasn't going to fall over, he let go of it. As he relaxed, he saw some wisps of... something... dissipating from around his claws. He checked to make sure he hadn't left any burn marks on the wagon and, finding none, stepped away.

It was only then that he realised that he'd forgotten why he was here in the first place. He was supposed to be watching out for a disaster.

He ran back to the corner and looked around. The closest thing he could see to a disaster was the cart he'd just saved, and that was hardly a catastrophe. But it had taken a good few minutes, and that meant he might have missed what he'd been called here to do.

Nothing else seemed all that out of the ordinary. He did see, just a few buildings over, a mare watering the plants in her window box. That wouldn't be too big of an issue, except that she kept bumping a terra cotta pot on the sill, which was inching its way out over a busy sidewalk. He just had this feeling that it was going to fall, but he couldn't just leave his post, right?

And then it fell. Rolling off the windowsill, it spiralled toward the ground, where a young stallion was walking. In a dash that would make Rainbow proud, he rushed over and grabbed the stallion's back legs, causing him to trip. As he made a fuss about it, everypony else jumped out of the way, letting him drop to the ground. Seconds later, as he pulled back to pick himself up, the pot hit the pavement, shattering.

"Wow," chuckled a mare nearby. "Lucky that didn't hit you. That would have hurt."

"Yeah," agreed the stallion. "I guess I'm glad I tripped. It felt like something grabbed my leg, though..."

Spike picked himself up, dusting off his clothes. He could have sworn he'd seen more of that wispy substance on his legs. Some kind of dust? It also kind of looked like magic, but there were no unicorns that should be able to see him right now. Very strange, indeed.

As he ran his claw back over his forehead, he noted that his circlet was gone, missing from his head. It was the closest thing he had to armour, and he'd lost it. It was a gift from Vesper, and he'd misplaced it. And he'd left his post twice. It was his first day as a guardian angel, and he was already screwing everything up. It was no wonder he'd been separated from the group. There were seven of them, and only six Elements of Harmony. How could he possibly compete?

Taking a deep breath, he returned to his post. Something was going to go wrong, and he had to be there when it did. He just had to wait. He just had to see it happen, try to minimise how much he screwed up, and then hand in his resignation. He wasn't cut out for this job.

Chapter the Twenty-Third: Building Blocks

Spike slumped against the corner. He was sure he'd missed the catastrophe now. He'd been waiting here for ten minutes, and nothing had happened. The wagon that had almost fallen over was just now starting its journey again, having met the minimum requirements to qualify as "repaired." Sure, it could be better done, but it was good enough for now. Likewise, the stallion he'd pulled back from being hit with a flower pot had walked away with no issues. He'd missed it, somehow. He'd been too late, or perhaps too early.

Or perhaps his gut was right, and he'd been sent here to keep him out of the way.

He let out a growl. He hated that he thought this way. He hated that he was working himself into a lather, and he hated that he couldn't shake this feeling. And most of all, he detested that he still felt hatred in the first place. He was a guardian angel, at least in title, and neither guardians nor angels were supposed to harbor such strong feelings of resentment.

He had to keep calming himself down; a job that would be so much easier if he had somepony to talk to. Sure, he was okay being on his own, but it was so much better when somepony had his back.

"Excuse me..."

Spike scrambled to move out of the way, uttering a soft "sorry," as he did, but then he remembered that he couldn't be seen.

"Sorry, excuse me..." The mare that was trying to work against the hoof traffic was very thin and small. Despite that, she wasn't making a lot of progress, repeatedly being bumped backward every time she stepped forward.

Spike looked around to see if the disaster had arrived, yet, and when he saw nothing, he moved in front of her, hooked his tail around her neck, and started shoving other ponies aside. The inability to actually shove them meant that he wasn't really doing anything, but they felt themselves being pushed away, allowing a path to open up for her.

Once the crowd had passed her by, Spike unhooked his tail from her. "Don't let it trouble you," he said. "I know what it's like to be small and ignored."

As he turned around, he managed a better look at her. She wasn't just thin. She was shrivelled up. Her ribs protruded out rather obviously, and the skin on her stomach was just kind of hanging off. It was likely she hadn't eaten in awhile.

As she rounded a bend, she was stopped by what she saw. There was a small produce market here, and as she looked in, she started salivating. Fruits and vegetables of all kinds were on display.

Perhaps she just needed a push? Spike flapped his wing to push a pomelo out of the stack near the front, pushing it so that it rolled right into her hoof. She picked it up, and as the store manager scowled and approached her, she picked it up and placed it back on the display before leaving in a rush.

Spike wasn't advocating for her stealing it, of course. He would have tried to organise an arrangement. Maybe she could have swept up in the back in exchange for a few bits and used those to pay for her meal? Perhaps it would have been a simple matter to have the manager change his mind and part with just one. He could have done all kinds of things to have her be allowed to walk out with that fresh shaddock, but only if she stayed. He didn't want her to steal it, he just didn't want her to starve.

He followed after her as she ducked down an alleyway and hid behind a dumpster. Her chest was heaving as she took deep, raspy breaths. She looked terrified, as if the shopkeeper was going to track her down and beat her. Whimpering, she shrunk down to her haunches and started crying.

Spike sat down beside her and started rubbing her back. It was pretty convenient, as his arm could pass right through the brick wall. "It's going to be okay," he sighed. "If anything happens, I'll protect you. You have my word on that."

No sooner had he said it did he regret it. That wasn't a promise he could keep. Not reasonably, anyway. How could he? He had left his post again, had caused the issue that had set her off in the first place, and he wasn't going to be a guardian angel for long once Vesper found out that he'd lost his circlet. He was screwed.

Still, now he had to. He had to keep an eye out for whatever was supposed to go wrong, he had to find his missing circlet, and he had to do everything he could to protect this mare.

She shivered beneath his claw. She felt cold, too. She needed something to keep her warm.

Spike sighed. "I'm going to take such a hit for this..." He pulled off his tabard and draped it over her shoulders. "I don't know if it'll work, but I think it should keep you warm. And my boss thought it would protect me like armour, so... it should keep you safe, too."

He was already in trouble for losing his circlet, and he'd already failed by leaving his post. If giving away his jacket to a mare in need would send him to Tartauros, then so be it. The road to eternal damnation, after all, was paved in good intentions. He would take the fall if it kept her safe. And hey, maybe Twilight would help him come back when she had the time.

He rubbed her back for a few minutes more, giving her a bit of a pep talk. As soon as she calmed down, he helped her back onto her hooves, wiped away her tears, and guided her back to the grocer. It was less busy now, so she could walk right up to the shopkeeper.

"What do you need?" he asked, barely looking at her as he checked his shelves to make sure he had enough for other customers that might come in.

"I'd, um... I'd like a job, please..."

He turned and looked at her. "You look half-starved. Wanting to earn a meal?"

She took half a step back, but Spike pushed her forward again. She nodded softly.

The shopkeeper just shrugged. "Okay. Grab a broom and sweep up. Let's see how you do on your first day."

Chapter the Twenty-Fourth: Pick Yourself Up

Spike sat at the corner once again, waiting for something to happen. Occasionally, he would glance over his shoulder at the starving mare, and after her first half-hour, she was evaluated to be as good at sweeping as anypony else, and was hired, even given an employee discount on her first purchase, a pomegranate that she ate on her break. She was better off now than she had been this morning, with at least a little bit of food in her stomach.

He turned his eyes back to the intersection, wrapping his claws even tighter around his knees. More than anything, it was the anticipation that was killing him. He knew it was going to happen, but not knowing what or when was absolute agony.

The ringing of a bell and the wail of an alarm starting up drew his attention. Up the street, a fire brigade wagon was just pulling out of their garage and moving his way. In the opposite direction, he noted that there was a thin pillar of mostly wispy grey smoke rising into the air, but it was starting to turn darker.

They probably had it, right? After all, they were the fire brigade. They were supposed to be able to save ponies from burning buildings, and also, to save other buildings from ones that were on fire. Sometimes, they even saved the building itself, if the damage was minimal enough.

Still, as they slowed down to turn the corner, Spike hopped on. He was a dragon, making him immune to fire, he was appointed as a guardian, so he should be trying to save lives, and he was already dead, so having a building collapse on him would be fine, right? What was wrong with going to help out? If they didn't need him, he could always just come back. Maybe this was the disaster he was supposed to stop.

He arrived at the fire and the wagon stopped. Several ponies jumped off the wagon and started hooking up their equipment. Spike, knowing he was safe, or at least believing he was safe, charged right into the building. He needed to know who all was in there, and he had to help them vacate.

The first floor and basement were clear. Nopony was down there. If anypony had been, they were able to pull themselves out.

The first one who couldn't was a mare on the second floor. A decorative sculpture in the hallway had fallen over and was blocking the door. Spike could hear her bashing against the door, grunting and whimpering as the door refused to budge.

Spike was incapable of moving the sculpture on his own, but that wasn't going to stop him. He would think of something.

His second thought, after moving the piece, was to break it in half. Perhaps it would be easier to move if it were smaller? Luckily, his breath was still capable of flame, and the building was already on fire, so who would know? He concentrated his fire on the section of stone in front of the door until it started to turn red, and then it exploded.

The next time the mare hit the door, it opened. She rushed back into her room, grabbed the foal that was with her, and galloped out of the building. As soon as Spike saw that they were clear, he moved on.

The next mare was an elderly one a few doors down in the main hall. She was collapsed on the floor, having passed out from inhaling too much smoke. There wasn't a lot Spike could do but use his wings to generate wind and clear the hallway. As he did, two members of the fire brigade made it to the top of the first flight of stairs, and, feeling the gust, looked down the hallway. They immediately rushed over to pick her up and pull her out, so Spike could trust that she was in safe hooves.

Up to the third and final floor. As soon as Spike was up there, he could hear a stallion calling for help, so that was where he went. Behind a locked door, a closed window and no other exits, this stallion had been stuck under a roof beam. He had some nasty burns already, but the fire was creeping closer.

Spike ran over and grabbed the beam, lifting with all of his might. It was a heavy beam, though. It was meant to hold up the roof. Spike didn't know if he could lift it on his own.

Then came the wispy glow around his arms and legs again. He could see it forming, and he could feel the beam becoming easier and easier to lift as the glow went brighter and brighter.

Finally, the beam was up high enough for the stallion to pull his leg out. Definitely broken. But he pulled himself across the room, unlocked the door, burning his hoof with the hot metal key in the process, and started crawling toward the stairwell.

The stairs looked about ready to collapse, and since Spike couldn't carry him out the window, the only thing he could think to do was situate himself under the stairs and make sure they didn't fall while the stallion half-tumbled down them. As they reached that floor, the fire crew had returned, checking for more ponies. The stallion called out to them, and they carried him out.

There was nopony else in the building. Spike checked everywhere, including the roof above and the sewers below. Even the adjacent buildings were evacuated. Everypony seemed safe.

Well, alive, at any rate. As the wisps around Spike's arms and legs dissipated away once again, he stopped in to check on the ponies he'd helped. The mother and her child were okay, the mother having light bruising from striking the door as hard and often as she had. The elderly mare was breathing through an oxygen mask, and the stallion was being loaded up on an ambulance to be transported to the hospital.

Seeing them all on the path to recovery, Spike felt a swell of pride, and then a sting of frustration. If this was the place where he was supposed to save somepony, why did he have to stand at an intersection four blocks away? Why wasn't he made to stand here, where he could be on the scene right away?

"Because this wasn't the problem," he groaned again, spreading his wings and flying back to his post.

Chapter the Twenty-Fifth: Regrouping

"Rainbow! Applejack!" Twilight waved across the room as the last two entered. "We were wondering when you two were going to show up!"

"Yeah," chuckled Rainbow. "Sorry about that."

"We was jus' makin' sure our charges was gonna be okay. Ah never like ta leave a job half-done, ya know?"

"Indeed," nodded Vesper, walking in behind them. "Now that we're all here, I'd like to call this meeting to order. If you would all please take your seats?"

Everypony except Fluttershy summoned a chair from the clouds, mostly because Fluttershy had skipped that lesson to rush down to Equestria. Twilight, however, gave her a seat.

"Now," Vesper began, "we're not always going to have meetings like this. In fact, I trust that it will be a seldom occurrence. That is, I expect you will check in with each other and communicate, but having me in attendance should not be expected. I trust that you all know what you're doing, and I trust that you will all do your best. Having me step in is just for important things, and I'd say that having your first missions completed is pretty important."

Spike shifted uncomfortably in his chair.

"So, who would like to report on their results, first?"

Several hooves went up, but it was Pinkie that was selected.

"I think that Fluttershy should go first!" she said.

"That's... not what I had in mind," huffed Vesper. "Why do you think that?"

"Well, her chapters came first, so the readers probably want to know what's been going on since we last saw her. Plus, she was the most concerned about what she left behind, so I'd like to know if it was resolved."

Vesper tilted her head to the side. "Chapters? Like one would find in a book?"

"Yep!"

Twilight waved her hooves. "Don't worry about it. It's just Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie."

"...Okay... Fluttershy, would you like to go first?"

Fluttershy nodded. "So, Angel's fine. I was sent to help Discord find his kindness, and he was really trying. It took some work, but he's doing better now. He's taking care of Angel, and I'm going to check in on them at least once a week until I don't need to anymore. Probably long after I don't need to anymore."

"Ye'r worried 'bout the boys in yer life," nodded Applejack. "Ah prob'ly should a' worried more about Apple Bloom, but Ah'm confident that Granny an' Big Mac'll keep 'er on the right track."

"Yeah, the Apple Family's a pretty good bunch," smiled Rainbow. "If there's anypony we can put our trust in, they're at the top of the list. Scootaloo is in good hooves. She even gave in and asked for help bringing Tank down from my place, so he's in good hooves, too!"

"Sweetie Belle's fine, too," interjected Rarity. "I had a bit of a nasty scare, but we managed to settle her differences with a generous offer of peace... Well, actually, that didn't work, but it did draw attention to the problem, and also brought in somepony who did solve the problem. Being nice to other ponies won out in the end."

"Speaking of being nice, Ember and Thorax are now on friendly terms again," added Twilight. "Thorax offered his services, which Ember needed, Ember opened up to Thorax, and now they're sharing a stronger relationship."

"And I helped Princess Celestia and Princess Luna stop fighting with each other and start healing!" squeaked Pinkie.

They all turned to Spike, expecting his response next. He fidgeted with his claws, then sighed. "I... didn't really do anything of value..."

Twilight, who had been smiling before, looked hurt. "Nothing?"

Spike shook his head. "I either took too long or was too ignorant or messed up the location where I was supposed to wait or left my post too frequently. I stood there for a day and a half, and I didn't see any sign of a catastrophe."

Twilight furrowed her brow. "Why'd you leave your post?"

"Somepony was in trouble," admitted Spike, his voice cracking. "I couldn't just leave them there..."

Vesper snapped her fingers, and a stack of papers appeared before her. "Actually, you did do your job, Spike. The reason I put you there was because several things were going to go wrong nearby. You stopped two refrigerators from falling onto a small crowd of pedestrians, saved a stallion from a concussion, added an estimated twenty years onto that one mare's life expectancy, and also saved that elderly mare and another stallion from a fire."

Everypony's eyes went wide as they turned to look at Spike.

He just shook his head. "I barely helped. The firefighters did all the work."

Vesper clasped her hands together. "When the firefighters arrived, where did they go?"

"Upstairs."

"And what would they have done if you'd done nothing?"

"Saved that mare and her foal."

"Right. But you'd already done that."

"They would have, anyway."

"Ah, but that would have taken time. Time that the elderly mare would have spent breathing in more smoke. How long do you think she'd have lasted?"

Spike just shrugged.

"Then there's the stallion. Tell me about the stairwell, Spike."

"...It collapsed under his weight..."

"So what makes you think the fire crew could have ascended the stairs? Twice the weight? And carrying him, how would they have made it back down the stairs? And furthermore, would they have been able to lift that beam off of his leg?"

He shrugged again. "I guess not..."

Vesper tented her fingers. "And why did you do that?"

"I just... I wanted to make sure they were okay..."

"Why? They were complete strangers."

"...Because it was the right thing to do..."

Vesper nodded. "The right thing to do." She stood up and pulled from beneath her robes Spike's tabard, now extended to be a surcote, as well as his circlet. "I believe these belong to you."

Spike accepted them, but instead of putting them on, just set them on the table. "I don't know if I deserve these. I kind of lost them already."

Vesper shook her head. "These are ceremonial. The armour does nothing but show your rank. The fact that yours is bigger now means that you ranked up. You gave your coat to a mare that was in need of warmth. It didn't do much, but it made her feel better. That was good of you to do. And you even said you were okay with suffering the consequences for showing up without it. You were ready to help somepony you've never even met, and you were willing to put yourself in harm's way to save them. You know what that is?"

Spike shook his head.

Vesper held out her hand, and in it, a small stone was formed. It was similar to the original Elements of Harmony. "This is going to be a new force protecting Peace in Equestria and the lands beyond. This is the new element that was born from your courage, Spike. This is the Element of Valor."

Chapter the Twenty-Sixth: The Other Applicants

Twilight, Pinkie, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow, Rarity and Spike were all escorted beyond the golden gates. Not through the main door, as most entrants would be directed, but through a side entrance meant for personnel. They were, after all, guardian angels, and that granted them faster access, without having to go through the fanfare every time. Resting was entirely optional, but having a nice place to return to in order to unwind from a difficult, or perhaps just upsetting mission was one of the perks of the job. They had been granted access to paradise, and they were granted a space all their own to do with as they pleased.

As they walked away, another angel flew up to Vesper and gave her a clipboard. "They're waiting for you."

Upon reading the paper attached to the clipboard, Vesper nodded and sent the other angel away. She had to deal with this herself.

Or rather, himself. Stepping outside of the gate and behind a partition, Vesper pulled back her hood. The scales on her armour clicked and twisted, losing their metallic polish in exchange for a black enamel. The tips of her fingers grew out to pointed claws. Her pale, almost blue skin turned red, great black horns grew from her brow, and from her jaw sprouted mutton chops.

The white cloth of her robes was removed and dissipated to nothingness, revealing a black quilted doublet. Beneath that, a red waist cape covered scaled cuisses, greaves with a goat skull kneecap, and sabatons resembling the talons of a bird of prey.

His eyes opened, and seven black wings sprouted from his back, flapped once, and then folded. He looked down at the clipboard again, then looked toward the building he was supposed to attend. Somepony inside didn't seem all that happy, throwing themselves at the door to break it down, but that was to be expected.

As he opened the door, he gripped the changeling queen that had tried to bust through it and threw her back inside, entering and closing the door. "Good morning, everyone!" he grinned. "I trust you all know what I've called you in here for?"

"Never seen you before in my life," commented Cozy Glow. "Say, would you mind opening that door again?"

"I would mind, yes. I called you here for a reason. It'd be stupid of me to just let you leave, Cozy Glow."

Tirek grunted. "You have us at a bit of a disadvantage. I don't believe we've had the honour of meeting."

"Oh, yes. That is indeed quite accurate a statement. Lucifer Morningstar."

"The star of morning," smirked Tirek. "Such a power would be welcome in my grasp."

"Welcome to the team, Lucy!" squeaked Cozy Glow, shaking his claw. "Tirek and I were just discussing ways we could return to Equestria and exact our vengeance! Just as soon as Chryssi opens the door..."

Chrysalis hissed back at her. "I told you not to call me that!"

As Chrysalis jumped at Cozy Glow, Lucifer stepped in the way and knocked her back down. "I have come here to offer you a deal. A lighter sentence in exchange for a confession. If you sign these papers," he pulled out three contracts, "then I will make sure that the one in charge of your cases is made aware that you are very sorry for what you did."

Chrysalis just laughed. "Do you think I'm a fool?"

"I do," volunteered Tirek.

"You're like, super unfriendly and shit," retorted Cozy Glow. "Like, it's kind of no wonder you keep ending up caught, because you can't act like a normal pony."

Tirek chuckled. "You're one to talk. You even have the benefit of actually being a pony, and you can't even fit in on your own."

"Hey, at least my plan was kept secret until I was ready to spring it!" snapped Cozy. "Better than just roaming the countryside with a sense of impunity!"

"I had impunity, you rancid cunt! No one dared stand against me."

Lucifer whistled. "Everyone, I need you to sign these documents, or I will be forced to tell my superior that you didn't. Yes or no?"

"I need sign no document," snorted Tirek. "Do your worst."

Cozy just started fake crying. "Wh-why are you b-bullying me? I didn't d-do anything to you!"

Chrysalis spat on the pages. "Pretty sure we can convince your superior that we never saw those papers."

Lucifer just nodded and folded up the documents. "The fact that your saliva is on the page says otherwise."

The confidence flushed from Chrysalis's face.

"That's right. You've seen the documents. Your DNA is right there on the dotted line."

"Stupid bitch," chuckled Cozy Glow.

"Oh, I wouldn't laugh too hard, Cozy. Because now that she's been caught, what's to prevent her from striking a new deal to throw you under the bus for a further reduced sentence?"

Chrysalis smiled and shifted into the form of Cozy Glow. "I'm one hundred percent guilty, and Chryssi did nothing wrong!"

"She has you there," laughed Tirek. "It's settled. We blame Cozy Glow for everything, and the rest of us go free."

"You son of a bitch!" shouted Cozy. "I promise you, I'll find a way around this! Gimme that contract, Lucy!" Lucifer pulled out one of the contracts unsoiled by Chrysalis's spittle and Cozy scrawled her name across the bottom. "Looks like I'm the only one with a reduced sentence!"

Tirek grabbed the pen from her hoof and held out his hand to Lucifer, as if demanding a contract. "I'll not be subject to your filth, you little shit..."

Lucifer gave him his contract, and Chrysalis signed the last one. It would be quite detrimental to be the only one that didn't sign the confession.

"Very good," nodded Lucifer. "Who says the souls of the damned can't make a change? I'll tell your case worker that you signed this, and your sentence will be reduced."

"Reduced to zero, right?" pleaded Cozy, batting her eyelashes.

"Nope. You're still going to Tartauros. The difference is that now, you qualify for a parole hearing after your first thousand years."

"I thought that's something you'd have to take up with your superior?" questioned Chrysalis.

"Nope," chuckled Lucifer. "Forgot to tell you this, but I'm filling in for one of my subordinates. I'm the supervisor. He was supposed to hand over these papers to me. Whoopsie!"

Chapter the Twenty-Seventh: Tartauros

Chrysalis struggled and tore at her bindings, trying desperately to rip apart her bonds. She, Tirek and Cozy Glow had been tied up, but the other two were far more subtle about trying to escape. In fact, Tirek was sawing at his bonds with a small blade hidden behind his back, and Cozy glow was using her wings to seek out the point where the bindings came together in a knot. It had to be somewhere.

Bound as they were, though, Lucifer carried them down the ladder to the surface of Equestria on his shoulder. "You're not really helping your case, the way you're struggling like that," he told them, interrupting their attempt by bumping them all. "Plus, you're not making it easy to descend this ladder."

"Wha' sha magger?" snarked Chrysalis, how lower jaw snagged in her bindings. "Afhraig ye'll fhall?"

"Hardly," he chuckled back.

Chrysalis kicked again, hard, and Lucifer "accidentally lost his grip on her." She slipped free of his grasp, smacking her head several times as she tumbled to the ground. It wasn't that far away, but she did break one of her teeth on the way.

"Thanks, Jake," Lucifer smiled, waving as the ladder disappeared back up into the clouds. "Such a useful guy..."

He approached Chrysalis, picking up the tooth she'd knocked out. "That was uncalled for," she panted.

"Perhaps," he nodded. "Then again, I could have just tossed you over the side and glided down with my wings full of breeze. Instead, I've opted to carry you right down the ladder."

"Don't pretend that you're being nice..."

"Oh, but I am being nice. Your sentence doesn't begin until I personally verify that you've been incarcerated. Personally being there to put you in your place cuts your time down by... However long it would take me to check your cell." He laughed, hoisting her back over his shoulder and pocketed her tooth before opening a large stone door and descending a dark staircase.

"More stairs?" snorted Tirek. "Have you perhaps considered an elevator?"

"An excellent suggestion, Tirek. Why don't you dig the shaft and set up the line? You'll need a few hundred kilometres of cable to reach the bottom of that hole, plus a shaft wide enough to hold the volume of creatures coming through, and some way of quickly making your way to the right level. Shall I fetch you a spoon?"

Tirek just growled, but Cozy chimed in. "Yes! I'll have that spoon!"

"And you shall have it, little one!" chuckled Lucifer, booping her nose with his finger.

Before too long, they came to a second set of gates, this one unguarded and just sitting open. On the other side, a large boat sat, and as they boarded, Lucifer exchanged a handshake with the ferryman. "Good to see you, Charon."

Tirek rolled his eyes. "Why do you both have girl names?"

Lucifer raised an eyebrow. "Pardon me?"

"Your names are Lucy and Karen. Why do you have girl names?"

Lucifer just shrugged. "Why is your name an idiot complaining about his party being ruined, "Tea-wreck?""

"HA!" belted Chrysalis. "He has you there, Tirek..."

"Doesn't the name "Chrysalis" imply that you never grew up?" spat Tirek back.

The two fought the whole way there, something Charon was obviously used to seeing. He didn't really seem to care, only stepping in and keeping them from rolling off the edge of the boat and into the river because Lucifer asked him to. There were other passengers that just went overboard and fell into the river below, only to be swept away to who-knows-where.

When they arrived at the other end, there was... some kind of lamia... wrapping his tail around a pillar before launching the applicants into the air, their distance determined by how much force was used.

Rather than going through that main gate, Lucifer opted for an auxiliary entrance, still carrying the three on his shoulder. The winds beyond the first wall howled and whistled as it blew past them.

Chrysalis stopped fighting as she caught scent of it. "This wind... This is illicit love!"

"Indeed it is," nodded Lucifer. "Lust, as it's called."

Her mouth started to water. "I could feed off of this for ages! It's so... powerful!"

"Indeed you could," agreed Lucifer. "In fact, you're going to. That's your sentence."

Chrysalis couldn't help but chortle at this news. She was supposed to be punished, but instead, she was being rewarded. All of this, she could just devour at her leisure. She was confused, then, when Lucifer brought her out of that wind and down another level. "Why are we here?"

"We're here because this is your cell," explained Lucifer. "Lust is just where you wanted to end up. In fact, it's where a lot of our tenants would prefer to be. However, you've been set up in a lust-adjacent location. Welcome to gluttony, where every day is an all-you-can-eat buffet."

No sooner had he said that than Chrysalis was grabbed and fitted for a ring gag to hold her mouth open. Once it was in place, Lucifer brought down a hose and hooked it up to the gag.

"You have a very cushy place here," he smiled. "Not only is it all-you-can-eat, but you don't ever have to chew. All the love from above can just come right to you!"

He opened a valve on the hose, and Chrysalis began to panic as the contents of the hose bulged out her cheeks as it filled her mouth, then started to run down her throat. She swallowed reflexively, but it was all coming in far too fast for her to handle, and she began to swell up like a balloon.

Cozy Glow and Tirek watched in horror as Chrysalis was force-fed whatever it was coming through that hose.

"That's not going to happen to us, is it?" trembled Cozy Glow. "I don't look good fat!"

"Oh, child," chuckled Lucifer, booping her nose again. "Of course not! This is her punishment, and hers alone. Well, aside from her various cell mates, but that's entirely beside the point. Come along, now. You have your own places down the stairs..."

They took one last look at Chrysalis, gulping down everything that she could manage, but clearly overwhelmed. Things weren't looking good for them as Lucifer carried them further down the stairs.

Chapter the Twenty-Eighth: Damnation

Lucifer carried the other two down the stairs, pointing out various landmarks. There was a river of molten gold flowing between the legs of a statue to Plutus, there were ponies beating each other with whatever they could find to take hold of large bags of... well, something, but Lucifer did not say what, and then there were others throwing coins at anypony who approached. Not giving them coins, but throwing them, as if projectiles.

The stairs didn't go down much longer after that, as they couldn't. A festering, stinking black marsh made everything flat for a time. If the stairs has continued down, they'd be neck-deep in mud within seconds.

"Is this it?" asked Tirek. "Are we at the bottom?"

"Oh, hells, no!" chuckled Lucifer. "This is just a mire we have to cross."

"It smells like shit," grunted Cozy. "Can somepony fan the air in front of my nose?"

"I certainly can," smiled Lucifer, wafting the stench closer to her face. "Better?"

She shook her head, her cheeks puffed out as if she was holding her breath.

"Well, here, how about I skip the wafting entirely?"

Dangling her upside down, he lowered her face to just above the surface of the mire, something which she vehemently objected to, but without words. A tiny splotch ended up on her nose, so ridiculously pungent that she could smell it even without breathing. And she couldn't wipe it off, either, as her hooves were bound. She looked up at Lucifer, pleading with him to stop this, but he wasn't paying attention. He was looking ahead, as was Tirek. Cozy turned her face in the same direction and saw what they were looking at; Another guy with another boat.

"Good afternoon, Phlegyas," waved Lucifer. "I see you've upgraded."

The boatman looked up and nodded. "Skiff was nice, but an unruly passenger sank it about a fortnight ago." He pointed off into the mire, where a barge was half-sunk in the water. "Had to replace it, and I figured I'd go with a catamaran this time."

"Looks nice," nodded Lucifer. "So, we need a ride..."

"Say no more. Hop on."

They climbed aboard and the boat began to move across the mud. Mud was more apt than water, as the churning of the ponies in the mire had kicked up a fair amount of sludge from the bottom of the swamp. Some of them tried to climb up, only to end up whacked with an oar by the ferryman.

Little was said as the boat spent several minutes crossing the Stygian mire until it landed at a brick wall with an iron gate. Once on the other side, the stairs resumed, past a city of ponies hanging upside-down. Many were spouting nonsense, and others were speaking plain Ponish. Most notably, there were figures denying that Twilight could ever become a princess, because she was born a unicorn noble, and nobles cannot grow to be princesses, just as unicorns cannot grow to become alicorns.

As soon as they were out of earshot, they came to yet another river. This one, thankfully, had a bridge, rather than a boat. However, halfway across the bridge, Lucifer stopped.

"Did you forget something?" asked Tirek. "We can go back."

"I've forgotten much of the millennia that I've been active. Who knows if I've just forgotten something because it just wasn't important anymore? But no, that's not why I'm stopping."

"Then why are you stopping?"

Rather than speak his answer, Lucifer just let go of Tirek and shrugged, letting the centaur roll down his arm and over the restraining rail of the bridge. Tirek landed in the boiling red river below, and as he bobbed up to gasp for air, he was shot with a barbed arrow from the shore of the river. A hunting party of other centaurs watched from the riverbank, their bows at the ready for whenever Tirek breached the surface.

"Welcome to the home of the recklessly violent," called Lucifer after him. "It may be a bit difficult to hear me, but since you were so keen on starting a bloodbath in life, you're going to be bathing in this pool of spilled blood for the remainder of your sentence. The guards here will make sure you stay in the bath until you're scrubbed clean, or your probation hearing; whichever comes first!"

As they continued off of the bridge and through a thorny bramble, Cozy finally opened her mouth again, but the stench of the bog still on her nose had made her voice quite hoarse. "Won't leaving him in there rejuvenate him?"

"Yep," nodded Lucifer. "Not the "bathing in the blood of virgins" myth, but the fact that the liquid is so hot that it will scald away his skin, leaving only the freshest of new layers. That is, of course, if he even still has skin after his bath. Such extreme heat is a powerful exfoliant. A bad enough burn will cause your skin to slide right off, and he's going to be in there for awhile. So very dirty..."

Cozy was starting to shake as they entered the desert. It seemed that the further down you went, the worse the punishments were. To be lost in these sands would be agony, but they were still going. She would almost prefer to be up with Chrysalis, being force-fed whatever it was coming from that hose.

After crossing over ten ditches with the ponies contained therein subjected to different forms of torture, ranging from the fourth, where their heads were on backwards and they were made to walk as such, the sixth, where the floor was but thin rails and those upon it clad in leaden robes, to the tenth, where many were afflicted with various diseases. Cozy even saw that one was wrapped in the skin of another, something Lucifer pointed out as being a "stolen identity."

Soon, they came to a stone well, and a giant lowered them down to a frozen lake. "Okay, little one," smiled Lucifer. "Are you ready to receive your punishment?"

Cozy shook her head. "No!"

"Well, too bad. Because here it is."

Lucifer dropped her to the ice, which shattered upon impact. The water below was absolute torture, and as she came back to the surface, the ice reformed around her face, leaving most of her body below, with just her mouth, nose and eyes exposed to the air. Her body began to lock up as the ice grew around her until she was completely immobile.

"Here begins your punishment," noted Lucifer. "For treason against Equestria, this is where you shall remain until your parole. But ah, I promised you a spoon so you could dig your way out, did I not?"

Cozy tried to nod, but could not. "Y-yes," she wheezed, barely able to breathe.

Lucifer pulled out from behind his back a tablespoon and placed it in Cozy's mouth. Within seconds, the handle frosted over, and her tongue stuck to it, as well as her lips. She could no longer speak. What was worse, the plunge into the freezing water had not washed the mud from the river Styx from her nose. She could only smell that for the next thousand years.

Chapter the Seventh: Spirit of Kindness

Fluttershy stayed by Discord's side all night long, watching over his dreams. She did stop to consider that this was supposed to be Luna's realm, but quickly dismissed it. Not only was Luna retired, and probably called out of that retirement to find a new candidate for princess, she probably had hundreds of thousands, perhaps even millions of nightmares to lay siege to. She had enough on her plate as it was, so having Fluttershy remove a drop from that bucket was probably inconsequential, and even if not, was probably appreciated.

Every time Discord would start to change his dream to something worse, in the form of "but" and "what if," she would change it back. She could not remove all doubt, but she could smother it with encouragement.

He woke up and stretched, moaning as his joints popped back into place. "Oh, my... That was an actually restful night of sleep!" he noted. "I can see why Fluttershy didn't like..." he sighed and shook his head. "Again. And those first few seconds were going so well..."

He took a moment to do some deep breathing and stretching. He didn't say much of anything, which was fair. Nopony was around, so he'd just be talking to himself. Granted, as the lord of all chaos, that wouldn't be much of a stretch, but he seemed to be acting more normal, as though he were taking active steps to change his ways.

Folding down his rain cover, it almost looked like a normal hill again as he turned and set off for Ponyville. He was still walking, or rather, trudging, but no longer was he dragging his tail behind him. He kept it up out of the dust. Not quite in the air, but at least out of the way. He walked right up to Fluttershy's cottage and let himself in. Fluttershy followed through the closed door and up the stairs, where Angel was still lying.

"Good morning, little Angel Bunny!" belted Discord, yanking off the covers. "Slept well, did you?"

Angel just curled up tighter. He really didn't look healthy.

"I just spent the whole night in my thinking tree," lied Discord, "and do you know what I thought of?"

Angel huffed.

"That's right! I came up with a solution to our little problem!"

Discord scooped Angel up in his claws. Angel tried to fight back, of course, but it didn't take much effort for Discord to forcibly hold him still, even without chaos magic.

"See, I've been trying everything I could to make you eat something ever since I took command of Fluttershy's cottage, here, and so far, nothing has worked. So, I've decided to just give up."

Fluttershy followed the two of them down to the kitchen, Angel kicking and screaming all the way. On arrival, Discord used his tail to grab Angel's food bowl and set it on the table, then grabbed a carrot as he sat down in a chair.

"Normally, this is where I would beg you to take even one bite of carrot. But not today!"

With a loud crunch, Discord bit into the carrot, chewing as loud and obnoxiously as he could manage. All of this he did while holding Angel down in just such a way that he had to see it.

"Mm! So very tasty. And you missed out on all of it! You could have been eating this the whole time, and you refused. If only you'd cared enough to eat... Now it's all mine!"

Discord took another big bite of carrot, staring Angel down as he chewed. It hurt Fluttershy to watch what was happening, but it had to be done, and she knew it. She had planted the idea in his head, and now he was doing as she had said.

"I guess you didn't really care about Fluttershy, either. She would have wanted you to eat. But since you've decided not to..."

As he went for a third chomp of carrot, he conveniently relaxed his grip, and Angel jumped from his grasp, grabbing the carrot out of his tail, as well as the others from the bowl, moving them away from Discord.

"Oh, you silly rabbit," teased Discord, easily pulling a carrot from his grip. "You think you can hide these away? Not a clever idea, by any means."

Angel jumped up and grabbed the carrot back, and then, to keep Discord from taking them again, started eating them.

That was it. Though Angel couldn't see it, Discord was smiling. Angel was eating, at last. That was a step in the right direction, even if it was hard to watch.

Fluttershy thought back to when she had to do this. Angel had been refusing to eat, not for several days, but for an entire day. That she could make him ignore his anger and eat, not out of love, but out of spite, was good enough. He would still be angry when this was over, of course, but he'd be fed, and that was something, at least.

On any mormal day, she'd have put a stop to this behaviour right away. She didn't much care for teasing, and she especially didn't like the mistreatment of Angel. However, she was very proud of Discord for standing up to the capricious rabbit. Even if it was more forced and aggressive than she would like, it had worked, and it was what was best for Angel.

Discord leaned back, as if a great burden had been lifted from his shoulders. Not all of it, merely the first step of many that would eventually culminate in his recovery, but it was a big first step.

Fluttershy flew up behind him and started rubbing his shoulders. Her hooves went right through him at first, but with some effort, she managed to reach through. Not really, but she was able to project her will through, as his shoulders started moving in line with her hooves. He may have been doing all of the moving on his own, but perhaps he could feel her presence, and just maybe, she was providing some amount of comfort.

"You did very good," she whispered in his ear. "You're doing a very kind thing, looking after my affairs after my passing." She kissed his cheek. "Keep doing what you're doing."