The Crusaders: Belle

Disclaimer: I do not own My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, or any of its characters or concepts. I am in no way affiliated with Hasbro or Marvel. I make no money for this writing.

My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

The Crusaders: Glory Belle's Secret, Revealed!

Belle appeared in the shadow of old town hall. Her black cloak clung to her body. Beneath the cloud-filled sky she was a ghost, visible only by her red eyes. Yet there was nobody to see her anyway. That late, only the owls stood a chance of noticing her.

She left the shadows and strolled the streets, observing the sights and letting her memories take her back. Her hooves fell silent on the brick path. Sugarcube Corner was gone, replaced by a deli, so she didn't linger there. Belle smiled as she remembered meeting her best friends.

The library appeared. Belle's eyes moistened at the sight. Gnarled wood, bare branches, boarded-up windows. A sign said "Scheduled for demolition." Five years ago. With a whispered spell she phased through the wall and looked around. The shelves were all empty of books, but a few crumbling tomes lay scattered on the floor. Everything smelled of dust and mold, and all Belle felt from it was desolation and loss. This place had moved on.

Leaving, Belle noticed some graffiti.

"The Mad Titan courts Death, while Doom approaches."

Belle continued down the main street, then a side street. Minutes passed. She stopped in front of a closed bar. She remembered the boutique that stood there long ago and let the tears fall. She remembered running out one dark night, ahead a shadowed beast running from a twitching body toward the Everfree Forest.

"Of course the other girls had to be out of town tonight! Of course I must handle this ruffian myself!"

Belle went on. Her hooves took her out of the old town boundary, past an old schoolhouse. Still used, but reserved for younger children. There were newer facilities for older children. This place, too, had moved on.

Now Belle didn't know where she was going, what she was doing. Her steps grew quicker as her memories came faster. It started to rain, those centuries ago. The path was muddy, lit only by her horn. She was a fool to enter the Everfree at night, alone.

Fluttershy's cottage was gone, long ago reclaimed by nature. It had moved on.

A flash of lightning, and suddenly the feel of claws sinking deep into her sides. Belle fell, rolling in the mud, struggling with her attacker. Fire balls and lightning flew, but the beast was too close, clinging to her body as claws ripped through flesh. She started growing cold....

Then two fangs stabbed into her neck, and Belle felt on fire. Her scream rent the night air. The beast cackled above her, before a sharpened staff drove into it from behind and burst through the chest, showering the writhing Belle with blood.

Belle came to a stop in front of Zecora's hut. She began sobbing. The hut was like the library; ancient, broken-down, and desolate. The old zebra had built it to last... but the zebra was gone. They were all gone, all of them. All but her.

Zecora brought Belle back to the hut and tended to her wounds as best she could. But already they were healing, and Belle felt hungry. So hungry. She ached. Zecora brought a bowl of crimson drink, Belle drank, and the ache lessened. Zecora then told her everything about the vampire, and Belle threw the blood back up.

Belle entered the decrepit hut, threw some logs she had gathered into the hearth, and lit them. Her shadow flickered on the wall as memories blurred. Friends surrounding her, worried for her, not scared of her. Citizens of Ponyville gladly donating blood to keep her healthy. Twilight working with the princesses on a cure for vampirism with the Elements of Harmony and finding only been a partial success.

"You can't pass your curse onto others now," said Princess Celestia, the whole group in the library. Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Spike, Zecora, Scootaloo, Apple Bloom... and her sister, Rarity. "Sunlight won't kill you, just make you sick. You will still need to feed, but I trust you on that. Promise me, Sweetie Belle, no killing."

"I promise," Belle said to the fire, staring into its depths, "no killing."

"Otherwise," said Princess Luna, taking over for Celestia, "you have the vampire's strength, their speed, their durability... and their longevity."

They all knew what that meant. There were tears. Pain. Rarity, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, everyone just... left, one after another, from sickness or accident or just old age. She, meanwhile... could only endure.

"One hundred and eighty-eight years... just enduring." Tears splattered the floor. Shadows encroached around Belle, she felt them. Hurtful things, sad, overwhelming....

A burst of green flame, bright as life. The shadows retreated. Belle read the sudden scroll, tears drying.

"I know you miss them. Me too. The pain of loss is overwhelming. I know you visit Ponyville every year, this time. I'd join you, but court duties…

"Just please, never forget the good you inspire. The lives you saved in your stint as Mare Do Well. The friends you have now.

"Loving you always,

"Spike

"P.S., S.T.R.I.K.E asked for you earlier. I think something's happening."

Sweetie Belle folded the letter, slipped it into her cloak, and left the hut, the forest, Ponyville. The past would wait for her. For now, she had Galaxy, her friend. Oren and S.T.R.I.K.E. could wait.