Lost in the Dark

Chapters

Prologue (Version no.2)
Chapter 1: Memories Revealed
Chapter 2: Points of View
Chapter 3: Leaving...
Chapter 4: The Party
Chapter 5: Brother in The Dark
Chapter 6: The Meadow
Chapter 7: Hangover
Chapter 8: An Intervention
Chapter 9: The Dark
Chapter 10: The Goal
Chapter 11: Preparations
Chapter 12: The Trip
Chapter 13: Another Point of View
Chapter 14: Another Dark Secret
Chapter 15: *The Chapter with No Name*

Prologue (Version no.2)

It was a day like any other in Ponyville. Ponies were playing, working, and having fun. The afternoon train screeched to a halt, and the various door on the sides of the train opened. Second after the door opened, a flow of ponies began to walk out. Some were greeted by the ponies who were awaiting their arrival, and others began to make their way to someplace in particular. Once most of the commotion ended, and the majority of the ponies left, a strange pegasus began to walk out of the last cart in the train. He looked back in the cart and waited for his animal companion to walk out.

The pegasus’ coat was a shade of dark brown while his mane and tail were black. He began to walk as his companion jumped out of the train. His companion was a strange sight to see. In a first glance, you would see the average dog/pet, but on closer inspection you would the more predatory like details, and all of them pointing to the fact that it wasn’t an average dog, it was a wolf.

It jumped out the cart and walk alongside the stallion. The stallion seemed nervous, every few second he would look around, expecting to find something wrong. They walked along the outskirts of town where barely anypony would be walking. He stopped for a second and placed his saddlebags on the ground. He looked inside the bags and took out a pair of keys. He looked at the mark on the key, put his saddlebags back on, and kept on walking.

Once they reached the residential area, the pegasus took a deep breath and walk towards a specific house inside the area. He took in front of the two story house, and then looked at the markings on his keys. They matched. He shoved the keys in the lock and turned it. Once the locks clicked into place, he turned the knob and walked inside.

The wolf began to nudge the pegasus.

“Huh-” His word didn't come out correctly given his sore throat. He cleared his throat and began again “Huh? What is it, Kiba?” He asked in a sad tone. The wolf began to point out the door. “You want to take a walk?” The wolf gave a happy nod “Go ahead.” The wolf, now named Kiba, happily walked out of the house and into the forest. The pegasus took a deep breath and walked deeper into the house.

He threw his saddlebags on the table and sat on the couch. ‘One month... maybe one and a half... That’s all I have...’ he thought to himself. He looked around the room. He laid on a couch near the middle of the room, next to him was a small table, on the opposite side of the table were two small chairs. The front door has two small windows on either side of it, and a small circle from where you could see the visitors without having to open the door. On the wall opposite to the couch, there was a doorframe leading to the kitchen. Behind the couch was the stairway leading to the second floor.

‘Can't believe I have to go through this again... I should get some rest...’ Hige thought as he found a comfortable position to sleep in. He soon fell asleep, but was woken up hours. “Stop!” He screamed as he woke up “Not again...” he murmured to himself. The sudden scream caused his throat to burn, he tried to clear it and pat his chest. The pain faded somewhat. He looked out the windows and saw that it had gotten dark. ‘Where’s Kiba?’ he thought as he whistled for him. No response. He quickly got up and opened the door. He looked around, but Kiba was nowhere to be seen. ‘Dammit, where is he!?’ the pegasus thought as he began to panic. He quickly ran in the same direction Kiba ran hour before.

He entered the forest and began to look. He stop and took a breath between violent coughs. The forest was silent, except for the occasional rustling of the leaves in the distance. He could see many small eyes peeking at him through the darkness, but he didn't care. The only thought in his mind was finding Kiba. He whistled once again, causing many of the eyes to disappear and more rustling to be heard. By the second time he tried to whistle, he heard a howl in the distance, it was faint, but he could tell where it was coming from. He turned in the direction the howl came from and ran. Soon enough, he found a dirt road that was heading in the same direction he heard the howl from.

‘Am I going the right way?’ He thought, and almost on cue he heard a familiar howl. He began to run even faster after hearing the howl. As the forest ended, it gave way to the sight of a cottage. It seemed to be a living hollowed tree with various animals inside and outside. Hige began to walk slower as he saw Kiba sitting in front of the cottage. The pegasus’ pace stopped once he saw a mare walk out of the cottage and interact with Kiba. The mare looked over into the forest, but saw nothing. Hige hid before she had a chance to see him.

‘Who is she?’ the pegasus thought ‘What’s she doing?’. The mare pet Kiba on the head and began to look at the bandages on his side. ‘Is she checking his bandages... I guess she’s... helping him?’ He took a deep breath and calm himself down ‘Okay... I can do this...’ Hige began to walk up the trail leading to the cottage.

“Hel-” He tried to say.

“EPP!” The mare screamed as she jumped behind Kiba.

“I-I’m sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, I just really wanted to see Kiba again, I’ve been worried sick...” He said nervously and clearing his throat afterwards.

“K-Kiba?” She asked trying to regain her normal posture.

Kiba barked once.

“Is... Is that your name?” She asked.

Kiba barked in response

“So... That’s your owner?” She asked

Kiba barked once again in response.

“So...” She said as her eyes grew open and a smile appeared on her face as she directed herself to the pegasus “I was so looking forward to finally meeting you! I was just here helping a few animals when I heard a whimper. I looked back and saw him. I think he was in some soft of fight considering the scratch he had on his side. I was scared at first, but I couldn’t not help an animal in need. I walked up to him and found out he was very friendly. A little too friendly to be wild. After that, I bandaged him up and he just sat in front of my house waiting... maybe for you?” She said. She paused for a second and reverted back to her normal shy posture “I’m... I’m sorry for making you worry about him...” she said as she hid behind her mane.

Hige began to look more closely at the mare. Her coat was pale, while her mane and tail were a light pink color. Her eyes, though not completely visible, was a dark cyan color. But most of all, she was very shy, but seemed to have a strange moment where she was very sociable. “Don’t worry about it, I’d be even more worried if Kiba wouldn’t had gotten any medical attention...” he said trying to ease the worry of the mare.

“It was nothing...” she answered.

“All the same, than you miss...” He said waiting for her to say her name.

“Fluttershy.” She said with a blush. “And who might you be?” she asked

‘Did I just say miss? I’m an idiot...’ “I’m an idi-” ‘I’m not going to say that! Why am I acting like such an idiot... Why am I so nervous?’ “I’m Hige.” He answered ‘Good. I said my name....’

“Nice to meet you, Hige.” she said. She paused “Well... I don’t mean to be rude, but... I’ve never seen you around town before...” she said

“I just moved here.” Hige answered “Kiba decided to take a stroll...”

“Y-you moved here?” She asked with a small smile.

“Yes, today actually... So how’s Kiba?”

“He should be fine, but the bandages have to stay on until tomorrow. His wounds need to close properly.”

Hige began to cough uncontrollably for a few moment.

“Are you okay?” She asked in a worried tone.

“It’s fine...” He said as he finished off the coughs and cleared his throat. “It was raining alot where I came from... I ended up getting it the last few days before I got on the train.”

“A-are you sure?” She asked in a worried tone “They sound very bad...”

“Don’t worry about that, it’s probably because I ran over here.”

“Are you sure? I can give you something to help with the cough.” She insisted

“No, I’m fine.” Hige replied

“B-but... Please, it’ll only take a second.”

‘Why is she trying so hard to help me... I should... I should leave... I only just met her, I’m not even sure if I can trust her...’ “S-Sure...” Hige answered.

With a smile Fluttershy lead Hige into the cottage and told him to wait on the couch. Kiba walk up next to the couch and laid down.

“What did you get yourself into?” Hige asked in an impressed tone. Kiba looked away “What? Did you find out you aren’t the strongest animal here?” Hige said with a grin. Kiba’s teeth began to show “Oh, so i’m right. You went out there thinking you were the best and somepony else showed you otherwise.” Kiba lunged at one of Hige’s hooves and bit him. It hurt, but he didn't bite hard enough to draw blood. Hige began to laugh, since he was used to the playful bites.

“W-What are you two doing?” Fluttershy asked nervously as she walked out of another room woth a cup “Kiba shouldn’t be moving so much...”

“Oh, sorry about that...” Hige said in an embarrassed tone. Kiba laid down. “W-we... We get out of hand sometimes...”

“Take this.” She said as she handed him a cup. “This should help with the cough...”

“What is it?” Hige asked as he began to spin the cup, feeling strange goo move around at the bottom.

“It’s warm honey with mint. It help with the irritating feeling in your throat.” she explained

Hige turned the cup vertically and drank the honey in one gulp. He cleared his throat before began to talk “That... feels alot better...” he smiled a thanks. ‘I-I should be nervous right now... I’m always nervous when I get to a new town... But why don’t I?’

“Um... C-Can I ask you a question? I mean, if that’s okay with you...” She asked.

“Oh, um, okay...” Hige answered

“I’m just curious... How did you meet Kiba?”

“Hmm... I was walking in the forest one day when I started hearing something move in the distance. When I looked, I saw something running towards me. As it got closer, I realized it was a wolf so I decided to run. I turned around, and it ended up biting my saddlebag. I tried to run, but the saddlebag didn't let me. The only thing I could do was try to fight it. I slammed my hoof on his head, and I was surprised to see him fall unconscious. I took a closer look at him and noticed he was actually starving, I left him some food and walked and left... I felt kinda bad for hurting him. After that, I went walking in the woods again and, to my surprise, the same wolf was following me. It was alot closer and didn't seem to want a fight, so I tossed him some food. This went on for a while before he gained the courage to follow me to other places...”

“He was alone? That’s strange... They usually travel in packs...” She murmured to herself. “Oh” she said releasing herself for her thought “That’s an amazing story. Usually when wolves are domesticated, they tend to have moment where they’ll attack you out of instincts, but your friendship with him seems to help him resist those instincts...”

“That makes sense... I think...” Hige said, not fully understanding what she had just explained. “Now can I as you a question?” Hige asked.

“Oh, um... Sure.” She said surprised.

“Why do you live here? I mean, it’s nice, but isn't it alittle bit separated from the town...”

“Yes it is, but I like staying close to the animals. I wouldn’t like having to make them go into town to get help...” She answered.

“Help?” Hige asked curiously

“Yes, it’s my special talent. I help animals in need.” She said as she turned to show her cutiemark.

“Oh, that makes sense considering what you did with Kiba.”

“So... Can I ask you another question?” She asked with a shy smile.

“Sure.”

“Well... You just moved here, right?” She asked

“Yes.”

“So... is there anypony special that you left behind?” She asked as she hid behind her mane.

“Huh?” Hige asked, not understanding the question.

“Well... Like a best friend... Or something else...” she explained

“Wha...” ‘Yowai...’ echoed inside Hige’s head. Hige’s body tensed up. He jumped off of the chair.

“A-Are you okay?” She asked nervously after the sudden reaction to the question.

Without a word, Hige ran out of the house. He ran straight towards where he thought his house would be. “Dammit, Hige, can’t you ever learn!?’.

Chapter 1: Memories Revealed

“Why am I so unlucky?” Hige murmured to himself after the scene he had caused in Flutershy’s cottage. “All I needed to do was get food. WHY DID I HAVE TO COME ALL THE WAY OVER HERE?!” he screamed to himself. “Maybe I had to get Kiba, but that doesn’t mean that I had to stay and…” He had finally reached the end of the forest and was on his way to getting to his house. ‘If word gets out about of what happened… I’m dead’, he thought to himself as he ran to the door of his house ‘Remember… Remember… Remember.’ Hige became dazed for a split second, causing him to fall. After hearing the voice in his head, he spontaneously remembered a memory that had been hidden away deep in his mind since the day it had happened… until today. “No!!! For the love of all that it good, SHUT UP!” Hige said, almost breaking down; there wasn’t a noise to be heard. It took him a few second to regain the courage to stand up.

As he entered his house, he felt a wave of fear pass throughout his body. He knew what he had to do… but he didn’t like it. The memory he had hidden away for years was about his best friend, and the way they got “separated”. He had gotten used to having chunks of his life being erased from his mind ‘Its better that way’, he always thought. This memory, on the other hand, was unlike any other. This was the single most important memory of his past… and the one he most feared. The “Incident” with Fluttershy had caused him to remember his best friend’s name: Yowai. The name brought up events that had transpired during his repressed memory. He had no choice, he would suffer through remembering the memory or allow it slowly destroy him.

Hige walked upstairs and into one of the rooms. He found a few parchments, a quill and some ink. He planned on writing down everything he knew about his best friend and, in the process, hoped to release the memory he had hidden away.

After a deep breath, he began to write:

I was only twelve when I first met my best friend Yowai. He had gotten into a fight…

“C’mon ya faggot, do something!” said the light blue unicorn to the little colt which he had begun to kick in the middle of a deserted, dead-end alley, in the poor district of Manehattan “If you don’t do somethin’, I ain’t gonna stop”, he said as he landed a hard kick in the colt’s gut. The colt frantically started gasping for air. “DO SOMETH-“ The stallion was interrupted by a small rock hitting him on the side of his head. “Ahh!!! The hell was that? Who threw tha-“

“Pick on someone your own size!” said a small, dark-brown pegasus.

“Ha! There isn’t anyone in this town that can be a match for me!”, the light blue unicorn said arrogantly.

“Hahahahahaha!!!” The pegasus began to laugh uncontrollably.

“What’s so bucking funny!? “, said the unicorn, his rage intensifying.

“Everybody knows that you’re the only unicorn that’s too stupid to use magic”, said the pegasus with a smug grin.

“Why you little bastard!” exclaimed the unicorn as he charged at the pegasus, who then flew to top of the small building that composed the left portion of the alley.

“The only thing you managed to do was use that thing on your head like a spear… Not very impressive if you ask me”, said the pegasus in a inciting tone.

“Why don’t you come down here and tell it to my face?” remarked the now-furious unicorn.

“And why should I do that?” said the pegasus un-amused.

The unicorn looked around and smiled, “because if you don’t… I’ll kill this little colt.” True to his threat, he positioned himself in the perfect angle to stab the still breathless colt in the neck.

The pegasus’s eyes shot wide open, but quickly returned to their normal self. “Holding a defenseless colt hostage? What would your father say if the saw you?”, said the Pegasus as he positioned himself at the end of the alley ,“oh right, he left you… probably because he couldn’t live with the fact that his son is so stupid that he can’t even use the simplest of spells”, he said with a smirk.

The unicorn was dumbfounded, then irate, “Wh-what?... You’re dead kid… YOU ARE SO DEAD!!!” He began to gallop toward the pegasus, horn ready to stab him in the heart.

“Idiot…”, said the pegasus as he flew upward, avoiding the unicorn’s horn. The horn met with a brick wall, and shattered. The impact was so great that he fell unconscious.

“Are you okay?”, asked the pegasus, now turning his attention to the colt.

“Y-yeah… thank… you…”, said the colt between breaths, “is… he… dead?”

“No… I hope not… even if he is an jerk… he doesn't deserve to die…”, said the pegasus looking at the unicorn. “Can you walk?”

“Yeah… I just… need a minute… to catch my breath”, the colt said as he rested his back against the wall,

“what’s your name?”

“Oh, its Hige. Nice to meet you”, he said, extending his hoof.

The colt responded, “Likewise. I’m Yowai” and bumped his hoof against Hige’s.

Moments later…

“I-I think I can walk now…”, said the colt as he stood up.

Hige, who had been waiting at the entrance of the alley, walked over to him and said, “Are you sure? Jack did do a lot of damage.”

“Jack? Was that the unicorn?”, asked Yowai as he got up.

“Yeah… Everypony around here knows the legendary jerk, Jack… are you new?” Hige asked with a peculiar face.

“Um… y-yes… I’m new here”, Yowai said, looking like he could cry at any second.

“I’m gonna take a wild guess here and say that you came here on a safari retreat to look the animals that inhabit this part of the town. You saw Jack and asked your group leader if they could follow it and observe it; he said no. Heartbroken, you decided to look for the animal on your own. Then it snuck up behind you and took you by surprise”, said the pegasus with a hoof under his shin

“Well… no…”, Yowai said with a smile.

“C’mon, I know a place you can rest”, Hige said as he slowly made his way to the alley’s exit and looked back, “you comin’ or what?” Both of them gently smiled.

“Oh… okay then…”, said Yowai, surprised at the generosity of the pegasus.

Jack woke up hours later, only to find pieces of his shattered horn surrounding him. Then he promised himself, “Don’t think I’ll forget this, pegasus...”

… and that was the first time I ever met Yowai.

‘W-what… t-this can’t be… all my life… I’ve had a best friend… why did I hide it away...? Why do I feel so sad each time I think about it…’ Hige thought to himself after he had finished writing his first encounter with Yowai. ‘Never forgive…’ “WHO SAID THAT!”, exclaimed a startled Hige as he jumped out of his seat to look around… “I must be hearing things…” Hige murmured to himself. ‘Need to keep writing’ he thought ‘I need to know what happened’ Hige started to write once more…

Chapter 2: Points of View

‘Okay Hige, calm down’, he thought to himself, ‘just let the memories flow’. He began to write about many things: taking Yowai to the tree house he had in the forest, learning that Yowai’s parents had left him for dead in the city because of his inability to “be a real stallion”, but none of them stood out… none of them except for one… this memory took place about three days after the fight with Jack.

… Yowai and I were walking through town, making our way back to the tree house…

“Hahaha! I can’t believe you actually crashed into a wall! Who does that!?”, said a laughing Yowai.

“That wall came outta nowhere! It’s not my fault”, replied a grinning Hige.

“Yeah yeah… Is your head okay?”

“Huh? Pfft! Its gonna take more than a brick wall to hurt me!” said a proud Hige as he tried to ignore the headache that was caused by this outburst and his injury.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right, I’ve seen you fall out of the tree house and keep walking as if you fell on a pile of pillows. Hige the Iron Hea-“

There was a rattle in the distance, Hige turned to see it; he was met by small brick being launched towards his face…

… I blacked out and woke up in the hospital… and… I was…

Hige’s hoof stopped, he could not think of anything else to write “Dammit! Think Hige, think! What happened after that?!” After about five minutes of Hige waiting for the memories to start flowing, he gave up. ‘I should go to sleep… I can finish this tomorrow… maybe before somepony finds out about Fluttershy…’ were his thoughts as he slowly made his way to the bed, sleep taking over. ‘I didn’t even notice how sleepy I was… I’m so… sleepy… I… could…’ he slowly faded into sleep.

Never forgive… never forgive… cursed forever… eternal damnation…

‘Where am I?’ Hige thought as he looked around. ‘Wait… this is Manehattan… is this a dream?’ he thought as he slowly began to make sense of his situation. ‘I went to sleep… so this must be a dream. But I usually don’t know it’s a dream…’ “Do you seek power? Power to destroy the ones who have questioned you, for revenge?” roared a sinister voice, “I can give you what you seek...” ‘W-what the hell is going on! This isn’t a normal dream… I need to run!’ Hige tried to run, but he wasn’t able to move an inch. ‘W-what!? I cant move!’ “Do you accept my deal?” asked the mysterious voice again. “Yes…” he felt himself say in a different voice. ‘What’s going on?! I didn’t want to say that, that wasn’t me!.. Wait a second… That WASN’T me... I’m in another body… ‘ “Good… Now, empty your mind and let the anger build…” Hige felt himself loosen. “… think of the one person that you want dead and… LET ME IN!!!” As the voice said that, Hige felt his chest begin to burn, followed by the same sensation spreading and covering his entire body with agony. He felt his head jerk downward to see “his” hooves, which were beginning to turn from light blue to pitch black. Hige felt himself lose consciousness…

“AHHHH!!!” Hige screamed as he awoke in a cold sweat. ‘Oh, so it was all just a dream…’ “F-fluttershy!” exclaimed Hige after noticing Fluttershy was looking at him trough the doorway, “What are you doing here!?” She did not answer, but continued to move towards him. “W-what are you doing? You’re not supposed to be here. Fluttershy, why did you come here? Say someth-!!!” Hige gasped as he saw the knife she was carrying in her mouth. “Fluttershy don’t do it, I don’t want to hurt you!” She had an empty look in her stare ‘Wait… Kiba would have stopped her…’ “What did you do to Kiba!?” Fluttershy stopped moving and nudged in the direction of the door, behind it was the severed head of Kiba. “How could you!?” asked Hige, close to breaking down. Hige sprung out of bed, headed towards the door, but was intercepted by Fluttershy. “Get out of my way!” Hige screamed as Fluttershy slowly drove him into a corner. She finally got close to him; he was up against the wall. She smiled as the blade slowly made its way to his heart. Hige did not fight, he could only close his eyes and wish for it to end. He felt the pain of the knife reaching his heart followed by a feeling of loneliness. Hige opened his eyes, only to find that the house was no more. The only thing left was the corner where he had been stabbed. Moment later, the corner broke like glass, sending Hige into a never-ending pit of darkness.

He kept falling for hours… days… weeks... He could not keep track of the time. As he fell, he noticed a small dark orb launching itself in Hige’s direction. As it reached Hige, it slowed down. Hige felt himself being consumed by darkness as the orb somehow stopped his descent. “What are yo-“ Hige tried to ask, but was interrupted by the orb launching Hige in a random direction. He thought that he would continue to fly in that direction until gravity caused him to resume his descent. To his surprise, he felt an invisible wall shatter and lost consciousness.

‘Where am I?’ Hige again found himself in Manehattan, the poor district. ‘Am I going to be forced to relive this again? Wait… is that me!?’ Hige was in the very same part of Manehattan where he had been knocked unconscious, but this time, he was reliving it in Yowai’s body. ‘This is the part where…’ Right on cue, he saw his own body being hit in the head with a brick, a very strange feeling.

Out of the alley came a pitch-black unicorn with a triumphant grin on his face. ‘He looks familiar… was he… Wait! That coat, I saw it in that dream! It has to be him!’ he thought.

“I thought that Hige would put up more of a fight than that”, he said as he got closer to Hige’s numb body.

“Why did you do that!? Who are you?!” Hige felt Yowai scream, then instantly back away in fear of what the mysterious black pony would do.

“Why!? I’ll tell you why: to prove him wrong! He said I couldn’t use magic. Well, look at me now”, he said.

“J-Jack! I-is that really you? What happened?” Yowai asked, horrified. Jack’s coat was now pitch black, his cutie mark had become a pony skull and you could sense a dark aura emanating from him.

“What did I do? Simple, I struck a deal with a demon. Why’d ya ask? You want powers like me? Too bad! You’re not getting any!” Jack said as he slowly walked circles around Yowai.

“N-no, I don’t want powers! Just leave me alone!” Yowai roared.

“Lies… you want power… you want to be powerful enough to defeat the ones who have called you weak, to prove yourself to the man you hate. You want powers, and I can give you them”, roared a sinister voice.

“No! I said I don’t want any! Shut Up!!!” Yowai screamed as he pressed his hooves against his ears.

“Wait… The demon is trying to strike a deal, isn’t he? No!!! I’m the only super powered pony here; you don’t deserve this kind of power!!!” screamed Jack as he galloped toward Yowai.

“Don’t lie... You want power and I can give it to you. I shall lend you my powers to defeat this brute, no strings attached. Whether you decide to keep them or not will be up to you. Do we have a deal?” asked the voice.

“Yes…” At that very instant, a feeling of strength started to flow through Yowai. Simultaneously, Jacks black coat started to revert to its old, light blue, color.

“What did you do!!!?” screamed Jack as he stopped to look at his body.

Yowai took on a sinister smile as he walked over to Jack. “So this is the power you were talking about… I like it… I might even test it out on you”, Yowai said with a sinister grin “Hahaha! Just kidding… I AM going to test it out on you, no exceptions”, he said as he finally reached Jack, who was paralyzed by fear. Yowai took his hoof and placed it on Jack’s chest. What was left after Yowai was done, was unrecognizable as a pony. Yowai took one look at Hige and carried him to the hospital.

‘So that’s what happened… I can’t believe it…” said Hige as he returned to the dark void he had previously come out of. The small orb emerged again, stopping Hige from his descent. “What are you?” the orb did nothing for a few minutes, and then launched Hige in another direction. This time, when the invisible wall broke, Hige was force to wake up. “APPLES!” Hige screamed as he woke up. ‘Why did I say that?’ He felt his stomach rumble in response. ‘Oh sweet Celestia am I hungry… I was hungry yesterday and the only thing I ate was a sandwich… I’m going to die in this house…’ Hige looked at the desk where the papers containing his memories were. ‘What happened after the hospital… I was there for a week while I was being healed for my head injury… I walked outside… and saw Yowai ’ Hige thought to himself as he walked over to the desk and tried to write what he had just remembered.

… Then he told me that there was something he needed to show me near the tree house…

“C’mon Hige, you need to see it NOW!!!” Yowai screamed in a playful manner.

“Okay, just don’t yell too loud… I have a headache…” Hige said.

… We made our way to the tree house…

“Okay Hige, it’s over here”, Yowai said as he pointed at the blanket on the floor.

“So… you found a way to get my blanket dirtier?” Hige asked.

“No, there is something under it. You gotta see it”, Yowai said, filled with excitement.

“Okay then...” Hige responded

… I pulled the tarp off… I couldn’t believe what I found under it…

“What the hell did you do!!!” screamed Hige as he witnessed the gruesome display hidden beneath the blanket. It was a pentagram drawn in blood, with a skull on every point. Scattered within it was a carving knife and what must’ve been Jack’s remains. At its very center was the light blue unicorn’s heart. Hige felt his body being forced to the ground.

“I’m tired of being pushed around; once I’m done here I won’t need you to fight my fights”, said Yowai as he used his mysterious magic to put Hige in the appropriate position for the ritual. Hige could not believe that was happening.

“What happened to you!!!” said Hige trying to reason with the beast. The pentagram began to glow a dark shade of red, Yowai’s eyes began to glow the same color. The heart in the center began to beat steadily. The skulls started to float around Yowai.

“This is the end… my old friend”, said Yowai with a grin. The heart was beating faster now.

‘Wait… Pentagram + Crazy friend + Strange Powers = Demon’ “Yowai, This isn’t you!!! Wake up!!! Fight it!!!” screamed Hige.

“No… No!!! I want this!!! Right…?”, Yowai said as he started question himself.

“No it’s not!!! I know the real Yowai and he wouldn’t kill for power!!! YOU NEED TO FIGHT IT!!!” Hige screamed as he felt the magic that was holding him take the knife and prepare itself to rip him apart. The heart was now beating incredibly fast.

“No, I need power to fight!!! No, I don’t!!! Yes you do, don’t fight it!!! AHHH!!!!” Yowai said as he fought with the conflicting voices in his head. Suddenly, there was a deafening silence. There was a split second when Yowai’s face showed only regret…

… Then the explosion happened. Yowai was nowhere to be seen. I flew away to another city, leaving the memories of this horrible city behind me.

Chapter 3: Leaving...

Author’s Note: I’m REALLY SORRY for the delay, school is purposely giving me work to interfere with this story… there is no amount of :( that can describe how sincerely sorry I am. I’m almost certain that I can get the next chapter done by… Saturday. I hope you enjoy this chapter :) and I would like to thank ZuperDerpy for pre-reading and helping me improve the characterization for Fluttershy.

Side Note: I would appreciate constructive criticism you can give, especially any involving characterization for original MLP character.

Hige was frozen in place. ‘So… that’s… that’s how he died… I can’t believe this…’ Hige slammed his hoof onto the table, and realized that he’d slammed it onto the inkwell he had been using. The papers he wrote were stained with ink around the edges, but it didn’t cover up anything he had written. He looked at his hoof that had now become pitch black. ‘Déjà vu…’ he thought as he slowly plucked the larger pieces of glass out of his hoof. Hige got up from his chair and walked towards the door of the room, making his way towards the bathroom. He turned on the water and lay in the tub. He lay there thinking of everything that he had just realized moments before. ‘Can’t keep mourning for much longer… I need to get out of this town… Wait, did Kiba bring my saddle bags? He was supposed to.’ “Wait! I can’t leave Kiba behind”, Hige said as he got out of the bathtub. After drying himself and his wound, he made his way towards the door.

He walked along the outskirts of town and into the Everfree forest. He moved along the dirt path that led to Flutershy’s house. ‘Get in, get out. Don’t want to make another scene’, Hige thought to himself as he remembered what had happened the day before. As he got close to the door, he extended his hoof to knock on it, but quickly stopped himself. ‘Wait… it’s still morning… maybe she’s still asleep.’ He opened the door as slowly and silently as possible. What he saw inside shocked him.

Fluttershy lay sleeping on the couch in the same spot where Hige last saw her. Kiba was sleeping next to the couch. ‘How did Kiba get her to fall asleep? He is the best friend ever… She is even more beautiful when she’s asleep. SHUT UP!!!’ he though, quickly shaking off this last idea. “Kiba… Kiba, wake up”, Hige whispered as he gently nudged Kiba. Kiba quickly woke up and looked at Hige with a puzzled gaze. “C’mon Kiba, we need to leave.” Kiba got up. “Kiba, did you bring my saddle bags?” Kiba nodded and ran out the door, probably to search for the saddle bags. As Hige turned around to leave, he was overcome with fear from the noise he had just heard. Fluttershy was about to wake up? He turned to see that she was only shifting positions. ‘For the love of Celestia, this mare is going to give me a heart attack!’ He thought to himself ‘… she must hate me now… I would too… She just wanted to know if I had a best friend, I had no right to make a scene like that… what I would give to undo that…’ Hige thought. Kiba returned seconds later, saddles in mouth, and he sat down outside the doorway. Hige didn’t notice.

‘What I would give-‘ Hige’s thought was interrupted by a mischievous white rabbit jumping up onto the higher section of the couch and dangling a carrot over Fluttershy’s head. ‘Is he gonna do what I think he’s gonna do?’ In an instant, Hige’s nightmare became a reality as the rabbit released the carrot and was now in a direct course toward Fluttershy’s head. In a spit second reaction, Hige was able to catch the top of the carrot with his mouth. Angel was not pleased with this turn of events; he jumped off of the couch and towards Fluttershy. ‘This rabbit was misleadingly named’, was the last thought to pass through Hige’s head before the rabbit landed on Fluttershy. In a moment of fear the shy mare bolted awake and slammed heads with Hige. Hige fell onto the floor and the rabbit launched of the couch.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t expect anybody to be here! Is your head okay? Let me check!” She said as she turned her head and looked directly at Hige. “Hige!?” What happened next thoroughly surprised Hige. After Fluttershy realized who it was, she jumped off the couch and tackled Hige with a great hug. “Hige, I’m so sorry for yesterday! I didn’t mean to be nosy, I was just curious! You have to believe me; I didn’t want to make you mad! It was an accident!” she said, tears slowly making their way down her face. ‘Is… is she sorry for what happened yesterday? She feels guilty for something I did?’ Hige couldn’t say a word; he was having a hard time processing the situation. Hige’s silent response caused Fluttershy to cry even more. “IM SO SORRY!!!” she said, almost breaking down completely. Hige tightened the hug and said, “No… its my fault… I overreacted.” This made Fluttershy calm down, but not by much. “B-but”, she began to say, but was cut off. “No, Fluttershy… I overreacted… Don’t take the blame for something you didn’t do.” They stayed in total silence for a few minutes, long enough for Fluttershy to calm down. The peace was ended by Hige’s stomach which began to growl. This made Fluttershy jump. Hige began to laugh, Fluttershy soon joined in. “Kiba”, Hige called over, “Bring me my Saddle bag.” Kiba walked over and placed it next to him. Hige began to look through the bags until he found what he had been looking for, a small bag filled with Kiba’s favorite treats. He opened it and threw one in the air, KJiba soon caught it by instinct. Kiba sat there and began to stare at Hige, Hige sighed and threw another treat in Kiba’s direction “You’re so spoiled” Hige murmured “Um… what are those?” Fluttershy asked curiously “Oh… I don’t really know… It’s a strange treat that I bought in a town I was in… Kiba loves them” Hige said extending the bag toward her in case she wanted to take a closer look. Fluttershy’s eyes widened “W-what happened to your hoof?!” Hige quickly turned to his hoof and immediately remembered what had happened. “Oh… I accidentally jumped onto an inkwell”, Hige said with a grin. ‘You are horrible at making up stories’, he thought. “We need to put a bandage on it, I don’t want it to get infected”, she said as she ran to the bandages she had in the cabinet. After a few minutes, the bandaging was done.

“How does that feel, is it too tight?” She asked. “No, it’s perfect. You are really good at this.” Fluttershy began to blush. “I was going to get some breakfast… Do you want to come? I really don’t know this town too well…” Hige asked. “Oh… I would, but I need to take a bath… I don’t want to have to make you wait…” she said in a sad tone. “No worries, I rather wait than get lost in the town” Hige said with a reassuring grin. “Oh, okay then. I’ll try not to take too long”, she said as she perked up and went to take a bath. ‘I can’t believe it… She actually forgave me…’ Hige thought as he reached for his saddle bag and began to search. ‘I hope I didn’t lose it… Oh here it is.’ Hige thought as he pulled out a silver bracelet with a pitch black gem on it, he breathed a sigh of relief as he put it on. ‘Okay… now how many bits do I have... about… a hundred give or take .’ Hige then heard the bathroom door open and close followed by hoofsteps going upstairs, and another door opening. ‘Okay, forget it, I’ll check the rest later.’ Hige stretched and waited for Fluttershy to come down. A few minutes later, he heard the upstairs door close. Fluttershy came down and smiled once she locked eyes with Hige. “S-sorry I took so long”, she said, looking at her hooves. “Wasn’t long at all. You ready?” Hige asked. “Oh… yes, I’m ready”, she said with a small smile. “Okay then, let’s go”, Hige said as he strapped on his saddle bag. Fluttershy smiled and followed Hige out the door. Kiba gave a yawn and followed Fluttershy.

“So… do you want to walk or fly”, Hige asked as he looked at Fluttershy. “Oh… well… I’m not a strong flyer… but if you want to… I can catch up later”, Fluttershy said as she hid behind her hair. “Okay then, we’ll walk”, Hige said. “T-thank you, Hige… but you don’t have to if you don’t want to…” Fluttershy said. “Don’t worry about it, I’d rather walk with you”, ‘did you actually BUKING SAY THAT?! I WILL MURDER YOU IN YOURE SLEEP’ Hige said with a small blush appearing on his face almost as big as Fluttershy’s. “Um… W-why are we taking this route?... If you don’t mind me asking...” Fluttershy said, surprised by the fact that Hige took the route along the outskirts of town. “Oh… Well… I’m not a very social pony… I tend to keep to myself…” Hige said. “A-and why is that?” Fluttershy asked. “Well… I never actually had good friend, I guess… never really got the chance to be social…” Hige said with a grin. “Is that why you… Never mind!” Fluttershy said, stopping herself from saying something that might cause another scene. “*Sigh* don’t worry… No, that’s not why I caused a scene yesterday… and I’m sorry but I…” Hige began to say “Don’t worry, I understand… and I won’t mention what happened yesterday to anypony, I promise”, She said in a reassuring voice. “Thanks Fluttershy… That means a lot to me… you’re a good pony…” Hige said as a blush appeared on his new friend’s face.

They made their way to the edge of the town in silence until a rainbow-maned, cyan pegasus walked up to the three. “Hey Fluttershy, who’s your friend”, the cyan pegasus said, not taking her eyes away from Hige. “Oh… T-this is Hige, He just moved here”, Fluttershy said. “Hmm… Hige? Did you meet Twilight, the librarian?” Hige nodded. The cyan pegasus began to study Hige closer. ‘what is she doing?’ “Okay then… so you wanna race? I’m the fastest pegasus in all of Equestria!” the cyan pegasus asked with pride… or arrogance. “Oh… I’m not a strong flyer… and I was going to get some breakfast…” Hige said. “Wait… you’re getting breakfast… with Fluttershy? What is this, a date?” Hige and Fluttershy blushed on cue. “Hahahaha! Well then, I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone”, the pegasus said as she flew off into the sky. “D-don’t mind Rainbow Dash… She isn’t always like that…” Fluttershy said, still embarrassed from the last comment. The three made their way to Sugar Cube Corner. “Welcome to Sugar Cube Corner. I’m sorry but are you new? I don’t remember seeing you before”, said a blue mare behind the display shelf. Hige was about to answer before a loud gasp was heard from upstairs, or more specifically from a can that was dangling on a string. There was a pink blur that ran down the stairs and stood in front of Hige with the biggest smile he had ever seen in his entire life. “Are you Hige?! Yes you are, you have to be Hige! Hi I’m Pinkie Pie and I throw parties for everypony here in Ponyville! But I haven’t thrown you one and since you’re going to live here, a party would be the best way to meet everypony else! PLUS THERES CAKE!!!” The pink earth pony said. ‘Say something!’ “H-hello Pinkie Pie…” Hige said. “NO TIME FOR SMALL TALK, I NEED TO PLAN YOUR PARTY!!!” the pink pony screamed before she dashed up the stairs.

“Oh don’t mind her,” said an earth pony with swirled ice cream-like hair, “that’s your average Pinkie Pie. Hi I’m Mrs. Cake, and I’m guessing you’re Hige. What can I get for you two to eat?” the blue mare said with a smile “Oh… nice too meet you… um, you can order something if you want Fluttershy, I’m buying”, Hige said as he began to look at the variety of sweets. “Oh, no… I-I couldn’t”, she said, taken by surprise at the sudden offer “It’s not a problem, Fluttershy… don’t worry”, Hige said with a reassuring smile. “Oh… but…” she began “C’mon Fluttershy, I don’t mind. I know for a fact you haven’t eaten anything since… yesterday” Hige said “oh… okay then… um, I’ll take a small stack of Wheat Cakes with apple syrup… if you don’t mind…” she said, shifting her attention to Mrs. Cake. “Actually, make that two… ill die of hunger before I decide what to eat”, Hige joked as he directing his attention to Mrs. Cake, Fluttershy giggled shyly ‘d’aww… she is so cute’. “Two Wheat Cake Stacks comin’ up. Oh and if you don’t mind, we can’t have pets inside the store. You can take that table outside, I’ll bring your orders when they come out”, Mrs. Cake said, taking Hige out of his own thoughts. “Oh, okay then, do you have anything warm to drink?” Hige asked. “Yes, we have coffee and hot cocoa. We’re not really famous for our drinks”, she said, embarrassed by the measly options. “Hmm… what do you think, Fluttershy. Coffee or cocoa?” Hige asked. “Oh… well Coffee is bitter and cocoa is sweet… other than that, they’re the same”, she said. “Hmm… two hot cocoas then”, Hige said. The mare nodded and walked to the back of the shop. “W-why two?” she asked. “One for you and one for me… why, you don’t like cocoa?” Hige asked. “No… it’s not that, I like cocoa… but why did you buy it?” she asked, looking Hige in the eyes. “Oh… well… I don’t know… d-do I need a reason to be generous? Plus you need something to wash down the food” Hige said, a blush slowly taking over his face. “N-no… just curious… we should go to the table, we promised Mrs. Cake”, she said as she turned toward the door, trying to hide her blush.

“Here’s your order. That’ll be twelve bits”, Mrs. Cake said as she placed the food on the table and Hige gave her the bits. They began to eat and enjoy each other’s presence. It only took a few minutes for Hige to be done, considering he was so hungry. Fluttershy was still eating the other half of the pancake stack by the time Hige was done. Hige sat there sipping his cocoa. A while later, Fluttershy had enough. “I-I’m sorry, I-I can’t eat another bite”, she said as she pushed her plate forward. “Don’t worry about it, Kiba will get rid of the rest for you”, Hige said. “Oh… Okay… Um Kiba, would you mind?” She asked as Kiba stood up, grabbed the plate, placed it on the floor and happily began to eat. “So… what are you going to do today?” Hige asked tying not to look like an idiot. “Oh… Well I need to feed the animals… I don’t do much after that…” she said before taking a sip of her cocoa. “Well… do you mind if I… well… tag along?” Hige asked. “Oh, yes I appreciate the help… well… if you want to help… you don’t have to…” she said. “I’ll be glad to help”, Hige said with a smile as he took another sip of his cocoa.

They soon made their way to Fluttershy’s cottage. Hige fed the animals outside, and Fluttershy fed the animals inside.

“The animals outside are fed, how are the animals inside?” Hige asked as he walked through the doorway. “Oh, they’re fine… Thanks for helping”, Fluttershy said as she finished feeding Angel… or apologizing for what happened this morning. “Not a problem, if you ever need anything, I would be happy to help”, Hige replied. There was a knock on the door followed by it opening; it was Twilight. “Hi, Twilight”, said Fluttershy. “Hi Fluttershy. Just here to tell you that Hige’s party is ready”, Twilight said. “W-what party?” asked a surprised Hige “The one that Pinkie Pie was planning”, Twilight answered. “Oh…” Hige said, realizing the stupidity of the question. “C’mon, you can’t miss the party. Consider it an initiation into Ponyville”, the lavender mare said. “Oh… okay then…” Hige said as he got up from the couch. “Don’t worry, just make an appearance, mingle and get out”, Twilight said. “C’mon Kiba”, Hige called out, Kiba walked over. “Are you going?” Hige asked Fluttershy. “Oh, no… I’m not good with parties”, she said with a small smile. “Oh, okay then”, Hige said as he followed Twilight out the door.

Chapter 4: The Party

“Are you okay, ZuperDrepy” said Hige as he stoped and looked back “Forget about me, POST IT!!!” roared ZuperDerpy as he recovered from his sprained ankle. Hige ran to the computer and slammed the USB in ‘Where is it?’ “WHERE THE HELL IS IT!?” Screamed Hige filled with anger “It’s in ‘Pictures’, I put it there by accident” said ZuperDerpy as he caught up with Hige “Damn it!!!” screamed Hige in frustration “Dude… what’s your problem? It’s just a chapter” said ZuperDerpy “ITS NOT JUST A CHAPTER!!! ITS ME VS. THE SCHOOL. IF I DON’T POST IT RIGHT NOW, SCHOOL WINS” Screamed Hige at the top of his lungs “… im gonna go get a muffin...” ZuperDerpy said as he exited the room. With a click, the chapter was posted, “That’s right School… I won… I bucking won…”

‘This isn’t going to end well…’ thought Hige as he followed the lavender mare to the party. “You don’t have to stay too long, ten minutes should be enough to please Pinkie Pie”, said Twilight, picking up on the brown stallion’s anxiety. “Oh… okay then…” he said. “Don’t be like that, it’s just a party. It won’t kill you”, said Twilight with a smile. Hige had no response. “You are just as scared of parties as Fluttershy… which reminds me, Rainbow Dash said that you two were… on a date?” asked Twilight with a hint of discontent. “Oh, I-it wasn’t like that! I was at the cottage and wanted to get some breakfast so I invited Fluttershy since I don’t-“ Hige said before he was interrupted. “Wait, why were you at Fluttershy’s so early in the morning?” asked Twilight, not even trying to hide her anger. ‘Think Hige, think!’ He felt Kiba nudge on his side. ‘Mental Note: Give this dog as many treats as he wants’, he thought. “F-Fluttershy was taking care of him, and I needed to pick him up”, Hige said. “Hmm… okay then”, Twilight said, still trying to see if she should believe him or not. Hige extended his hoof and patted Kiba. “You are truly the best friend ever”, Hige whispered. They walked in silence until; soon enough, they reached the place where the party was going to be thrown, a barn in Sweet Apple Acres.

“YAY!!! YOU’RE HERE!!!!” screamed a pink earth pony, bouncing up and down near the entrance of the barn. “I was going to plan the party at Sugar Cube Corner, but then I heard that Applejack never met you. Then I started to ask around and I noticed that NOPONY HAS MET YOU! So then I thought: Sugar Cube Corner isn’t big enough to fit the whole town! So I asked AJ if we could use the barn, SHE SAID YES!!!” said Pinkie Pie in a single breath. Pinkie Pie began to open the door, Hige was breath-taken by the amount of ponies inside. “WELCOME TO PONYVILLE”, they all shouted in unison. ‘Play it cool, this is normal… apparently’, Hige thought to himself as he walked in. “Well howdy doo, I’m Applejack, but my friends call me AJ for short”, a blonde-maned earth pony said as she took Hige’s hoof and began to shake it violently. “H-h-ell-o A-a-a-p-ple-j-ja-ck”, Hige tried to say as his arm was slowly being dislocated. “Well hello there dear, I’m Rarity.” Said the purple-maned white pony. “N-nice to meet you…” Hige said. There was a slight poking sensation on Hige’s side, as he turned to inspect it, he was greeted by a small purple dragon.“Hi, I’m Spike”, the dragon said as he extended his hand. “Oh… a dragon…” Hige said “You’ve never seen one?” Spike asked. “Oh, I have… I’ve never seen one that hasn’t tried to eat me”, Hige said, finally accepting the dragon’s handshake. “Hmm… that’s a very peculiar dog, is he a pure breed?” asked Rarity as she took a closer look at Kiba .“Oh… he isn’t a dog…” said Hige already knowing what was going to happen next. “Whatever do you mean?” she asked in confusion. “Well… he’s a wolf… not a dog…” answered Hige. “OH!” said Rarity as she backed away. “Well then… I hope you don’t find it rude if I keep my distance for now”, she said with a smile. “A wolf? Now that’s the definition of cool.” Said the familiar rainbow-maned cyan pegasus as she began to pet Kiba.

Hige walked around for a few minutes before he decided to take a walk outside the barn.

“Is it okay if a take a walk outside?” Hige asked Twilight. “It’s fine, just be sure to come back before they start breaking the piñata. The new ponies get the first hit.” she said. “Oh, okay then”, said Hige as he walked outside. “Can you come and find me if they start the piñata?” he asked Kiba, who nodded to him. Hige walked along the trail until he found a small opening between the trees. Through them was a small cliff, which was barren; treeless. ‘I could stay here a while’, Hige thought as he looked around. When he walked over to one of the trees, Hige noticed the shadow of a pony with glowing red eyes walking towards the area he was resting in. ‘W-what!?’ thought Hige as he looked around to see if there were more; there weren’t. As he looked back, the shadow he had seen disappeared and a red stallion took its place. ‘I’m too paranoid’, thought Hige as began to relax. Considering the cutie mark, Hige knew he was part of the apple family.

“Hi, is it okay if I stay here for a while”, Hige asked the red stallion. “Eeyup”, was the only thing the stallion said as he began to rest near the same spot Hige was taking respite. As Hige began to relax, he was overwhelmed by a sense of curiosity directed toward the red stallion. “Hi, I’m Hige”, he said as he extended his hoof toward the red stallion. “Big Mackintosh”, said the red stallion. “Why aren’t you at the party?” Hige asked. “… I’m not welcome…” he said. “W-what do you mean?” Hige asked, which caused the red stallion to look directly at Hige, his eyes glowing red. “I’ve done thing I’m not proud of to protect my family… I’m feared because of it… It’s been my darkest secret… haven’t even told AJ…” he said as he began to look away. “Oh… why tell me?” Hige asked. “We both have our share of dark secrets… I trust this discussion will stay between us”, he said. “How did you… never mind. Yes, I’ll keep your secret”, Hige said, surprised at the fact the stallion knew about his past. “Now, if you don’t mind, what happened to you?” the stallion asked, still looking away. ‘He already knows I have a dark past… no harm in talking about it… right?’ “Oh… well… my best friend was possessed by a demon… he tried to use me in some sort of ritual… I was able to get through to him, but it was already too late… he died…” Hige was able to squeeze out. “You don’t have to keep going… I understand…” Big Macintosh said in a calm voice. “Thanks…” Hige said in a relived tone. Soon after ending the conversation, a howl was heard. ‘That must be Kiba’, Hige thought. “I need to get back to the party, hope we meet again”, said Hige as he got up. “Eyeup”, replied Macintosh.

Hige walked over to the trail where Kiba quickly greeted him. “Piñata?” Hige asked, Kiba nodded and began to walk back to the party. “Where were ya’?” asked a curious Applejack. “Oh… I was taking a walk… why, is something wrong?” answered Hige. “No, there’s no problem but I gotta ask, did ya see someone?” asked Applejack. “Oh… Big Macintosh?” asked Hige. “Y-yes, that’s him. So, ya met him then… did he say anythin’?” asked Applejack .‘I can’t tell her…’ “No… he didn’t say anything…” answered Hige, trying to avoid eye contact. “Oh… okay then. Hope ya enjoy the party, I’m gonna hit the hay.” She said as she left. Soon after, Hige was met by Pinkie Pie, who made him break the piñata. Hige was blind-folded, spun around and let loose… what happened next was no less than a massacre: there was candy everywhere. Hige and Kiba left soon after that, making their way to their house before Hige realized, ‘Where’s my saddle bag… I left it at the cottage.’ “Kiba, we need to go to Fluttershy’s, I left my saddlebag”, Hige said. Kiba whined in defiance. “No saddle bags, no treats”, Hige said, Kiba’s ears perked up and, soon after, Kiba took the route leading to the cottage. Once Hige got there, he knocked on and opened the door.

“H-hello Hige”, Fluttershy said as she shifted her attention from the lavender mare whom she had been talking to. “Hi… I left my Saddle Bags”, Hige said as he pointed at the Saddle Bags he left on the couch. “Oh, hello Hige”, Twilight said in a mildly aggressive tone. “Um… hello Twilight…” Hige said as he went to retrieve his bags. “I’m telling you, you don’t know what you are getting into”, Twilight said in a concerned voice. “Twilight… I t-think you should leave… I-if that’s okay with you”, Fluttershy tried to say in an assertive voice. “Fluttershy, listen to me!” Twilight said, her tone turning into anger. “N-no… I t-think you should leave…” Fluttershy said, slowly shrinking her body. Kiba began to growl and bark. “Yes… I think I should leave…” said Twilight as she quickly made her way to the door and left.

“What was that about?” asked Hige. “N-nothing…” Fluttershy said as she walked over to Hige. “Didn’t look like nothing…” Hige said. “It was nothing…” She said as she began to lean onto Hige. ‘Warm…’ Hige thought. “Oh… okay then…” Hige said in a low voice. Kiba sat in front of them and began to grin. “What is he doing?” Fluttershy asked curiously. ‘Son of a… he just lost a treat… Am I blushing!?’ Hige thought as a furious blush appeared on his face. “N-nothing… He just wants a treat…” He said as he tried to hide his blush. Fluttershy began to giggle lightly. “W-what!?” Hige asked full of embarrassment. “Nothing…” she said as she turned away with a smile. Hige grabbed the bag with the treats and tossed two of them at Kiba, who caught them with ease and barked in anticipation for the last treat he was promised. “Nope, you lost your right to another treat”, Hige said with a triumphant grin. Kiba walked out of the cottage, smiling. “H-how was the party?” Fluttershy asked. “Oh… fun, I guess… I never liked parties that much…” Hige answered as he put the treat bag back in the Saddle Bag. “It really sucked the energy out of me”, Hige said as he finished packing his Saddle Bag. “Oh… so you’re leaving?” Fluttershy said in a sad tone. “I have time, do you need any help?” Hige asked. “Oh… well… no… I don’t need any help”, she said as a blush appeared on her face. “Oh… okay then…” he said as he placed his bags on a small table “Thanks…” she said as she sat on the couch, Hige soon sat next to her. Fluttershy began to lean on Hige once more. ‘W-what is going on!? Is she… In love with me!!! No she can’t be… why would she? I’m a monster… nothing, but a monster’, he thought to himself. “Are you okay?” asked Fluttershy as she picked up on Hige’s change in mood. “Oh… it’s okay…” Hige answered as he tried to put on his most sincere smile. “Are you sure?” she asked looking deep into Hige’s eyes. ‘It’s like I could get lost in them…’ “Oh… its nothing… don’t worry about it…” Hige said as he snapped back into reality. “Oh... okay…” she said as she began to lean on Hige yet again.

Soon enough, they were fast asleep. Kiba had returned and closed the door. He laid down next to the couch and joined Hige and Fluttershy in sleep.

By the way, please read this story if you have the chance

http://www.fimfiction.net/story/9835/The-Rise-of-King-Galaxy

Chapter 5: Brother in The Dark

ZuperDerpy opened the door to find Hige on his computer “I got my muffin… did you post the chapter?” “no… not yet…” Hige answered “Why?” ZuperDerpy asked. Hige began to slowly turn his head and face ZuperDerpy “The internet is down” was the only thing Hige said, before he reverted his stare back to the computer “You are a very lucky author… By the way, we are out of muffins, and I’m gonna go bye some; do you want any in specific?” ZuperDerpy asked as he readied himself “banana nut muffin…” “Okay then… good luck on posting the chapter” ZuperDerpy said as he closed the door. “… god hates me…” Hige told himself.

‘Where am I?’ Hige thought to himself as he woke up, his eyes remaining open. ‘No nightmare? That’s weird…’ Hige’s thoughts were interrupted by a warm breath covering his entire face. His eyes shot open, only to see the shy pegasus he had accidentally fallen asleep with. Hige remembered that they had unintentionally fallen asleep on the couch, and he also noticed the fact that they had shifted positions in their sleep. Fluttershy and Hige were now lying down on the couch, interlocked in a sort of hug. As Fluttershy exhaled and warmed Hige’s face, a furious blush appeared. ‘T-this can’t be happening… This can’t be real… Are my wings twitching?’ Hige thought to himself. ‘Why am I so calm? Why I am not worried? I need to leave!’, he thought as he tried to squeeze his way out of the hug, Fluttershy shifted and tightened the hug. All of Hige’s efforts were ruined. ‘I… I can hear her heart beat…’ he thought as he listened to the rhythmical beat. ‘I can’t escape without waking her up… Wait, her heartbeat is getting faster.’ Fluttershy then buried her head on Hige’s chest. ‘Is she having a nightmare?’ She began to sniffle. ‘She’s crying…’ he thought, finally realizing what Fluttershy was doing. Hige did the only thing he could and tightened the hug. “its okay…” he whispered. If this was a nightmare, he knew the feeling far too well to just let Fluttershy go through it without any help. Fluttershy’s heartbeat began to return to its normal rhythm, she stopped sniffling and had loosened up. ‘I can get out now’, he thought to himself. Fluttershy’s eyes opened.

She drowsily looked at Hige for a while before her eyes flew opened and realized what was happening. She looked at how they were interlocked; a blush appeared on her face. ‘I’m gonna die…’ Hige thought to himself.

“Oh… I’m sorry; I’m used to cuddling with my pillow…” Fluttershy said with a blush as she loosened the hold she had on Hige

“I-it’s okay…” Hige said, barely able to speak. He slipped out of the couch and helped Fluttershy on her hooves.

“I’m really sorry if I made you feel awkward”, she said in a sorry tone. “I-I didn’t realize I was so tired…”

“D-don’t worry about it… It’s fine…” Hige said as he began to relax.

“Oh… Okay”, she said as a white bunny walked in the middle of the two and pointed at the clock on the wall. “Oh no! I forgot I was going to meet Rarity at the spa, I need to leave. Hige, can you feed the animals, I don’t want to disappoint Rarity” she said with a desperate look on her face.

“Don’t worry, I’ll feed them.”

Fluttershy flew toward Hige and wrapped her hooves around his neck. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” she said right before she flew out of the cottage.

Hige began to feed the animals inside, following Angel’s pointers. He then fed the animals outside and decided to go and get breakfast (Or lunch, it was already too late for it to be called breakfast). He gathered some of his bits, called Kiba, and made his way to Sugar Cube Corner.

“Oh hello, you must be Hige.” Said the tall yellow stallion behind the counter. “My wife told me about you, I’m Mr. Cake, pleased to meet you”, he said extending his hoof.

“Oh… Hi, nice to meet you”, Hige said as he shook the stallion’s hoof.

“So, what do you want to order?” Mr. Cake said with a smile.

‘Too many things to choose from’, Hige thought. “I’ll take a stack of wheat cakes, hot cocoa… and a cupcake.”

“Okay then, just take a seat outside and I’ll bring it to you when it’s done”, he said with a smile.

“Okay”, Hige said as he made his way towards the door.

“Wait, just one more thing”, Mr. Cake said, Hige turned around, “you… and Fluttershy, are you two, you know..?” he said, trying not to seem too nosy.

‘Is he thinking what I think he’s thinking!?’ “Oh… no, were not… why do you ask?” Hige asked looking embarrassed.

“Oh, no reason… just curious.”

“Oh, okay then”, said Hige as he made his way out the door.

A few minutes later, Mr. Cake walked out the door with Hige’s food. “That’ll be seven bits”, he said as he placed the food on the table, Hige gave Mr. Cake the bits. “Here ya go, Kiba”, said Hige as he tossed the cupcake at Kiba. Kiba happily caught it and ate it in one bite. Hige sat there eating his food.

“Well how are ya, Hige?” asked an orange mare.

“Oh, I’m fine… How about you?” asked Hige.

“Oh, fine. Just brigin’ in some SweetApple syrup.” She pointed towards her wagon.

“That’s a lot of syrup… do you need any help?”

“I would appreciate it… Big Macintosh keeps sayin’ that he can’t go into Ponyville for some reason…” she said in a sad tone.

“Oh… Well, let’s get started”

Hige helped Applejack load all of the syrup into Sugar Cube Corner’s storage area. After a short good-bye, Applejack left. ‘What to do…’ Hige thought to himself as a barrel of syrup appeared in his line of sight. ‘I wonder what Big Macintosh is doing.’ “Let’s go, Kiba”, Hige said as he made his way to Sweet Apple Acres.

Hige walked along the trail that he was familiar with since the party. Soon enough, Hige was forced to stop and look around because of a loud thump he had heard. ‘What was that… There it is again… and again…’ Hige thought to himself as the thumping continued. ‘Only one way to find out’, he thought as he made his way to the noise. Hige was surprised to see Big Macintosh bucking at some apple trees.

“What are you doing here?” asked Big Macintosh

“Just visiting… not much to do around here…” Hige said trying to avoid eye contact.

“Hmmm… Okay then”, Big Mac said as he returned to bucking the trees.

“Your sister asked about you…” Hige said, causing Big Macintosh to stop bucking. “She is really worried about you…”

“I know that…” Big Macintosh said as he continued to buck the trees.

“Well? Why don’t you say something? She’s your sister…”

“No…” Big Macintosh answered.

“Why not tell her?”

“I’m not going to tell her, I’m not gonna tell anypony!!!” Big Macintosh screamed as he bucked a tree so hard that the tree was forced to its side. “I’m a monster… There is no changing that…”

Hige couldn’t control himself any longer. “… If you were a monster, why don’t you kill me right now, huh?! If you were a real monster, you would have killed everypony already. Why are you so scared of yourself?! If you were a real monster, you wouldn’t be worried about being a monster!!!” Hige slowly calmed down. “S-sorry… I don’t know what came over me…” Hige said, regretting his recent action.

“Don’t worry…” Big Macintosh said as he admired the tree he tipped.

“It’s just that…”

“You’ve felt the same way before… like if you have something inside you… that wants out…”

“Y-yeah… I’ve always been seen as a monster… I’m not sure what to believe anymore…” Hige began to look at the sky.

“That makes two of us… Do you want to get a drink?” Big Macintosh asked.

“I thought you haven’t wanted to go to into town in a long time.”

“Eeyup”, Big Macintosh said as he made his way to the bar.

The three of them made their way to the bar; Kiba was forced to wait outside.

“Two shots of Wild Pegasus”, Big Macintosh said as he grabbed a seat.

Hige took the seat next to him, “What are we doing here?”

“Alcohol helps me calm down.”

“Hmmm…” Hige began to observe the shot that the bartender had placed in front of them. “Why are they so small?” Big Macintosh began to snicker. “What did I say!?”

“It’s a shot, it’s very concentrated alcohol… you can’t drink too much of it at the same time, so they just give you these, one at a time”, he picked up one of them.

“Well then… Bottoms up”, Hige said as he picked up the other shot. They both drank it in one gulp; Hige began to cough. “That’s some really strong stuff.” There was a sudden shift in the air; both of them reacted to it. “Did you feel that?”

“Eeyup.” They sat there drinking in silence for a few more hours

“Hey, Big Mac.” Big Macintosh turned his head. “Those ponies that just walked into the bar… I’ve got a strange feeling about them…“

Big Macintosh looked in the direction that Hige was looking; his eyes widened. “We need to leave, now. Hey, put it on my tab”, Big Macintosh told the bartender as he began to walk out.

“What’s happening?” Hige asked as he followed Big Macintosh.

“No time, we need to leave”, he answered.

As they walked out, Kiba stood and began to follow them. As they began to make their way to Sweet Apple Acres, thugs who were hiding in the darkness of the night quickly surrounded them.

“What do they want?” asked Hige, confused by the situation.

“Me… They’ve been trying to run the Apple family out of town for a long time now… I was the only thing in their way.” Kiba began to growl, Big Macintosh began to turn and look at the thugs, Hige’s eyesight began to blur. “Are you okay, Hige? You can leave if you want to…” Big Macintosh said.

“No… its fine…” As Hige opened his eyes, he was amazed to see that all of the thugs were glowing. ‘W-what is this…’

“Well then, are you ready?” his eyes began to glow red.

“Ready”, Hige said, Kiba barked once. In a split second, every thug ran toward the trio.

From what Hige was seeing, there were twelve thugs, and all of them were earth ponies. Big Macintosh was taking on four; Kiba was taking on two. That left six thugs. Hige saw the remaining thugs running in his direction, Hige grinned. ‘I feel… Amazing’, Hige thought as he began to run towards them. In a moment of adrenaline-fueled excitement, the world began to move slowly. Hige was able to dodge a tackle from one of the thugs and buck another one of them in the face. The thug’s body went limp. ‘Wow, haven’t done that in a long time’, he thought as he jumped backwards to avoid a buck from another thug. While the thug tried to regain his balance, Hige tackled him on the side. There were two thugs about to ram him from opposite directions. ‘Too easy’, he thought as he dove to the ground and let the thugs smash into each other head on. Hige began to look around, Kiba had killed one of the thugs that was attacking him causing the other to run, Big Macintosh had knocked out three of the thugs and was about to do the same to the fourth. Hige didn’t notice that the thugs he had tackled had begun to gallop toward him, knife in mouth. “Hige, watch out!!!” screamed Big Macintosh as he finished of his last thug, Kiba was running in Hige’s direction. ‘There’s one behind me… ten feet away and is holding something in his mouth… Kiba won’t reach him in time… Need to time this right…’ The second the thug was in bucking distance, Hige smashed his hoof against the thug’s face.

“How did you know he was behind you?” Big Macintosh said as he caught up to Hige.

“I… have absolutely no idea”, Hige began to look at the body, “It was like… I could sense him.” Hige turned his head toward the acres “There are two more… in the barn…”

Big Macintosh began to gallop towards the barn. “No, they wouldn’t dare”, he said under his breath.

Hige tried to catch up to Big Macintosh, but he had already taken too much of a head start to catch up. Big Macintosh slammed the doors open and ran inside, instantly seeing the two thugs that were inside. In one simple buck, the thugs were sent out of the entrance of the barn and were smashed against two trees. “Bastards… all of them…” Big Macintosh said as he placed his hoof on the bloodied head of one of the thugs and began to press down.

“Stop right now, you’re going to regret it”, Hige said as he finally caught up to Big Macintosh.

“What do you know!? This gang has been trying to kill me and my family for years; you have no idea what it’s like!!!” he screamed.

“You have no idea how much of my life has been ruined by some bastards who want me dead! You have the chance to have a semi-normal life and you make excuses for yourself! You don’t want to tell AppleJack because you don’t bucking want too, and you know it! You know for a fact that she will accept you, but you decide not to because you think it’s the only way to keep them safe!” Hige’s voice boomed. “Next time you talk to me about loss, you better not expect my pity. Every single loss you’ve had, I’ve had a thousand times worse! Go and kill that poor bastard, but don’t blame me for the events that you will have set in motion.”

“Y-you have some guts”, he threatened as he gave Hige an intense angry stare, Hige didn’t flinch. “You have no idea what I’ve gone through, do you have any idea what it’s like to have your family in constant danger!”

“And you have no idea what it’s like to not have a family, to not have anypony to rely on… to know that you are utterly alone in a world that hates you for what you could be. Like I said before, anything you’ve felt, I’ve felt a thousand times over…” Hige said without a single hint of anger.

Big Macintosh’s eyes began to return to their normal color. He looked at the unconscious body and instantly retracted his hoof. “I-I’m… I’m sorry… I-I don’t know what came over me…”

“I know how it feels… you need somepony to help you out of it sometimes…” Hige said.

“Let’s hide the thugs and get something to eat, that fight really took a lot of energy.” He said with a smile

“Okay then…”

Hige, Big Macintosh and Kiba dragged the bodies into the Everfree forest, never to be seen again (Hopefully they’d get lost… or eaten…), they returned to the apple family house and began to eat the various forms of apple treats that they had stockpiled in the kitchen.

“Today we went to the bar, and came back… nothing else“, Hige offered.

“Eeyup.”

The door suddenly flew open. Applejack was standing in the doorway, teary eyed. “You! You haven’t gone to town in months and suddenly you decide to go with this feller! I’m yer’ sister, why won’t you tell me anythin’!? Why don’t ya let me help you!?” she said almost breaking down.

Big Macintosh took one look at Hige, stood up and gave Applejack a hug. “I’ll tell you everything…” He whispered. Applejacks eyes widened and she returned the hug. Big Macintosh looked at Hige and nudged for him to leave them alone.

Hige and Kiba walked out of the house and made their way to town. They reached their house and walked upstairs. Hige fell into bed and was quickly overcome with sleep.

Chapter 6: The Meadow

ZuperDerpy got into his car and began to drive ‘Muffins…’ he thought to himself as he took the last turn lo the supermarket. ‘Gonna get me MUFFINS!!!’ he walked into the market and was greeted by a familiar face “Hi ZuperDerpy, are you here to buy muffins?” “You know it!” “Oh… we ran out… im sorry” ZuperDerpy’s dreams were chattered ‘No… no… NOOO!!!!’ he ran to his car and drove back to the house. “Hige, we’re goin’ on a trip” ZuperDerpy said as he ran into the house “Why?” “We are going on a search for muffins!!!” “This is going to end badly… let me get my hoodie” Hige said as he walked over to the closet “Don’t you have to post the chapter” “… FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU” Hige screamed to the heavens

Hige woke up in a cold sweat. “NOOOOO!!!” Hige screamed in a panic. “Oh… sorry, Kiba…” Hige said to the wolf he had just rudely awakened. ‘Every time got to sleep, it haunts me… I can’t sleep at all anymore…’ he thought to himself as he began to walk to the bathroom. ‘What happened yesterday? I went to the bar… and… Damn it…’ he thought as the water from the shower began to flow out. ‘Something happened… I can feel it…’ he thought as he slowly immersed himself in the water, staying in the tub until sunrise. Hige began to dry off when, while looking at his hoof, he realized: ‘Where is my bracelet?’ “Kiba, have you seen my bracelet?” he asked, Kiba shook his head. ‘No, no, no, no…’ he thought as he quickly ran out of the house, Kiba close behind. Hige ran towards Fluttershy’s house and knocked on the door. Hoof steps could be heard getting closer to the door, until it eventually swung open.

“H-hello, Hige”, Fluttershy said happily.

“My bracelet, have you seen it?”

“Oh… um… I’m sorry… wait, didn’t you take it to the party?”

‘The party, I must have dropped it during the piñata!’ “Thanks”, he said as he ran to town, leaving a confused Fluttershy to wonder about what had just happened. ‘Ok… haven’t done this in a long time, need to get this right’, he thought to himself as he ran directly at a tree. ‘Okay… NOW!!!’ he thought as he jumped on the tree and then pushed himself further into the air and began to fly to Sweet Apple Acres (Hige had never gone to any form of Pegasus Flight School, so he had to find more creative ways to be able to ‘take off’). He soon made it to Sweet Apple Acres and began to search for Applejack. Once he found Applejack, he landed next to her.

“Well how are ya, sugar cube?” she asked, surprised by the sudden landing.

“My bracelet, I think I left it at the party.”

“Bracelet…” she put a hoof under her chin. “Did it have a black gem in the middle?”

“Yes, that’s the one. Do you have it?”

“That was yer’s? I gave it to Twi, She said that she knew who it belonged to.”

“You gave it to her… during the party?”

“Yes”

“Hmm… okay then, goodbye.” He began to walk away.

“W-wait, sugar cube!”

He stopped. “What?”

Applejack wrapped her arms around Hige’s neck, “I don’t have a clue of what ya did to Big Mac… but thank you…” She unwrapped her arms and walked away.

‘What is she talking about… no time.’ Hige ran towards the nearest tree and used it to launch himself into the sky once more. He soon reached Twilight’s house and knocked on the door.

“Gimme a sec.” Was heard from the other side of the door. Once the door opened, a familiar baby dragon was standing there with a curious look on his face. “Um… Hige, right? Come in”, he said as he made way for Hige.

“Thanks, but Twilight has my bracelet. I kinda want it back…”

“You mean the silver one with the black gem in the middle?”

“Yes, that the one. Can I have it back?”

“Yeah… I think it was somewhere upstairs… gimme a sec.”

Hige took a seat and waited for Spike to finish looking. Soon enough, Spike began to walk down the stairs. “Did you find it?”

He raised the hand that held the bracelet. “Yeah, it was in her study…” he said in a strange tone.

“Well… thanks.” Hige slipped on the bracelet. “… Are you sure this is my bracelet?”

“It’s the only bracelet I found. Why, is there something wrong with it?” Spike said in an insulted tone.

“Nothing… nothing at all… well, thanks again.” He took his leave. ‘Now time to confront Kiba…’

Hige slowly made his way to Fluttershy’s cottage, where he was greeted by a very irritated Kiba who began to growl and bark at Hige’s presence.

“Calm down, Kiba.” Hige said, trying to avoid any form of bloodshed. “I’ll give you five treats.” Kiba quickly calmed down and began wagging his tail. “Hi, Fluttershy”

“D-did you find your bracelet?”

“Yeah, Twilight had it.”

Fluttershy took on a look of surprise. “She had your bracelet?”

“Applejack said she was going to give it back…” he began to look at the bracelet, while taking out the bag of treats.

“Okay then…” she began to feed Angel, but was interrupted by a sudden thought. “Oh… Um… I was wondering… I was going to pick some flowers in a meadow nearby… and I was wondering if you wanted to… well… you don’t have to… forget it, it’s nothing!”

“Didn’t sound like nothing…” he said as he threw the fifth treat at Kiba. “I’d really like to hear what you were saying.” He looked directly at her.

“Oh… um well… I was wondering… if you wanted to come.” A blush appeared on her face as she hid behind her mane.

A blush also appeared on Hige’s after he had realized why she was having a hard time trying to say it. ‘A date!?’ “Um… Y-yes… I would be happy to…” He said, trying to force a smile.

“R-really?” She began to peek through her mane

“Y-yeah… I would be happy to help…” he answered, the blush intensifying

“Oh! I mean… T-thank you…” she said with a smile

“Okay… when are we going?”

“In about an hour… can you go then? I can change it if you want”, she said nervously.

“I can make it”, he said with a smile

“Oh, good…” she said, relieved. “I need to get the animals fed before I leave…”

“You feed the animals inside, and I feed the animals outside?”

“Oh… well if you want to… you don’t have to”, she said in a surprised tone

“I know the drill…” he joked as he walked out the door.

“Okay… see you later…” she said with a smile.

Hige and Fluttershy finished their jobs with ease. He walked into the cottage to find Fluttershy, but only found the sinister white bunny. “Where’s Fluttershy?” Hige asked, causing the bunny to point to the bathroom. “Okay then…” he said as he turned away, the white bunny quickly ran into Hige’s line of sight. “Huh?” Hige said, wondering what the bunny was doing. The bunny offered Hige a carrot ‘… a peace offering?’ he thought to himself. “Is this a sorry?” Hige asked. The bunny nodded. “Okay then… I accept”, he said, “but you can keep the carrot.” The bunny smiled and scurried away. The bathroom door soon opened to Fluttershy with a bathrobe and a towel wrapped around her head. She blushed, smiled and proceeded to walk upstairs. ‘Did that just happen?’ Hige thought as a slight blush appeared on his face.

“Um… Hige?” Fluttershy said, seeing he had fallen asleep on the couch.

Hige bolted awake. “What!?” he yelped. “Oh… sorry”, Hige said in an embarrassed tone to a stunned Fluttershy.

“Um… I’m ready…”

“Okay then… lets go”, he said as he got up from the couch. He stretched out his wings, Fluttershy began to lean on Hige. Hige was forced to wrap his wing around Fluttershy… not that he was complaining. She gave a small sigh and they began to walk. ‘I can hear her heartbeat…’ he thought to himself as they walked out the door.

Kiba walked out the forest and met up with them, he looked at the two of them, but made no initiative to embarrass Hige. They walked to the back of the cottage to retrieve the baskets in which to place the flowers. Kiba happily picked up the two baskets without being asked. Fluttershy helped Hige and Kiba find their way to the Meadow. Soon enough, they arrived, Fluttershy still under Hige’s wing. Kiba placed the baskets down. Hige and Fluttershy separated and both picked up one of the baskets and began pick the various flowers that were in the meadow. Kiba began to sleep. The both picked a large variety of flowers and, as soon as he filled up his basket with flowers, Hige began to look around. ‘This place is beautiful… I can’t believe I actually had my wing around her… this night can’t get any better…’ Hige took a deep breath and tilted his head upwards, he opened his eyes and realized. ‘Full moon…’ A howl could be heard around the meadow, Fluttershy turned to look at the animal who made the howl and was surprised to find Kiba asleep and Hige looking at the sky.

“Was that you?” she asked skeptically.

“What? The howl?”

“Um, yes… was that you?” she asked, walking towards him.

“Yeah… haven’t done it in a long time though…” he said as he turned his gaze to the moon once more.

“T-that was amazing! Can you do it again! I mean… if that’s okay with you”, she said shyly.

Hige took one deep breath and began to howl, Fluttershy was amazed. Soon enough, Kiba woke up and began to howl. Once both of them finished howling, there was another howl heard just outside the meadow.

“They sound close…” she said in a worried tone.

“They are…” Hige proceeded to make one more howl, which was soon joined by various other howls. Glowing eyes could be seen at the far ends of the meadow. “They are right over there…”

“Are they going to get closer?”

“No... Not unless we make them angry…” he said with a smile.

“How… how did you learn how to do that?” she asked curiously.

“I don’t know… I just get the urge to do it sometimes…” he said as he threw himself onto the ground. “So, what are the flowers for?”

“Oh, they are for a dress that Rarity is making”, she said as she looked down at Hige

“Rarity… is she the white mare with the purple hair?” he asked as he looked up.

“Yes… I think we have enough for her, thanks for the help.”

“Okay then.”

Hige picked up his basket and began to follow Fluttershy to the cottage. Once they reached the cottage, he placed the basket in the far corner of the room and began to rest on the couch.

“Um… Hige”

“Yeah?”

“Oh… It’s just that… I was wondering if you wanted to eat something.”

“Hmm… don’t worry, I’ll be fine… do you have anything to drink, though?”

“Oh, yes. I have a variety of tea. Do you have a favorite?”

“Not really… anything that would give me some energy would be fine”, he said as he followed Fluttershy to the kitchen.

Fluttershy began to giggle when she saw that Hige had fallen asleep on the dining chair while waiting for her to make the tea. “Hige… Hige… Wake up Hige”, she said as she poked Hige’s head. He soon woke up, she place the tea in front of him and said, “Be careful its ver-“

“BAAAHHH!!!” he flinched after he tried to drink his hot tea. “Dat ish hot…” he tried to say with a burned tongue

“Oh no! Come with me right now, you need some help!” she said as she dragged him into the living room. “Stay here!” She left him sitting on the couch. She came back with some strange leaves “Chew on this, it will make it feel better.” She handed him some leaves and he began to chew on them.

‘Mints? They feel really cold…’ he thought to himself as Fluttershy returned.

“Okay, let me see your tongue”, she said. Hige opened his mouth. “Do you feel this?” she asked as she poked the middle of Hige’s tongue with a tongue depressor, Hige mumbled a yes. “Okay good. No nerve damage, you’re going to be fine…” she said as she packed all her equipment away.

[A few moments later]

‘Minty minty minty.’ Hige thought, as he smelled his own breath. ‘Oh god, it’s burning my eyes!’ Hige said as a cloud of mint breath collided with his eyes.

“Are you okay Hige? A-are you crying?” she asked as she took a closer look.

Hige shook his head and pointed at his mouth

“Does your tongue hurt!? Open your mouth!” she said desperately. Hige opened his mouth “Um… I don’t see-“ Hige blew a cloud of minty breath at Fluttershy. “Oh, the mint, its making me… teary eyed!” she said finally realizing what Hige was saying, she began to giggle.

“Yeth”, Hige tried to say.

“Um… is your tongue swollen?” she asked as Hige opened his mouth. She began to look at it to search for signs of swelling.

“You’re not swollen”, she said as she stopped poking Hige’s tongue. “It’s probably still numb”

Hige smiled. “No… I was just exaggerating”, he said in a normal voice.

“Wh-why?” she asked embarrassed, a small blush appearing on her face.

“Because you are adorable when you’re worried.” ‘Do you ever THINK OF WHAT YOU ARE SAYING!!!’ he thought to himself as he realized what he said.

“Y-you think I’m adorable?” she asked curiously and surprised.

‘Oh no! I really need to think this trough before I make another mistake!’ he thought as he tried to find the words he needed to say. His thoughts were quickly interrupted by a familiar feeling overtaking his body. ‘Oh no…’ he thought as his body tensed and ears perked up.

“What’s wron-“ She was interrupted by a flash of white light followed by a loud bang. A thunderstorm quickly took place.

‘I have to leave… I have to get out! ’ Hige thought to himself.

Chapter 7: Hangover

Author's note: Sorry for the delay, hope this chapter was worth it :D

"Hi, ZuperDerpy here. I just wanted everypony to know that I only see the mini-series when the chapter is posted, therefore it never gets edited by me."

Hige: " I cant believe you said that..."

Hige ran out of the house, gray hoodie and laptop in hand and had begun to close the door behind him “Wearin’ gray?” ZuperDerpy asked as he opened the car door “You know it!” Hige said as he closed the door and ran to the passenger seat of the car. “Okay, where are we going?” Hige asked as ZuperDerpy pulled out of the driveway “The bakery, they should open soon… with a steaming hot batch of banana nut muffins with my name on it…” They began to make their way to the bakery. “So, have you finished the chapter?” ZuperDerpy asked as Hige typed away on the laptop “Nope, just a few finishing touches and then you can start editing” Hige answered “Good, now the only thing left is get-“ ZuperDerpy’s jaw dropped as he saw the amount of traffic there was “Son of a b-“ “Hahahah! This is positively chaotic!” Hige said as he got a better look at the traffic “Shut up… this isn’t funny!” ZD said “Calm dow-“ Hige was interrupted “DON’T TELL ME TO CALM DOWN” ZD said as he slammed his fist against the dashboard “TODAY WE CELE-“ there was a strange dimensional rift that appeared in the back seats, two arms came out of it and dragged Hige and ZuperDerpy in it.

“Where the hell are we” Hige asked as he began to look around “In the bakery, of course” said a man with brown hair (Probably in his twenties) “What!? Oh my god, yes!” ZuperDerpy said as he ran to the counter. “Who are you?” Hige asked, more interested in the stranger than in the muffins “Exacly” Said the man with a smile “What?” Hige said confused “My name… Its Doctor Who” he said as he extended his hand “Happy to save your life” “W-wait, what!?” Hige exclaimed “Long story short, you’re friend was going to… well… kill himself if he didn’t get the muffin” he said as he looked over to ZuperDerpy “Wait... You are THE Doctor Who?” “The one and only” he said “I got the muffins” ZuperDerpy said as he brought a baker’s dozen of different muffins “I got chocolate for you, Hige. Banana nut for me, but I wasn’t sure what to get you, so I got one of everything “I appreciate it, I’ll take a blue berry” he said, ZuperDerpy handed him the muffin. The Doctor was about to bite into his muffin before a strange rumbling noise began to come out of the strangely placed phone booth, as the noised calmed down a blonde girl, about the same age as Hige and ZuperDerpy walked out. “Doctor!” she screamed as she ran toward him “I got lost and I didn’t know where to go, so I wnt into the machine and pressed buttons… I saw thing no mare should see in there lifetime, I ca never go back to being the sa- OHH MUFFINS!!!” she said as she snatched one of them. ZuperDerpy smiled as he saw that the girl’s eyes were crossed “The more the merrier… okay then” he said as he extended his had with the muffin “To national Derpy Hooves Day” Hige quickly placed his muffin next to ZuperDerpy’s. The Doctor made a quick chuckle and then joined his muffin “To national Derpy Hooves Day” he added. The blonde girls quickly slammed her muffin into the rest of them “To National Derpy Hooves Day!!!” she screamed in excitement. The soon enjoyed the Muffins, ZuperDerpy and the girls quickly eating the rest of the muffins “That’s….” Hige began “Derpy Hooves? Yes, yes she is” He answered. Hige opened the laptop “Is that the next chapter of your story?” he asked “Yes… you read it?” Hige asked “Yes, but it’s no big deal. I read A LOT… do you mind if I take a look?” “Be my guest” Hige said as he turned the computer to the Doctor.

The Doctor quickly finished the chapter and called over to Derpy hooves “Okay, we need to go.” He told her “Aww, do we have to?” she asked “Yes we do” He said in a stern voice “Okay” she said with a little sadness in her voice “Seeya ZuperDerpy” she said as she gave him a quick hug and joined The Doctor. “Good bye.” He said as they both entered the Tardis and disappeared. “You lucky bastard” Hige said in a mocking voice “What?” ZuperDerpy asked, oblivios to what Hige was trying to say “You got to have some quality time with Derpy Hooves” Hige clarified “Huh? What are you talking about?” He said “That guy… he was Doctor Who… and his assistant Ditsy Doo” Hige said in a ‘That’s a stupid question tone’ “BAUYFIWDNUYDGYB… WHAT! I wasn’t there when he introduced himself! I thought her eyes were derped because she like Derpy too!” ZuperDerpy screamed in frustration “Um… ZuperDerpy” Hige said finally realizing something “What!?” ZuperDerpy said, still angry of what happened. Hige slowly turned his head to meet ZuperDerpy eye-to-eye “Where’s the car?”

“Fluttershy, I need to g-“ Hige tried to say before he was quickly interrupted by an anxious Fluttershy.

“Hige, I need your help, please!” she said as she quickly turned her gaze to Hige.

“Oh, well, um… okay” Hige said, not being able to say no.

“Thank you, we need to get the animals inside. Rainbow Dash always warns me about the storms, but she never told me about this one…” she said as she began to open the door. The wind blasted the door open.

‘Okay Hige, calm down… just distract yourself with the work…’ he thought to himself as he began to follow Fluttershy out the door.

They walked over to the pen. Fluttershy opened it and most of the small land animals quickly scurried off into the cottage. She opened the door and was greeted by panicking chickens. “Please calm down…” she said in a low and gentle voice; the chickens continued to panic. “I said, calm down!” she said as she gave them a intense stare, which quickly calmed them down and made them stare at Fluttershy. “Good, now I need you to go into the cottage”, she said, going back to her low and gentle voice. The fowls began to walk toward the cottage. Hige and Fluttershy began to pick up the small nests that were in the near tree and brought them inside.

“Is that all the animals?” Hige asked.

“Y-yes… we just need to carry in the bird feed and we’re done…” she said as she walked over to the chicken coop. She began to pick up a bag, but Hige immediately stepped in to do it. “Oh, thanks”, she said, receiving no response from Hige.

Hige carried the bag into the cottage and placed it in an empty corner. “Okay then… I’m gonna go home now…” he said

She widened her eyes, “B-but you can’t go out in a storm like this, it’s too dangerous!”

“I can’t…” there was a flash of light followed by a loud booming noise. Hige flinched. “Okay… I’ll stay…” He said, his heart racing.

“Good”, she said, with a sigh of relief. They spent a few minutes organizing the animals and setting out the food. “Okay, we’re done… time to sleep”, she said with a blush. “Um… you can sleep in my room if you want…”

“I’ll sleep down here…”

“W-why?” she asked in a sad, surprised tone.

“I don’t think it would be a good idea…” he said grimly.

“Oh… okay then…” she said as she walked upstairs.

‘Smooth move’, Hige thought to himself. “What was I supposed to do? You know what happens to me in thunderstorms, and I don’t think my bracelet will calm me down…” ‘Why?’ “When I put it on… I didn’t feel anything… I usually feel a sense of relief, but I didn’t feel it…” ‘And that happened after Twilight took it?’ “Yes… what are you tryin-“ Hige was interrupted by a white bunny that had begun to give him a curious look. ‘I’m talking to myself!? This is why I hate thunder storms, I’m always on edge!’ he thought to himself, the bunny began to walk upstairs. Hige looked at a random direction and was quickly lost in thought. ‘I’m in a tree… I’m in a tree filled with woodland critters… I’m in a tree filled with woodland critters and my pet wolf… I’m in a tree filled with woodland critters, my pet wolf and a shy mare… I’m in the same tree as a shy mare… I’m in the same tree as a shy mare whom I am possibly falling in love with… I’m in the one place I don’t want to be in right now… so sleepy’, Hige’s thought were quickly interrupted by Kiba’s sudden bark. “What’s wro-“ the front door suddenly slammed open again and Kiba ran out. Hige quickly followed, finding a place to make himself airborne.

‘Were is he?’ He thought to himself when he lost sight of Kiba after entering the forest. There was a sudden flash of light. “There he is”, he said after he spotted Kiba during the flash of light. He quickly flew down as fast as he could to avoid losing sight of Kiba again, but a strong gust of wind mage Hige crash hard against a tree. He slowly regained consciousness and began to look around. ‘W-what!?’ he thought as he realized that he was being watched by hundreds of glowing blood red eyes. Kiba had made his way to Hige and began to growl at their surrounding observers.

Out of the tree line walked out a pitch-black pony wearing a hooded cowl “They’re coming…” it said.

“W-what!? Who are you!?” Hige screamed.

“They’re looking for you… they’ll find you...”

“Who!?”

“You know who…”

“N-no… not yet…” he murmured to himself.

“Hige…” it said, making Hige look toward the pony, who now had a scythe in its magical grip. “Don’t lose yourself”, it said as he swung the scythe, ripping Hige in half.

Hige suddenly woke up at the cottage. ‘A… dream?’ he thought to himself as another flash of light filled the room, causing Hige to see variety of ponies of every shape and size. ‘No no no!’ he thought to himself as he began to shrink. Hige was in a full-on panic. ‘No, not again!’ he closed his eyes and pressed his hooves against his ears. ‘They aren’t real! They aren’t here!’ he thought to himself. The various ponies began to walk toward Hige, laughing in unison. ‘Don’t think about it! Think about something else!’ the ponies suddenly went quiet, Hige calmed down. The silence was interrupted by one of the ponies exclaiming ‘monster’ and then quickly being joined by every other pony. “No… no… NO!!!” Hige screamed, tears beginning to form. “No I’m not!” The ponies quickly disappeared; the only pony that could be seen was a shocked Fluttershy. “I told you it was a bad idea!” Hige screamed at her. Hige got up and ran to the door, but was stopped in his tracks by Fluttershy, who had caught up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Leave me alon-“

“I’m sorry…” she said.

“What?” he asked, not believing what he just heard.

“I’m… I’m sorry”, she said as she tightened the hug, “I want to help you…”

Hige’s rage had reached his peak. ‘Doesn’t she understand that I want to be left alone!’ he thought as he slammed his hoof against her head, creating a sickening crack. Her body went limp. ‘Oh no…’ he thought as he realized what he’d done. “Fluttershy, are you okay!?” he screamed as he placed his hoof on her neck, trying to find the slightest hint of life… he found none. “Kiba, we need to leave!” he told Kiba, but he did not obey. Kiba took one look at Fluttershy and began to growl at Hige. “C’mon, don’t do this!” He screamed, but Kiba didn’t listen. The struggle was over soon after it began; now Kiba and Fluttershy lay dead on the floor.

“You did well…” said a familiar voice. Hige looked around, but found nothing. “Embrace it… It’s who you are…” the voice faded away.

“No… this can’t be… in no- HAHAHAHAHAHA!” Hige quickly covered his mouth after the strange outburst. He quickly noticed that his hooves had become pitch black, and quickly pulled them away “What’s going on!? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. What the hell is happening!?” he screamed as he fell to the ground laughing. He opened his eyes to see Fluttershy, still grabbing onto his neck. ‘I feel sick…’ “Get off”, he said calmly.

“W-what? No, please don’t go!” she said as she tightened the hug.

“Get off!!!” he screamed, causing the animals to wake up. She let go, Hige flew away. He ran as far as he could, until his stamina had finally run out. He looked around to see where he was. “So this is where I ended up…” he said as he looked at the lights of the saloon. “… Big Macintosh said that it helped him calm down…” he walked towards the door.

Hige was surprised to see that the bar was still open, but had a different variety of patrons. He shook himself dry and began to walk towards where he sat the last time; he called for a shot of the strongest liquor. He drank it in one gulp, and had begun to get used to the burning sensation. He tapped on the table for another shot.

A white unicorn mare with a musical note cutie mark suddenly interrupted Hige as she walked up and sat next to him. “The usual”, she said as she sat down.

‘Sunglasses… at night? She is either very cool… or very stupid’, Hige thought as the bartender finished the white mare’s order and refilled Hige’s cup. There was a moment of silence before one of the drunker patrons began to walk up to the two of them.

“HeY ViNYl” said a drunk light-brown buck, addressing the white unicorn “WhY Don’T wE………….. um….. GO TO MY PLACE!... and… Do things”, he hinted.

“I’m not in the mood for your crap…” she said calmly.

“I bet I can get you in the mood”, he said as he touched her shoulder.

“Oh…” she said. “You just have”, she said in a peppy voice, levitating a wine bottle from the counter. “Yes, let’s go you your house and see how far I can stick this up your ass before you pass out from the pain”, she said, slowly shifting her voice to a passive aggressive one.

‘She is a VERY cool pony… it’s official’, Hige thought to himself as he began to chuckle softly.

The buck turned his head at Hige’s direction. “What are you laughing at?”

“You… I’m laughing at you, isn’t that obvious? Are you really that drunk or are you just that stupid?” Hige said with a grin. The white unicorn began to laugh softly.

“You son of a…” He said as he punched Hige in the face as hard as he could. The force caused Hige’s head to turn to the left.

The bartender and the white unicorn were both shocked; the buck had a triumphant grin.

Hige slowly turned his head toward the buck; Hige had a grin on his face as his eyes began to go red. “You better run before I rip your damn head off…” he said calmly. The buck pulled back his arm to land another punch. “C’mon, I bucking dare you”, he said with a grin. The buck thought about it for a while and then ran out of the saloon. ‘Storm is over…’ Hige thought as he saw the weather through the recently opened door. Hige’s eyes began to go back to their original color.

“I’m sorry about that”, the unicorn said as she put the wine bottle back. “I thought that if I sat with somepony, nopony else would annoy me…” she said in an apologetic tone. “Is your face okay?” she asked.

“Fine…” he said.

“Are you sure? He was a stupid pony, but I’m sure he wasn’t a weak one.”

“Yes, I’m sure.”

“Okay then… I’m Vinyl Scratch”, she said as she extended her hoof.

“I’m Hige”, he said as he shook her hoof.

“Well thanks again for helping, Hige, I’m really sorry about what happened”, she said with a smile.

“Okay…”

“So?” she asked.

“So, what?” he responded.

“Well… do you forgive me?”

“Oh, sure…” Hige said as he took another gulp.

She let out a grunt of frustration, but then looked at Hige with a smile. “I have an idea, I’m gonna make it up to you”, she said as she got off her chair "Put our drink on my tab." she told the bartender.

“I’d really rather no-“ Hige was dragged out of the bar. ‘I’m too drunk to refuse…’

Hige was dragged to a club, with no music. “I’ll be right back”, she said as she left Hige near the entrance. Moments later, they gave a great welcome to the ‘DJ PON3’ who, to Hige’s surprise, was the mare that had dragged him here. He was about to leave when the music started, but was quickly sucked in by it. Hige could not resist moving to the beat. He had no clue what he was doing, but was having fun doing it. He had become part of the club… he soon blacked out and woke up in his house. He noticed he was holding a note that read:

“Hi, it’s Vinyl. I’m writing this because I know you won’t remember what happened yesterday. You party like a freaking animal; I knew I had a feeling that you were different. Just wanted to let you know that you aren’t alone, there are others like you.”

‘What is she talking about?’ Hige said as he laid back in his bed, trying to ignore the headache.

Chapter 8: An Intervention

Hige spent an hour in his bed waiting for the sleepiness to pass; it didn’t, so he got up and went to the bathroom, turned on the shower, and placed his face in the stream. Hige’s sleepiness soon faded away. A knock was heard coming from the front door. ‘Who could that be?’ he thought as he went downstairs to see who it was. He was surprised to see Applejack and Big Mac outside the entrance.

“Hi…” Hige said.

Big Mac gave a nod.

“Hige, I need ya to come with me”, Applejack said.

“Why?” Hige asked.

“Well, I reckon it has somethin’ to do with Fluttershy, but I’m not sure.”

“Oh…” ‘I’m in trouble…’ Hige thought.

They began to walk toward the library when: “Something happened yesterday../ I felt it. What happened?”, whispered Big Mac.

“You have no idea…” Hige said.

As they reached the library, Big Mac opened the door and let Hige and Applejack in. Kiba quickly walked over to Hige, who then gave him a treat for placing his saddlebag in front of him. “Sorry about yesterday”, Hige whispered. There were two couches and a chair, one of them fit three ponies and the other fit two. Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Pinkie Pie sat in the same couch while Applejack and Big Mac remained standing. There was mood of awkwardness that overcame the room, nopony knew what they were there for, but it seemed to revolve around Twilight and Fluttershy since they were the only ones that were missing. Hoofsteps were heard from upstairs, Twilight and Fluttershy soon appeared, walking down the stairs. Hige took a seat on the spare couch; Fluttershy sat next to him. “I’m sorry…” Hige whispered to Fluttershy.

“It wasn’t your fault…” she replied with a weak smile.

“I bet everypony is wondering why they are here…” Twilight announced. “Well it is very simple, this morning I found Fluttershy in a state of sadness”, she began to grin. “And who is to blame..?” she looked around. “Hige is to blame!” All eyes suddenly shot onto Hige. He quickly shrank down. “Yes, it’s true. The new pony in town is not what he seems to be. Hige has a very, very dark secret and I intend to show it to all of you.”

“Wait just a cotton pickin’ minute”, Applejack interrupted, “do you have any proof?”

“Well of course I do”, she said with a grin as she looked at Fluttershy. “Flutterhy, why don’t you tell us exactly what happened that night?”

“Okay…” she said softly. “Yesterday Hige was helping me pick some flowers that Rarity wanted for her dress.” she began “We came back to my cottage and I offered him some tea… he burned his tongue”, she said with a faint smirk. “The medicine I gave him made him very drowsy, so he went back home.” She sat back on the couch and smiled at Hige.

Everypony looked relived, except for one “Why do you protect him!? He was there when the thunderstorm happened!!!” Twilight screamed.

“No he wasn’t… It was Kiba. He helped me get the animals inside because of the thunderstorm”, Fluttershy said calmly.

“Then why were you sad when I found you?” Twilight said in a daring tone.

“I-I… couldn’t get all the animals inside… before it was too late…” she said with a sniffle. “I didn’t have enough time… It’s all my fault, I could have done it faster!” she said in a sad tone.

‘I can’t believe she is actually lying for me…’ Hige thought as he ‘comforted’ Fluttershy, who then began to rest her head on his shoulder.

“Lie! Rainbow Dash always gives you a warning about storms, there in no way that-“

“Actually”, Rainbow Dash interrupted. “That thunderstorm was a surprise even to us, most of the weather team was grounded because of the thunder. There was only about three pegasi trying to lower the intensity of the storm before it was safe enough for the rest of the team.”

“But-but… AHHHHH!!!” Twilight screamed in frustration. “Why is everypony protecting him!!! You barely even know him!!!”

“And you do?” asked Rarity, who had become rather angry at the situation.

“More than any of you!” Twilight said. “I found out his dark secret!!! I know the real him!!! He is a monster!!!”

Hige’s body quickly tensed up at the last comment. He got off the couch and began to walk toward the door.

“And where do you think you are going!?” Twilight asked in a fury.

“Home…” Hige said calmly.

“I’m not done with you yet!!!” she screamed.

Hige stopped. “No… no you are not…” he began to turn the doorknob.

“Oh, no you don’t!” she said as her horn began to glow, Hige instantly became paralyzed.

“You think I’m an idiot? I knew the first minute I met you that there was something dark and disgusting about you… and when you began to wear that bracelet, all of the pieces began to stick together.” She started walking towards Hige. “It took me a while, but I was able to alter the bracelet.” The bracelet began to glow. “And now I can show everypony what you were hiding.”

“Twilight, stop!!!” screamed Hige.

“And you think I’m going to listen to you!? I’m not going to stop until everypony knows your secret!!”

Big Macintosh made his way toward Twilight. “Stop it, Twilight…” he said calmly.

“Why should I?” she asked in an arrogant tone.

“Because if you don’t, I will…” he maintained his calm tone.

“That’s so funny”, she said as she began to use her magic to stop Big Macintosh; her grasp on him quickly broke. “H-How!?” she screamed as she used an even more powerful spell to stop him, but was met by the same result. “Stop!!! You’re going to ruin everything!!!” Twilight screamed.

Big Macintosh gave Twilight one more chance to stop, she didn’t. Big Macintosh raised his hoof and slammed it down onto her head. She instantly lose consciousness. He made his way towards Hige. “Are you okay?” he asked.

Hige looked at Big Macintosh “I’ve never felt better…” he said

Big Macintosh sighed in relief “We should leave… we don’t want-“ Big Macintosh went flying across the room.

“Wha’? Why the hell did ya’ do that for!?” screamed a furious Applejack. Hige ignored the comment, he was admiring the amount of force he had put in the last punch.

“H-Hige?” asked Fluttershy as she got close enough to look at Hige’s face. She had a look of terror “W-Who are you!?” she screamed.

Hige got closer to Fluttershy and raised his hoof. Fluttershy was paralyzed with fear. As Hige slammed his hoof down, some sort of unnatural force stopped his hoof. “Stop fighting!!!” Hige screamed as he raised his hoof once again. “RUN!!!” he screamed.

As Hige started to slam his hoof down, he was suddenly tackled by Big Macintosh. Hige went flying, but was able to regain his balance before he landed. Big Macintosh looked at Hige with an intense stare, his eyes were glowing more than they ever had before. “Get everypony out of here now…” Big Macintosh said, Hige did not move. Applejack quickly began to help Fluttershy up. Rarity immediately agreed to leaving, but Rainbow Dash took some convincing. They quickly gathered everypony (even Twilight) and ran out of the house. Hige grinned and, with a single flap of his wing, launched himself toward Big Macintosh…

‘Where am I?’ Hige thought to himself as he regained consciousness. He began to look around and was quickly overcome with fear. He closed his eyes, his heart began to race and his breathing quickened. “No, no, no no!” he murmured to himself as he placed his hooves on his eyes. Hige soon calmed down enough to take a second look, but quickly covered his eyes once more. ‘I knew this place looked familiar…’ he thought as he finally realized the danger of his predicament. ‘Okay Hige, calm down… just get out’. Hige calmed down enough to look around the room (avoiding any visual confrontation with ‘IT’) and was quickly able to find a door. Hige slowly got up and silently made his way to the door. He placed his hoof on the doorknob and began to turn, but began to panic when the knob stopped moving. ‘It can’t be locked!’ he thought as he repeatedly turned the knob, expecting it to magically unlock if he did turned it enough times. “No use…” Hige murmured to himself as he let go of the knob.

“The key…”

This wasn’t the first time Hige has been in this room; it was the room that had haunted Hige most of his life. This was the room he would dream of each time he’d go to sleep; this was the room that drove Hige into insomnia; this is the room Hige has never been able to get out of…

Big Macintosh got up from under the rubble and spat a mouthful of blood on the floor.

“Hurt? HA, don't make me laugh...” Hige said in a mocking tone.

“Celestia forgive me for what I am about to do…” Big Machintosh breathed as Hige slowly made his way towards him.

“You should have given up, I could’ve made your death quick an-“ Hige stopped in his tracks and began to look at Big Macintosh with more curiosity. Big Macintosh closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Are you…?” Hige murmured, Big Macintosh’s coat began to turn a darker shade of red. “No you don’t!” screamed Hige as he propelled himself towards the stallion. Big Macintosh grinned as Hige got closer. At the last second, Big Macintosh placed his hoof on Hige’s head and jerked it to the left and sending him into the wall. Hige got up, “I underestimated you…” Hige’s neck snapped into place. “But you don’t stand a chanc-“ Hige was cut-off by Big Macintosh bucking him directly in the face and sending him across the room once more.

‘The key…’ All of Hige’s dreams were the same, he was stuck in the same room, he had to get out, there was one locked door, and the key was always in the same place… Hige took one deep breath and turned his head. There was another stallion in this room. This other stallion was wrapped in dark, bloody bandages. He was being slightly suspended in the air by chains that were fused to his skin, he was in a deep sleep, and was currently biting on a key ring. ‘Slow and steady…’ Hige thought as he made his way towards the suspended being. Hige’s heart began to race as he extended his hoof to get the key. The moment he touched the key, the wretch exhaled a long breath. Hige almost screamed. ‘Calm down!’ he thought to himself. ‘You are just living your worst nightmare… its not so bad…’ Hige took a deep breath, and with a swift yank, he ripped the key out of its mouth. ‘Oh thank Celestia!’ Hige made his way to the door and used the key. Hige opened the door to find a pit of darkness. He took a long pause. A sense of fear consumed Hige as he heard the sounds of chains hitting the floor.

Big Macintosh had the upper hand, by now Hige seemed to be much more exhausted than Big Macintosh. Big Mac started to gallop toward Hige, who stood there, completely exhausted. Split seconds before Big Mac made contact, Hige’s body tensed up and he extended a hoof at Big Macintosh’s direction. Big Mac was stopped in his tracks the second he made contact with Hige’s hoof. Hige grinned and began to laugh, Big Macintosh took those moments to step away and reassess the situation. In a blink of an eye, Hige disappeared and before Big Macintosh could react, he was bucked and slammed through the door.

Hige jumped towards the darkness, but he was quickly caught by a chain and dragged back into the room. “You aren’t getting away that fast…” the beast said as he began to pull the chain. There was a sudden rush of wind followed by a metallic cling. Hige opened his eyes to see that the chain had been broken by a mysterious scythe “Not you again!” the stallion screamed as a familiar dark orb made its way into the room. The orb began to expand and slowly took the shape of a pony. ‘You…’ Hige thought as the final details of the pony began to take shape, it was the same hooded pony Hige had seen the night of the storm. The hooded stallion extended his hoof towards Hige, who was surprised by the sudden slam of the scythe behind him starting to push him towards the hooded stallion. “No you don’t, you’re not going to save him this time!” the bandaged ghoul said as he ran towards Hige and the Hooded Stallion. The scythe quickly pushed Hige out of the room and into the darkness.

“Big Macintosh!!!” screamed a worried Rainbow Dash as she flew over to the injured stallion. “Are you okay, what’s wrong with your coat?” she continued.

Hige walked out of the house with a triumphant grin on his face. “Did you actually think you had a chance?”

“What did you do to Big Mac!?” roared an angered Rainbow Dash, her friends quickly catching up to her.

“Me? I only injured him, the rest was done by himself”, he said, slowly getting closer.

“Stop or-“

“Or what? Do you think you can stop me? I’m sure nopony here can stop me, Big Macintosh is only a nuisance, and after I’m done with him I’ll end the life of everypony in this town…”

“What the hell has gotten into ya’!!!” screamed Applejack. “Big Macintosh is your friend!!!”

“See if I care!” Hige got close enough to Big Macintosh to do what he was planning. Hige kicked Rainbow Dash into a nearby wall and placed himself in the perfect position to buck Big Macintosh’s head.

“Hige stop!!!” screamed a new voice. Hige turned his head to the source of the voice and found that it was Fluttershy. “Don’t do this, this isn’t you!!!”

“Fluttershy…” said Hige in his normal tone. He quickly shook his head and went back to his violent self. “Me!? You don’t even know me!?”

“No… no I don’t…” said Fluttershy, taking Hige by surprise. “I don’t know you, but I do know Hige and he wouldn’t do this!” she placed herself in Hige’s line of sight and looked at him in the eyes. “Hige, I know you’re in there. Please, you need to help us, you’re the only one that can help us!” As she screamed the last word, her pupils began to dilate and her body went still, so did Hige’s.

Hige was falling, the only sight he could see was the hole where the door was, and the only sounds he could hear were of the fight between the two stallions. Soon enough, Hige lost sight of the door and the sounds faded away. He kept falling for what seemed to be hours, he lost all hope of stopping and he already knew that the orb wasn’t going to stop him anytime soon. Hige’s consciousness began to fade, but was quickly regained once Hige began to hear a familiar noise. ‘What is that…?” Hige thought as the noise grew stronger. ‘Wait… could it be?’ the sound had finally become loud and defined enough for Hige to be able to distinguish it. “F-Fluttershy!”

Chapter 9: The Dark

‘Wait, is it even possible? How can she be here?’ Hige thought as he continued to concentrate on the rhythm of the beating. ‘It has to be her… there is no doubt in my mind, that’s her heart…’

Fluttershy couldn’t believe her eyes, one second she was in Ponyville and the next she is in the middle of a fight between two powerful stallions. Of the two stallions, one was covered in bandages, and the other was wearing a hood. The hooded stallion swung his scythe and the opposing stallion, but was countered by one of the bandaged stallion’s chains wrapping around the scythe and throwing it across the room. The hooded pony looked in awe as the bandaged pony hit him with enough force to send him crashing against the wall. The hooded pony became unconscious and faded away into nothing.

The bandaged pony began to make his way towards Fluttershy. She stood still, fearing what he was going to do. “F-Fluttershy?” It asked in a familiar voice.

“Hige? Is that you?” she asked quickly, slowly calming down.

“Yes it’s me, Fluttershy. You have no idea how relieved I am to see you here, I need to show you something”, he said as he walked over to her. “Do you see these chains?” he asked.

“Y-yes”, she answered.

“I need you to pull them off”, he said.

“But… But I’m not strong enough”, she said in a sad tone.

“C’mon, trust me”, he said with a smile.

“Okay, I’ll try.” She placed her hooves on the part of the chain that was connected to the skin. As she pulled, she was surprised to feel the chain slip out with barely any effort. “Oh, that was easy…” she said in surprise.

“Okay, now do the other ones.”

“Why was it so easy?” she asked curiously.

He looked at her in the eyes. “Because I love you… You can change me… you can free me…”

Fluttershy slowly began to step away. “W-who are you?” she asked.

“I’m Hige, don’t you recognize me?”

“No… Hige would never say that… Hige is too closed off to say those things… Who are you!?” she screamed in fear and anger.

“But I am Hige, are you stupid or something?” It said, the anger slowly filling his voice.

“No you aren’t!” she said as she ran towards the door.

“Not so fast!” he said as he launched one of the chains that was still connected to his body. The chain connected on Fluttershy’s side and began to wrap around her body. Once the chain was secure, he began to pull her in. She tried to fight it, but the stallion’s strength far surpassed hers. She began to panic, she couldn’t get a grip on the floor and began to hyperventilate.

“Now, you are going get over here, and you are going to get rid of my chai-“ His voiced paused. Fluttershy felt the chains stop their pull. Fluttershy looked back to see what had happened, and was terrified to see an alicorn stepping on the chain. This alicorn was surrounded by a horrible dark aura. The dark alicorn grinned as he looked at the chain he was stepping on. With little effort, he forced his hoof down and broke the chain in two. Fluttershy was overcome with relief as the chain quickly fell off.

“What!?” the bandaged stallion exclaimed in surprise. “Why are you still here?” he asked in his normal tone. He received no response. “I asked you a question”, he said, anger filling his voice. “I SAID-” The stallion’s sentence was quickly stopped in its track as the alicorn appeared inches in front of his face. The alicorn grinned once more as he slammed his head against the other stallion’s head. The bandaged stallion was sent flying. “How the hell can you still be here!? What’s keeping you here!?” the stallion screamed. An idea appeared in his head as he slowly turned his sight towards Fluttershy. “Oh, I see…”

The stallion pointed his chainless limb toward Fluttershy. A dark aura began to appear around the extended limb, but was more concentrated just in front of the hoof. The dark orb in front of the hoof began to darken until it was completely black. Once it reached its full potential, the stallion sent it flying towards Fluttershy, who then shut her eyes with fear and awaited the worst. Moments passed as Fluttershy waited. ‘It should have reached me by now…’ she thought as she hesitantly opened her eyes. She was instantly filled with fear as she witnessed the orb inches from her face; she quickly realized that it wasn’t moving. The orb slowly moved away from her face, she began to understand what had happened. The orb was now at the end of the alicorn’s hoof. The alicorn turned in the direction that the stallion was standing in. With a grin, the alicorn placed a second hoof on the orb. The aura around him began to move into the orb, but never lightened in color. The alicorn slammed his hooves together, making the orb disappear. With a grin, he separated his hooves and in between appeared an orb ten-times the size of the original one. The alicorn sent the orb flying toward the stallion, there was immense explosion. The walls of the room remained the same, but the stallion lay defeated on the floor.

“Soon Hige… you are going to need me…” the stallion said as he faded away.

“H-Hige?” Fluttershy asked the mysterious alicorn as the stallion completely faded away. “Is that you?” she began to ask after the way that the stallion addressed the alicorn. After taking a closer look, she quickly realized that the alicorn looked exactly like Hige, except for the obvious fact that the alicorn was dark and had a horn.

Meanwhile:

“Fluttershy?” Applejack said as she waved a hoof in front of Fluttershy’s face. “She ain’t doin’ anythin’.”

“What!? Is she dead!?” Rainbow Dash asked in a panic.

“No… her heart is still beating”, Applejack confirmed after she placed her ear against Fluttershy’s chest. Big Macintosh began to pick himself up. “What the hay happened in there, Big Mac?” Applejack asked.

Big Macintosh took one look at Rainbow Dash and Rarity, and then looked back at Applejack “IT happened…” Big Macintosh said as he walked over to Hige and looked him dead in the eyes.

“What is IT, if you don’t mind me asking”, Rarity said as she stood next to Applejack.

“Yeah, what is IT, Big Macintosh?” Rainbow Dash said, suspicious about the situation

“I bet it has something to do with candy!!!” Pinkie Pie screamed as she jumped onto of Rarity, causing her to lose her balance.

“None of your business”, Applejack said in a commanding voice. Rainbow Dash stopped talking, but was still suspicious. “Can ya’ do somethin’?” Applejack asked Big Macintosh

“No… I’m not an expert. All we can do is hope that he is strong enough”, Big Macintosh said.

“Not exactly,” anew voice said. Everypony began to look around until they found the white unicorn that walked out of one of the alleys.

“A MY GOSH, ITS DJ PON3!!!” Rainbow Dash screamed.

“Can you just shut up!?” Big Macintosh screamed in frustration. Rainbow Dash stopped talking… again.

“C’mon RD, lets get Twi to the hospital. Are you gonna join us?” Applejack asked Rarity and Pinkie Pie who had been getting up.

“But we cant leave them alone like this”, Rarity complained.

“Don’t worry, it’sunder’ control. We’ll come back later, don’t worry about it”, Applejack said as she began to push Twilight onto her back.

“If you say so…” murmured Rarity as she walked beside Twilight.

“Party at the hospital!” yelled Pinkie Pie as she jumped behind Twilight.

“Okay then”, said Rainbow Dash as she flew over the group. They quickly left.

“What are you talking about?” Big Macintosh said as he directed his attention to Vinyl.

“You are right, he has to fight it… but that doesn’t mean he can’t have some help”, Vinyl said with a grin.

“Can you do that? Can you help him?” he asked.

“Yes, yes I can.”

“What about Fluttershy, what wrong with her?” he asked.

Vinyl looked at her, her eyes shot open. “We need to hurry”, she said as she took out a pair of headphones out of her saddlebag.

“What are you going to do?” Big Macintosh asked.

“I’m gonna go in his head, and I’m going to try and get him out.” She placed one of the headphones in Hige’s ear and the other one in her own ear. “Oh, one more thing… If he starts moving and its not Hige… Kill him. The first few second are the only moments where you have any chance of killing him”, she said in a somber tone.

“I understand…”

Vinyl took a deep breath. She grabbed a hold of the device that was connected to the headphones and hit play. She was suddenly caught in the same trance that Fluttershy and Hige were in. Big Macintosh stood in front of Hige, and began to wait for the worst. The rest of them took Twilight to the Hospital.

The dark alicorn was now turning his head, Fluttershy slowly making her way towards him.

“Is that you?” she asked as she kept walking towards it.

A strange humming sound was heard, it was very weak, but easily noticed. The noise slowly became louder as a small glowing; light blue circle appeared on the wall. At this point, Fluttershy and the alicorn were completely distracted by the strange circle. The circle quickly expanded, sending a high-pitched shriek throughout the entire room. The alicorn spread his wings and flew out the door of the room. “No! Come back!” screamed Fluttershy as she extended a hoof in the alicorn’s direction. The alicorn continued in direction towards the door and flew out; he quickly disappeared in the shadows. Fluttershy redirected her attention toward the bright blue circle on the wall. A unicorn, the same color as the circle, began to emerge; its body had absolutely no detail to it, it was just the shape of the unicorn and its mane. As the unicorn finished walking out, the bright blue color began to fade and gave way for the actual details of the pony to be seen.

“Why…” Fluttershy said in a low voice.

“Oh, thank Celestia you’re alright!” Vinyl said in relief as she walked closer.

“Why did you do that!? He was right there and you scared him off!” she screamed in anger.

“W-what?” Vinyl said in confusion.

“Hige! He was right here and you scared him off!”

“I’m sorry… I didn’t know… I thought he was going to need some help…” Vinyl admitted in a guilty tone.

Fluttershy’s facial expression lightened. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scream…” she apologized in an embarrassed

tone.

“No, you’re right to be mad. I swear we will find him again.” Vinyl said in a reassuring voice. “But I need to ask… How is he?”

“H-he changed…” Fluttershy said in a worried voice.

“In what way?” Vinyl asked nervously.

“He’s… dark, and he looks like an alicorn. He looks the same, but his coat and mane were both black and he has strange dark aura around him… ” Vinyl began to look worried. “He flew out that door.” Fluttershy said as she pointed a hoof towards the door.

“Anything else you can tell me?”

“There were two other ponies, one had a scythe and the other was covered in bandages and had chains connected to him. I never interacted with the one that had the scythe, but the one with the bandages tricked me into taking off his chains, by saying he was Hige. I took one of the chains off before I realized it wasn’t him. I tried to run… but one of the chains caught me and he started to pull me in… if it wasn’t for Hige, I don’t know what he would have done to me”, she said is a hopeless tone.

“We need to hurry, let’s go”, Vinyl said as she walked over to the door. Fluttershy quickly followed. Vinyl extended a hoof outside the door, and it instantly became the light blue color that it was moment earlier. As she walked out, her entire body suffered the same effect. She stood at the same level as the floor of the room. She tapped her hoof against the invisible floor that was under her and created a bright blue circle that quickly expanded “Get on”, she said to Fluttershy.

Fluttershy was hesitant at first, but after she tapped her hoof against the circle, she took a deep breath and walked on it. “W-where are we going?” Fluttershy asked, fear still present in her tone.

“We’re going to find Hige”, Vinyl said simply. The circle quickly began to move into the darkness.

Chapter 10: The Goal

Vinyl and Fluttershy remained silent as they ventured through the darkness. They looked for any clues that would lead them to Hige. Fluttershy began to hear a strange noise.

“Do you hear that?” Fluttershy asked.

“No, what are you talking about?” Vinyl responded.

“That… it’s like a beat…” she said closing her eyes.

“… Where is it coming from?” Vinyl asked.

Fluttershy remained silent and concentrated on the noise. “There.” She pointed a hoof in a general direction.

Vinyl took one look at the direction and quickly made the circle move there. “Only clue we have…” Vinyl murmured.

“Um… W-who are you? If you don’t mind me asking…” Fluttershy asked.

“Me? I’m a friend… The name’s Vinyl”, she said, looking back with a smile.

“And you know Hige?”

“Yeah, he’s one hell of a party animal”, Vinyl responded.

“Um… Sorry for being rude, but… Where are we?” Fluttershy asked as she looked around.

“You don’t know?” Vinyl asked. Fluttershy shook her head. “We are inside Hige’s mind.”

“How did I get here?” she asked.

“I… I have no idea”, Vinyl said. “What was the last thing you did before you got here?”

“Um… I remember Hige… I walked in front of him, and looked into his eyes… then I appeared here…” Fluttershy answered.

“Hmmm… That’s strange… Maybe yo-” Vinyl stopped the instant she saw a faint movement in the darkness. “Did you see that!?”

“No! What!?” Fluttershy asked in a terrified tone as she shrunk down next to Vinyl.

“I’m not sure…” she began to look around. “There it is!” she said as she looked at two glowing, blood-red eyes flying towards them. The entity flew near the circle and tapped a hoof against it. The circle slowly began to fade in that spot.

Slowly, the circle completely vanished. Vinyl tried as hard as she could, but was unable to stop the circle from fading. “Fluttershy!!!” Vinyl screamed as the circle under Fluttershy began to fade. The only sound that could be heard was the sound of Fluttershy screaming. Once the circle finished fading, Vinyl began to fade until she was no more.

“Ahhhhhh!” Vinyl screamed as she regained control of her body in the real world.

“What happened!?” Big Macintosh asked.

“I… I don’t know… Did Fluttershy come back?” Vinyl asked as she looked at the still motionless body of Fluttershy.

”NO NO NO!!!” She screamed. She quickly lost her balance and fell to the floor.

“Are you okay!? What happened!? What’s going on!?” Big Macintosh asked in a panic.

“I’m not sure… But Fluttershy is alone, she is scared…” Vinyl looked at Big Macintosh in the eyes, “and she is our only hope…”

Fluttershy found herself lying on an invisible floor in the middle of the darkness. A mist of dark aura began to concentrate into a pony-sized orb. Once the mist dispersed, she was able to see the form of the dark alicorn that she had encountered moments before. She felt a magical force help her up.

“What are you doing here?” The alicorn asked in a deep voice.

“Hige!” Fluttershy said as she ran towards the alicorn and gave it a hug.

“I’m not Hige…” he said.

Fluttershy quickly stepped away. “B-but you look exactly like him…”

“That’s because I’m part of him…” he said simply as he began to walk away.

Fluttershy began to follow. “What do you mean?” she asked.

“Nothing…” he said. “Now, what are you doing here?” he asked once more.

“I’m not sure…” she said.

“Then leave…”

“B-but… I need to find Hige!” she exclaimed.

“Why?” he asked plainly.

“W-what?” she asked in confusion.

“Why do you want to find him? As you can see, it dangerous here; trying to find him could mean your death…”

“But I need to see him!” she exclaimed in desperation.

“He isn’t himself right now…” he said grimly.

“I don’t care! I need to see him!” she screamed.

“What are you going to do to him when you find him?”

“I-I’m… I’m going to help him...”

“Do you really think it’s that easy? Just walk in there and save him?”

“N-no… but that won’t stop me from trying…”

“There’s no saving him at this point… he is too far gone… Just leave him here to die…”

“NO! I won’t leave him here!!!” she screamed in anger. The alicorn ignored her and continued walking. “Did you even hear me!?” she screamed.

“Yes I did”, he said as he stopped moving. He placed a hoof on an invisible wall and pushed. The wall broke like glass, giving way into a new room. “You want to help him? Go ahead”, the alicorn said as he stepped away from the hole.

Fluttershy looked inside and found Hige sitting in the corner of the room, fear being the only perceptible expression on his face. “What’s wrong with him?” she asked as she looked back at the alicorn.

“Just wait…” the alicorn said as he began to wait. Suddenly, strange dark figures began to come out of the walls and walk over to Hige.

“Stop!!! Leave me alone!!!” Hige screamed at the top of his lungs. The figures continued towards Hige. Once they were close enough, they began to scream a mess of words that made no sense, but were still affecting Hige.

“What happening to him!?” Fluttershy asked the alicorn worriedly.

“Horrible memories…” he said.

“He needs help!” she said as she ran towards Hige. The instant she came close to the figure, they disappeared. Hige lay on the floor. “H-Hige?” Fluttershy asked.

“Monster… Death… Destruction… Evil… Hate… Murder…” Hige murmured to himself, completely ignoring Fluttershy.

“Hige…” she said softly.

“Who’s there!?” Hige said in a panic.

“It’s me! It’s Fluttershy!” she said excitedly.

“Leave me alone! Just leave me alone!!!” he screamed as he buried his head on the floor.

“No, Hige it’s me! Please…” Fluttershy said as she began to lose hope.

“Death… Murder… Evil… Destruction… Monster… Lies…” Hige continued to murmur.

“H-Hige…” she said disheartedly.“Please… Just listen to my voice…”

Hige raised his head and looked directly at Fluttershy. “Who…?”

“Yes, Hige it’s me!!!” she yelled, regaining hope.

“Leave me alone!!!” he screamed once more, tears forming in his eyes.

“H-Hige…” Fluttershy felt a hoof on her shoulder. She looked to find the alicorn.

“Just go… He’s too far gone…” he said in a sad tone.

“B-But…” she began.

“Just give up… I’ve never seen him like this before… I don’t think he’ll be coming back…” he said grimly.

Fluttershy began to sniffle. “Okay… Just give me a minute…”

“I understand...” he said as he began to walk out the hole.

Fluttershy shifted her attention to Hige. “I’m sorry, Hige… I thought I could help you…” Tears began to form around her eyes. “The first time I met you, I knew you were different… I knew that there was something wrong with you… I thought I could help you… I should have just left you alone, I drove you to all of this…” She broke down. “I’m sorry, Hige!”

“Don’t make it any harder than it has to be…” the dark alicorn said.

“*sniffle* Okay…” She looked at Hige. She placed a hoof under his chin and turned it to her direction. “I’m sorry, Hige…” She said as she pressed her lips against his. She quickly let go and began to walk towards the hole. Tears were streaming down her face.

“I told you not to make it harder than it already was…” he placed his hoof on another invisible wall. He pushed and caused the wall to break, a bright light came out of it. “Once you cross this hole, you’ll be back in the real world. Good luc-“ The alicorn paused and took on a face of shock. “What!?”

“Where am I...?” a familiar voice asked.

Fluttershy’s heart stopped, she turned her head to confirm what she had just heard. New tears began to form as she ran towards Hige who was getting up off the floor. “Hige!” she screamed as she tackled Hige into a hug. “I thought I lost you! I thought I was never going to see you again!” she screamed in excitement.

“Fluttershy?” Hige asked as he looked at the mare that was hugging him. He began to hug her back “Um… What happened?”

Fluttershy looked at Hige. “Nothing… Nothing at all…” she said as she moved towards Hige and gave him a kiss. A huge blush appeared on his face. “I’m just happy to see you!” she said with a small blush.

“I can’t believe it…” the alicorn began. “You actually did it…” he said, surprised. “I’m sorry for doubting you.” He started to use his magic to move Hige and Fluttershy near the portal, still connected by the hug. “I hope you know what to do now, Hige.”

Hige took a serious look. “Yes I do…”

“Then good luck to you both”, he said as he tossed them through the hole.

Big Macintosh’s body tensed up as Hige’s body began to move. He braced himself for the worst.

“Big Macintosh?” Hige asked. “Why are you staring at me like that?”

A smile appeared on Big Mac’s face. “Nothing, I’m happy you’re back.”

Fluttershy lost her balance and fell. A magical force helped her up. “T-thanks”, she said to a familiar looking unicorn. “Vinyl?”

“Yeah”, Vinyl responded as she gave Fluttershy a big hug. “I’m happy you’re safe…”

“Thanks”, Fluttershy said.

“Fluttershy!!!” a familiar voice screamed. Applejack quickly made her way towards Fluttershy and gave her a huge hug. Rainbow Dash flew above them and placed a hoof on Fluttershy’s shoulder while giving her sincere smile.

“Where’s everypony else?” Fluttershy asked.

“Twilight’s still out cold, Rarity and Pinkie stayed with her”, Applejack answered.

Fluttershy heard a familiar voice. “Hige?” she said as she turned her head to meet it. She quickly ran towards Hige and tackled him into another hug. “I can believe it! We made it!” she exclaimed in excitement.

“It’s not over yet…” Hige said in a serious tone.

“Huh?” she asked in a worried tone.

“I need to back to Manehattan… There’s somepony I have to meet…” he explained.

“Well I hope you don’t expect us to stay here”, Vinyl said with a grin.

“You owe us...”, Big Macintosh added.

Hige felt a nudge on his back and was happy to find Kiba looking at him

“Thanks...”, Hige said with an accepting smile.

The group entered the library. Applejack followed Fluttershy to her cottage to help with healing Kiba’s injuries. Rainbow Dash began to talk to Vinyl while Hige and Big Mac attempted to fix the door (It looks fixed, just don’t touch it…). After the door was ‘fixed’, the four of them began to walk towards the cottage to join the others. Once they got there, Applejack convinced Rainbow Dash to join her in the hospital. Only Fluttershy, Big Macintosh, Vinyl, Kiba, and Hige remained in the cottage.

“Wait… How are we going to get to Manehattan?” Hige asked.

“We can either go by train or I can call up a private carriage to take us there. Either way, it’ll take about a day to get there”, Vinyl responded.

“Um… It would be best to take the carriage, it would give Kiba a chance to heal up… Or we can stay here another day and give him a chance to rest...” Fluttershy mentioned.

“The earlier, the better…” Hige murmured.

“So, you aren’t going to tell us what happened in there?”, Big Macintosh asked.

“I can’t.” Hige answered simply

“What do you mean?” Vinyl asked in a curious tone

“There are still some thing that remain a mystery to me, and I’m having a hard time understanding them... all I know is that I have to look for somepony in Manehattan… I’ll understand when I get there…” Hige explained.

“Well, I need to call the carriage… you guys should get your sleep, it’ll be here in the morning”, Vinyl said.

“I need to tell Applejack about me leaving”, Big Macintosh said as he got up.

“Seeya”, Hige said to Vinyl and Big Macintosh as they left.

“I need to feed the animals…” Fluttershy said.

“I’ll feed the ones outside”, Hige said with a smile.

They fed the animals swiftly. Hige had finished feeding the outside animals, but, instead of going back inside, remained there, deep in thought. He suddenly heard Fluttershy call his name. Once he entered the house, he realized that Fluttershy had cooked a large meal. They began to eat the food. Hige remained quiet. Once they were done, Hige helped clean up.

“Um… Fluttershy?” Hige said, finally breaking the silence that had started since they fed the animals.

“Y-yes, Hige?” she asked.

“There’s something I need to show you… It’s in my house… Do you think you can come over?” Hige asked as he looked at the floor.

“Sure, I’ll go…” she answered.

They quickly finished cleaning and departed to Hige’s house. They walked in a slow pace, giving Kiba the chance to keep up. Once they reached the house, Hige opened the door and walked upstairs, Fluttershy followed and Kiba remained downstairs resting. Hige looked at the papers where he had written his memories. Once he finished organizing them, he handed them to Fluttershy, sat on the bed, and waited for her to read them. She began to read. Fluttershy put the papers down, meaning that she had finished reading them.

“What do you think?” Hige asked. Fluttershy smiled and walked over to him and gave him a small kiss.

“Thanks for keeping your promise…” she said in a happy voice

“Thanks for not leaving…” he said as he pulled her in for a passionate kiss.

Chapter 11: Preparations

Hige awoke to find himself still intertwined with Fluttershy.. He remained motionless, enjoying the rhythmical beat of her heart, her warm breath crashing against his coat, and taking the time to understand what had happened yesterday. ‘Fluttershy saved me, she actually helped me get out of one of my breakdowns… What woke me up? I just remember being afraid and then… then the only thought in my mind: Fluttershy… and when I woke up… She kissed me, she actually kissed me… But for some strange reason, for that very second, I felt happy… I wasn’t worried about another breakdown; I didn’t care about my fears, I didn’t even care about dying… The only thing in my mind was staying with her…’ Hige began to feel Fluttershy moving. She opened her eyes and looked at him.

“Are you crying?” she asked with a worried tone.

Hige suddenly felt the cold of one of the droplets of tears running down his face. “Oh… It’s nothing…” Hige said as he gave her a quick kiss. “I love you…” Hige murmured to himself, not meaning for Fluttershy to hear it.

“What?” she asked with a small blush.

“Um, uh, nothing…” Hige said as a furious blush covered his face.

Fluttershy smiled as she dug her head into Hige’s chest. “I love you too…” she murmured, just loud enough for Hige to hear.

“We should get up, Vinyl said the carriage should get here by morning. We need to feed the animals… and I want to get a chance and visit Twilight…” Hige said with a hint of sadness.

“Okay”, she said as she let go of Hige and started to get up. “I’m going to check on Kiba”, Fluttershy said as she walked downstairs.

Hige walked into the bathroom, turnedthe water on , and put his head in the stream. The water quickly woke him up. He turned off the valve and shook some of the excess water of his head. Hige then walked downstairs and asked: “How’s Kiba?”

“He’s fine, but he is still going to have to rest on the carriage”, Fluttershy said as she shifted her attention from Kiba to Hige.

“Remind me to give you all of the treats when we get on the carriage”, Hige told Kiba, who gave a happy nod in return.

“Um… should we go to the cottage now?” Fluttershy asked.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

They quickly made their way to the cottage, walking at their normal pace now that Kiba was in better conditions. When they reached the cottage, Hige remained outside and fed the animals. He walked back inside and found that the animals haven’t been fed yet, and that Fluttershy was taking a shower. Hige quickly fed the animals inside, making sure he didn’t forget any of them. The bathroom door opened and hoofsteps were heard going upstairs. Hige sat on the couch and began to wait. ‘Should I take a shower? It would be a good idea… I don’t want to be the only pony that stinks… Do I stink?’ Hige took a quick sniff. ‘Okay… yes I do. I need to ask Fluttershy if I can use her shower…’ He heard hoofsteps walking down the stairs. Fluttershy began to look around.

“Did you feed the animals?” Fluttershy asked.

“Yep. You were taking a shower, and I was done with the animals outside”, Hige responded.

“Oh… You didn’t have too…” she said with a small blush.

“I know. By the way… can I use your shower?” Hige asked trying to make it seem like a casual question.

“Sure… There should be an extra towel in the rack, you can use it.”

“Thanks”, Hige said as he walked over to the bathroom door and walked inside.

Hige looked around the bathroom and found the towel Fluttershy was talking about. He picked it up and dragged it to a table that was next to the bathtub. He got in and began to take a shower. Once he was done, he dried himself of and walked out with the towel around his neck. He walked into the kitchen and found Fluttershy cooking.

“Where do I put this towel?” Hige asked.

“There should be a basket in the entrance of the bathroom”, she answered.

“How did I miss that!?” Hige exclaimed in frustration as he walked into the bathroom and saw the relatively large basket next to the door. He threw the towel into the basket, returned to the kitchen, and found Fluttershy putting two plates of food on the table.

“Did you find it?” she asked.

“Yep, it was hiding in plain sight”, Hige answered as he took a seat. They both got halfway through eating when a knock came on the door. “I’ll get it”, Hige said as he got up. He opened the door and found Vinyl standing on the other side. “Did the carriage get here?” Hige asked nervously.

“No, it’ll be here in about an hour. Just making sure you guys are gonna be ready by then”, Vinyl explained.

“We’ll be ready. Where do we go to meet the carriage?” Hige asked.

“On the main road near the train tracks”, she answered. “I need to go check on Big Mac. Bye.”

“Seeya”, Hige said as he walked to the kitchen. “We have an hour. We’ll have to be on the main road near the train tracks by then.”

“That’ll give us enough time to see Twilight”, Fluttershy mentioned.

“Yes it will”, Hige said with a smile.

They soon finished their food and began to make their way to the hospital. There, they were greeted by nurse Redheart, who made Kiba wait outside and who also kindly showed them to where Twilight was. Fluttershy waited outside while Hige entered to find a conscious Twilight looking at him.

“Twilight…” Hige started to say but was interrupted.

“I’m sorry…” Twilight said in a sincere voice.

“What?” Hige asked in confusion.

“I’m sorry for what I did… for all of it. You had never shown any signs of being a bad pony and I should have not thought otherwise”, Twilight explained.

“No... No, you were right. I do have some things that I’ve kept hidden and I-” He felt a hoof on his head. He looked up to see Twilight giving him a sincere look.

“I believe you… That doesnt mean you’re a bad pony”, Twilight said in a soft voice.

“Thank you… you have no idea how much that means to me…” he said with a big smile.

Soon after, Hige called Fluttershy to come in. Hige walked out and left the two to talk. Moments later, Fluttershy walked out of the room with a smile. The smile on her face quickly disappeared when she looked at the desk. Hige looked and saw a small clock. Upon closer inspection, the clock showed that they are supposed to meet the carriage in seven minutes. They ran out of the hospital, where Kiba had been waiting. The three of them quickly began to run in the direction of the railroad tracks. They soon saw the main road and began to gallop on it. They looked and were able to see the carriage stopping in front of Big Macintosh and Vinyl. The three of them quickened their pace and reached the carriage moments later. They walked into the carriage gasping for breath.

“We… made… it…” Hige said between breaths.

Chapter 12: The Trip

It took Hige about half an hour to get his breathing back to normal. He’d sat on one of the couches inside the carriage, closed his eyes while he rested. Once he regained his breath he looked around the carriage. Vinyl went all out, the carriage had much more room than he expected. There was room to walk back and forth and just enough room to pass by somepony who’s going the opposite direction. There were three windows. Two of them lied on opposite wall that made up the sides of the carriage. Under both of the windows were small couches one could use either look out for the window of bathe in the sun while you sleep or talk to the other passengers. The third window was on the back of the carriage, and was covering Hige in light.

Hige could see Big Mac sleeping in the farther couch. Vinyl was laying on the couch closest to Hige. She had her headphones on while she looked at Fluttershy who was rubbing Kiba’s belly. Vinyl was tapping her dangling hoof against the wood of the bottom of the couch, probably tapping out the rhythm of the song. She was deep in thought. Kiba turned his head to see Hige, and Fluttershy turned her head to see what he was looking at. She was happy to see Hige finally looking awake. ‘Wait... She caught her breath before me? I must be out of shape... Or she must be really good at running.’

“How long has it been?" Hige asked curiously.

“About half an hour.” She responded with a smile.

Hige made a big yawn and stretch causing various bone to crackle. “Have we gotten far?” he said as he sat on the floor and began to bet Kiba.

“Not really, but we haven’t been traveling that long either.” she responded.

When Hige threw himself to the floor, he created a thump loud enough for Vinyl to feel. She turned her head to see Hige.

“Finally caught your breath?” She asked with a sly smile.

“Yeah.”

“So, have you gotten any clue to what we’re going to see?”

“No.”

“So we’re going in blind?”

“Yes.”

“Well... That’ll be interesting.” She said with a smile.

“How far till Manehattan?” Hige asked curiously.

“Eight hours? I’m not sure, we’ve only just started.” Vinyl answered

“Oh, okay then...” Hige said as he thought about what was to come.

“You okay?” Fluttershy asked Hige on account of his serious facial expression.

“Oh, what? Nothing.” Hige said realizing he had made a strange expression “Just... Thinking...”

“About what?”

“I don’t know... Everything, I guess...”

“You look worried.”

“Considering that I have no idea what’s going to happen, and the fact that I have involved my only three friends into this, I think being worried is understandable.”

“You make it sound like it will be dangerous...” She mentioned. Hige gave her a serious look “Oh...” She said realizing that what’s to come can possibly be dangerous.

“Think back to yesterday... Something like that can happen, and I’m not sure if the outcome will be the same. Yes, I was happy all of you came along, but I’m starting to regret it...”

“I think we can handle ourselves, if it comes to that.” Big Mac said as he woke up from his so called ‘sleep’.

“Yeah, you talk as if we’re weak.” Vinyl said with a grin.

“I didn't... I just...” Hige stuttered for words to say.

“We’re just messing with ya’.” Vinyl reassured once she saw Hige’s reaction.

“Yeah, no need to get worked up over it...” Big Mac added as he lifted himself from the seat.

“Yeah, but...” Hige tried to say “Forget it.”

The carriage began to slow down.

“Are we stopping?” Fluttershy asked

“Oh right, we’re going to make two pit stops. One here, and another one while we’re nearing Manehattan.” Vinyl explained.

“So this is the first?”

“Yep. There should be a place to eat food outside.”

They all walked out of the carriage, except for Kiba who continued to sleep, and were met by a wooden structure named ‘Dirt Road’. Seemed to be some sort of saloon/diner. It looked like a popular place since there were somewhat large amount of ponies on the inside. The four of them walked inside, while the chauffeur and the stallions pulling the carriage took a well deserved rest. Once they reached the inside The Dirts Road, the suddenly felt out of place. Ponies began to glare at them, almost saying ‘You don’t belong here.’. Even though the feeling was hard to ignore, they had no choice but to stay and eat. They were going to have to stay there anyways and they weren’t about to go on an empty stomach.

“Why don’t we get the food and eat it in the carriage?” Hige asked not liking the glares he was receiving.

“Y-Yeah... I don’t think they like us being here.” Fluttershy agreed.

“But why? This place is supposed to be open to visitors...” Vinyl mentioned.

“Guess we’ll find out.” Big Macintosh said as he took a seat at the nearest table. The rest joined him. “We can go to the carriage after we get our food.”

“Okay...” Fluttershy said in a hushed voice.

Big Mac waved for the menus. A light red mare walked over and basically placed the menus on the table. She didn't seemed mad, and she didn't seem to be glaring at us. She looked nervous. Minutes later was when they decided what they wanted to eat, and Big Macintosh waved over at the mare who had given them the menus. She walked over to the table, wrote down the food they ordered, and went to the kitchen.

“Did she seem off to you? She looked kinda... I’m not sure...” Hige pondered.

“Nervous maybe?” Vinyl asked.

“Yeah... Maybe...”

“Why do you think she’s nervous?” Fluttershy asked.

“She’s afraid of the gang.” Big Macintosh answered.

“Gang?” Vinyl asked asked.

“If ya look closely, everypony that has been glaring at us has a red bandana somewhere. On their arm, neck, tail, etc.” He explained “They usually wear something to set them apart from the crowd.”

“W-what should we do?” Fluttershy asked.

“We don’t look scared, and we don’t piss them off.” He answered simply.

“And what if we do?” Hige asked.

“Then we’d have a full-on riot.”

“Then let’s not piss them off.” Hige answered.

“Easier said than done...” Big Macintosh said in a grim tone.

“Thank you, Mr. Positive.” Vinyl said in a sarcastic tone. “Lets just get the food, pay, and go.”

“How long do we have to stay?” Fluttershy asked.

“Fifteen minutes, give or take.” Vinyl answered.

“Oh...” Fluttershy said as she looked around the room.

“I’m gonna take a quick walk.” Hige said as he sat up from his chair.

“I’ll join you.” Vinyl said as she got up from her chair.

Both Vinyl and Hige walked out of the diner and began to walk along a short trail that circled the diner. The silence followed them since they got up, but was broken a few minutes after they began to walk.

“You’re lying...” Vinyl said breaking the silence.

“What?” Hige asked in confusion.

“When you told Fluttershy about not knowing what’s to come...” She explained.

“W-What?” Hige asked again causing Vinyl to stop walking.

“That look on your face. Whatever it is we are looking for, it’ll be the death of you and you know it.” she said with a serious expression.

“...” Hige remained silent.

“Admit it.” she persisted.

“...” Hige continued to walk.

“Say it!” She screamed. Hige stopped walking.

“Why?” He asked simply.

“I want to know... We all want to know...”

“Why? So you can stop me? So you can try to ‘save’ me?” Hige said with a hint of anger.

“N-No...” She said as she thought of something to say.

“Yes, what’s coming could be the death of me... And you know what? I’m actually-” Hige stopped talking.

Hige and Vinyl felt a wave of danger surge through them. Once they looked at each other and saw that they both reacted to it, they rushed to the diner. They looked inside and found that a stallion was now sitting at the table. He had a dark green coat, and a light green mane. As they got closer, they began to hear the conversation.

“What you doing out here, boy? I thought we had an understanding...” The stallion said. Seemed like he was threatening him.

“Just passing through, don’t want any trouble.” Big Macintosh answered.

“Well now you have trouble.” He said with a grin

“You pick a fight with him, you pick a fight with us.” Vinyl said in an angry tone.

“Really? You don’t look like much.” The stallion responded.

“You’d be surprised how wrong you are.” Vinyl responded in a grim tone.

“Fluttershy, lets get to the carriage.” Hige said as he turned to face her.

“What about them?” Fluttershy asked as she pointed to Vinyl and Big Macintosh.

“They can handle themselves... And I don’t want you to get hurt.” Hige explained.

“Okay.” She answered.

Hige and Fluttershy began walking towards the exit until three ponies stepped in front and blocked it.

“And where are you two going? I thought you were all in this together.” The stallion mentioned.

“Let them go.” Big Macintosh said. “This is between you and me.”

“Hmmm...” the stallion said as he put a hoof to his chin and acted like he was thinking. “No. Bring them here.” he said as he pointed at Hige and Fluttershy.

The three ponies blocking the door began to walk towards Hige and Fluttershy. They began to grin as they extended their hooves towards them.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Hige said with a grin.

“Is that a threat?” One of the ponies asked with a grin.

“No.” Hige said as he donned a serious look and looked at the pony who asked the question. “It’s a promise.”

The pony began to have a nervous laugh, and looked at the other two ponies for support, but found that both of them were very weary of Hige. The pony stopped his nervous chuckle and walked aside to let Hige and Fluttershy through.

“What are you doing!? Get them-” The stallion screamed furiously.

The stallion was rudely interrupted once Big Macintosh slammed down on his side of the table, causing the other side to shoot up and slam against the bottom of the stallion’s head. The stallion fell unconscious on the floor. Big Macintosh got of the chair and looked around the room.

“Anypony pony else have any bright ideas!?” He screamed loud enough for the entire diner could hear. There was no response.”

Big Mac walked alongside Vinyl as they walked out the doorway of the diner. Hige and Fluttershy were just outside the carriage waiting. Once both of them reached the carriage, Hige opened the door. They all turned their heads to the sound of hoofsteps running towards them. They soon saw the same mare that had taken their order rushing towards them with, what they think, was what they had ordered when they arrived.

“I’m... I’m...” The mare tried to say between breaths. “Thank you. From all of us.” She said with a smile. “They’ve been here for weeks, keeping any new customers away. After this, it’ll be awhile before they come back. Oh, and I brought you your order... Well some of it was still being cooked, so I had to replace some of it. Take it, it’s on the house.” She said.

“Thank you.” Big Macintosh said. Hige picked the tray up from her back and brought it into the carriage. Fluttershy followed.

“Oh and one of the ponies from tha gand told me to give this to you. They took it from the stallion you knocked out.” she said as she handed him a red scarf.

“Thank you.” Big Macintosh said with a nod as he grabbed the scarf.

“Oh, and, um... I’m Magie...” She said with a small blush.

“Well thank you, Magie.” He said with a friendly smile.

“Okay then, bye!” Magie said with newfound happiness. She quickly made her way back to the diner.

“Smooth moves...” Vinyl said with a mischievous grin. Big Macintosh had no response.

Vinyl and Big Macintosh walked inside the carriage and were happy to see that the food they had ordered was already spread out and ready to be eaten. Vinyl walked up to the window at the end of the carriage and told the chauffeur “Slow and steady.” and tapped her hoof against the wall of the carriage. The carriage began to move at a slow pace, giving the group a chance to eat.

They all ate happily, except for Vinyl and Hige who share a few serious glares. Once Kiba woke up, Hige passed him a plate that he had saved him. Once all of them were done, they put all of the plates in a bag and placed them in a bin under one of the seats in the carriage. They all soon fell asleep. Vinyl and Big Macintosh slept on the seats they were in when they arrived at the diner, while, after a lot of convincing, Fluttershy slept on the seat Kiba was sleeping. Kiba and Hige slept on the floor.

‘Wake up...’ A voice rang inside Hige’s head as he started regaining consciousness. ‘Wake up... You need to wake up...’ The voice repeated. Hige forced himself up and grabbed his saddlebags. The carriage was still moving, but out the window he could see the edge of Manehattan. ‘Get out...’ The voice said. Hige placed a hoof on the door and found that the noise of him getting up had awoken Kiba. Kiba stood and was ready to follow Hige. “Just like old time... just you and me...” Hige said with a smile as he silently opened the carriage and let Kiba jumped out. Once Kiba was outside, Hige jumped out and silently closed the door after.

“Next stop: Manehattan...” Hige said as he stood in place. Kiba walked up to Hige and sat beside him. Hige began to walk, but he wasn’t walking directly to Manehattan. Whatever it is that he had to do next, it wasn’t there. He kept walking as if the direction of where he was going was out of his control. Every turn felt right, even though he had no idea where he was going. Once Hige stopped, he knew exactly where he had to go.

Hige stopped and found himself confronted by a large brush. As he looked around he knew where he was. He’d taken this trail many times in his childhood. This was the trail leading to his old tree house. “Kiba.” Hige said trying to get Kiba’s attention. Kiba looked at him “I... I need to do this alone...” Kiba laid down. “Kiba...” Kiba looked at Hige once again. “I’m not sure if I’m coming back... If I don’t... I want you to stay with Fluttershy. Keep her safe.” Kiba nodded. Hige took a deep breath and force himself through the brush.

The brush was dense, but it wasn’t as thick as he expected. After forcing himself through two feet of it, he found himself in an empty bubble. It was dark. Hige couldn’t see anything. As he walked further, he was taken by surprise as fireflies flew out of the ground and circled him. He was able to see further into the brush, but could see that the bubble went on further than he expected. As he walked, the fireflies followed. Hige kept walking for what felt like hours. The feeling of loneliness kept consuming him. He remembered an old rhyme he’s heard a few years back.

“Careful what you do...” He rhymed trying to pass the time “Cause god is watching your every move. Hold my hand in the dark street, for if you do I know that I’ll be safe...” as he finished those last word, a vortex of dark aura appeared next to Hige. As Hige walked passed it, the dark alicorn he’d seen back in Ponyville walked out of the vortex and kept up with Hige’s pace.

“You ready?” The dark alicorn asked.

“I hope.” Hige said in a grim tone.

“You were going to have to face this eventually...”

“I know... I just want to get it over with. If this is the way I die, then there’s no point in keeping it waiting.” Hige said monotone.

“Good luck...” The alicorn said before it disappeared.

“Yeah... I’ll need it.” Hige said in a low voice. “Be careful what you do, cause god is watching your every move. Hold my hand in the dark street, for if you do I’ll know that I’ll be safe...”

Chapter 13: Another Point of View

Fluttershy awoke in the carriage. She squinted her eyes at the rays of the morning sun. She gave out a low yawn and rubbed her eyes.Then, she looked to see that the carriage was empty, and proceeded to walk outside. Vinyl was waiting outside with a strange look on her face. She looked at the sunrise while in deep thought. The sound of the door closing caused Vinyl to snap out of her thoughts and change to her normal facial expression.

“Good morning”, she said with a smile, “did ya sleep well?”

“Yes...” Fluttershy answered as she looked around. “Where is Big Macintosh and Hige?”

“Big Macintosh went to-” Vinyl began but was interrupted.

“About an hour ago”, Big Macintosh said as he walked over to Vinyl. “The chauffeur said it was about an hour ago that he saw him leave.”

“An hour...” Vinyl pondered. “We need to get going then, lets go.” She said as she began to pick up her pace.

“Where are we going? Who are you talking about?” Fluttershy asked as she followed Vinyl and Big Macintosh.

“It’s Hige. He wasn't here when we woke up”, Big Macintosh explained.

“He’s missing!?” she asked worriedly.

“We don’t know that yet. Maybe he’s just looking around”, Vinyl quickly said trying to calm Fluttershy down.

“Oh... Okay...” Fluttershy said still feeling worried.

“So, where should we check first?” Big Macintosh asked.

“M-Maybe he’s in the hospital...” Fluttershy mentioned.

“Right. Let’s go to the nearest hospital”, Vinyl said already being familiar with the town.

Vinyl quickly guided them through the town and to the only hospital in the area. It was not a very large hospital, and it wasn’t very modern either. They walked along the road and opened the doors to the hospital. The mare at the front desk took a quick look at them before she returned to her papers. They walked up to the front desk. The mare had a dark blue coat and a gray mane, she seemed aged, but still fairly energetic.

“Um, excuse me...” Fluttershy said shyly.

“Yes, dear?” The mare asked with a smile.

“We’re looking for a stallion. He has a dark brown coat and an even darker mane, and light green eyes.”

“Hmm... How old is he?” She asked as she walked over to the filing cabinet.

“Well... sixteen... seventeen... I’m not really sure...”

“S-Sixteen... He’s sixteen?” The mare asked in a shocked tone. “N-no... he can’t be...”

“What’s wrong?” Fluttershy asked.

“The stallion you are looking for...” she said as she got close to her desk. “Does he look something like this?” She picked up a picture frame. The picture in it was of her and a patient. The patient had a bandage covering the upper right portion of his head. They were both smiling at the camera, and the patient looked exactly like Hige, but younger.

“Yes, that’s him”, Vinyl said as she walked up to the counter. Fluttershy was at a loss for words.

The mare looked around. “Come with me.” She began to walk towards the entrance of the hospital. Once they were outside, she turned to the trio. “Hige... Was that his name?”

“Yes. When was that picture taken?” Vinyl asked.

“A few years back but...” The mare seemed too shocked to continue.

“But what?” Big Macintosh asked.

“But... He came in with a severe head trauma which caused him to develop an aneurysm. There was nothing we could do, and any form of rash movement would have made it burst... He... I knew him for a long time. He used to get injuries every once in a while, and at the time I worked at the public clinic, so I got to see him alot... He was such a nice little buck...

“I got a few promotions, and I was bumped up to here, so I wasn’t able to see him that much. My heart sank when I saw his name on the list of patients from this part of the hospital... It had to have been severe for them to bring him here... My heart sank even deeper when I read why he was here.

Like I said, he had a head trauma, and it caused an aneurysm... Problem was that it was too big, too sensitive for him to leave. At first it was fine, but it got worse. The doctors said that it was getting even more sensitive, and it would burst even if he didn't move. The medical staff knew that I was close with him from a long time ago, so they thought it would be appropriate for me to be the one to explain what was happening to him.

He was so young... He always had a smile on his face... I thought that would change once I told him. The picture you saw was from the first few days he was here, when the aneurysm was still stable. By the time I was supposed to tell him the bad news... He’d been sedated, he couldn’t move as freely as he wanted.” Tears began to form in her eyes.

“I walked in and sat down... He greeted me with a smile, but his expression changed when I didn't return it. I started to explain what was happening... I expected him to cry, or at least have some sort of reaction to the news... But he didn't... He just asked me how much longer he had. I told him what the doctors told me, two days at best. He simply smiled at me and said ‘I guess this is goodbye...’ with a smile.

“I just wanted to hug him right then and there, but I knew better... I had to walk out of the room... I told him good night and gave him the biggest smile I could... And then he disappeared.”

“H-He disappeared!?” Fluttershy asked in shock.

“Yes. He finished... I never saw him again... But you're telling me he’s alive? How can that be?” She asked.

“We’re not sure...” Vinyl said deep in thought.

“But that’s impossible...” Fluttershy said

“Not completely.” Big Macintosh said.

“What?” Fluttershy asked in surprise.

“Nothing... Where do you think Hige could be if he was back in town?” He asked directing himself to the mare.

“Well he said he had a treehouse in the forest. Maybe he’s there”, the mare mentioned.

“That’s the forest near the poor district, right? I know where that is”, Vinyl said.

“Do... Do you want to come with us?” Fluttershy asked as she got ready to follow Vinyl.

“No, I’d rather stay here for now...” The mare answered.

“Oh okay then... C-Can I ask what your name is?” Fluttershy asked. Vinyl began to walk away, Big Macintosh waited for Fluttershy.

“It’s Marie. You should really get going, don’t want to keep you”, she said with a smile.

“Okay. Thank you”, Fluttershy said as she rushed with Big Macintosh to catch up with Vinyl.

Vinyl lead them through a maze of streets. The buildings seemed to become more decayed the farther they walked. They were slowly entering the poor district of town. As they reached the forest brush, Fluttershy began to rush at the sight of Kiba.

“Kiba, have you seen Hige?” she asked, but Kiba had no response. He lay there and looked down the road.

“Maybe he’s in the bush...” Big Mac mentioned as he walked closer to the brush. Kiba got up and rushed to block Big Macintosh from the brush. He began to growl angrily. “What’s wrong with him?” He asked keeping his distance.

“He doesn't want you to go in the brush... Like he’s protecting something...” Fluttershy said as she observed Kiba’s body language.

“You think Hige is in there?” Vinyl asked. Big Macintosh stepped back and Kiba lay on the ground once again.

“Probably... I’m not sure Kiba would be this dedicated if he wasn’t.” Fluttershy pondered.

“Then what do we do!?” Big Macintosh asked in frustration.

“We wait... Let’s just trust that Hige know what he’s doing...” Vinyl said in a grim tone.

“Facing a past I never wanted...” Fluttershy mumurmed.

“What are you talking about?” Vinyl asked

“Oh, well... It was a long time ago. He mentioned that one thing he needed to do was face the past he never wanted... I guess this is what he meant...” Fluttershy explained.

“Let’s find some place to stay while we wait”, Big Macintosh said.

“You aren’t worried?” Vinyl asked with a hint of frustration in her voice.

“Hige knows what he’s doing”, Big Macintosh said with confidence.

“That’s what I’m afraid of...” Vinyl said in a hushed voice.

Chapter 14: Another Dark Secret

As Hige continued to walk, he came across a very familiar sight: his old tree house. It seemed as if it hadn't aged a day. As he approached it, the fireflies began to spread and covered the treehouse in light. Hige walked around the treehouse once before he faced the wooden planks he used to get up to the house with. He took a deep breath and placed a hoof on the first wooden plank. ‘I feel like I’m forgetting something...’ Hige thought as he continued to climb up. Once he began to put weight on the fifth plank, it twisted around and caused Hige to lose his balance. ‘Oh right... That plank was loose...’ as he lay on the ground, an uncontrollable need to laugh overcame him.

“That’s weird... I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time”, Hige said out loud.

“Yes. You should really grow a sense of humor”, A familiar voice said from inside the treehouse.

“And you should learn to be more mature”, Hige responded instinctively. ‘Wait... What did I just say?I feel like I know him...’

“Ha! Seems like you’re learning”, the voice said as a figure jumped out of the treehouse and landed next to Hige. Hige turned his head to meet the figure and was surprised to meet a younger version of himself, only difference being that this version had red glowing eyes. “So you finally decided to come back”, he said, his tone and facial expression becoming serious.

“I came here to see you?” Hige asked as he got up.

“You tell me, why have you come all this way?” it asked.

“I don’t know...” Hige responded.

“Are you sure? There must be something you want out of all of this, something you’ve been craving”, It persisted.

“I... You’re supposed to be my past, right? you can show me it?” Hige said as he slowly began to realize.

“Right on the nose”, It said with a smile as he placed a hoof on his nose.

“Show me...” Hige said.

“Show you what?” It asked. The tone made it seem as if he wanted Hige to say what he wanted out loud instead of it being an honest question.

“I need to know what happened that day, the day that Yowai tried to kill me. I know that there’s something missing.”

“Heh... Been waiting to hear that for years. Do you really want to know? Once I show you, your fate is sealed”, It said in a grim tone.

“I know, but tired of this... All of this... I need it to come to an end”, Hige answered.

“So be it, follow me”, It said as it flew up into the tree .“The visions you had about your past , the one you had the first few days in Ponyville, was true in the most part, but there are a few features that are were lies.” It took a deep breath as Hige landed on the opposite side of the treehouse “Yowai... He wasn’t as you remembered, he.. he... He was never your friend...”

“What...?” Hige said as he sat down.

“I’m sorry to say this, but he always despised you. He used you because you were stronger than him, and you could protect him. The only reason that you remembered otherwise is because you wanted to. When Fluttershy asked you if you had a best friend, you instantly thought of him, and since you didn't remember much from your past, you thought it was true.”

“Oh...” Hige said as he remembered the countless fights he had been in and how Yowai never did anything. He remembered the doubts he had about him so many years ago. He cringed at the pain in his head. “Why does it hurt...?”

“Don’t worry, it’ll be over soon”, It said. “Now then... There’s still something more.”

Hige took a deep breath and exhaled. “Okay... I’m ready.”

“The Ritual, the one that Yowai made for you. Do you remember the face you saw?”

“The face?” Hige thought. Hige cringed and placed his hooves on his eyes and the devilish face began to fill his mind, “No! Not him!” Hige screamed.

“So you remember him...” It said

“Disgusting...” Hige said in response with a face of anger while he placed a hoof at the side of his head to calm the pain.

“Hmm... Well that face, that’s the demon that drove Yowai to do what he did. He needed a host, and Yowai was a perfect candidate. His will was so easy to alter that he couldn’t resist. When you screamed at Yowai to stop, Yowai realized something. He realized you’ve done nothing except protect and help him, and he was about to kill you for nothing. For a split second, the will he had for not wanting to kill you was powerful enough to stop himself from going any further.

“The ritual was never made for sudden regret. Once you start there should be no turning back. The amount of energy it took for Yowai to get you back together was... He couldn’t do it alone, even if he sacrificed himself.”

“What do you mean?” Hige asked

“He made a deal... If the demon would agree in saving your life, Yowai would allow it to use his life energy to save both of your lives.”

“So where is the demon?”

“He’s inside of you. After saving you, he sealed himself inside of you.”

“The bandaged pony...” Hige murmured. “But... I thought a demon couldn’t possess you unless you let it”, Hige mentioned.

“Normally they can’t, but there’s nothing normal about this situation. He did not possess you, like I said, he sealed himself inside you. He wouldn’t have survived if he hadn’t.”

“Then... Those strange powers... That came from him?”

“Yes. You tend to let your emotion get the better of you, and you end up forcing some of his power out. Other times, he lends you the power.”

“Lend me the power?” Hige asked skeptically “Why?”

“You die, he dies too”, It answered. “He doesn't wanna die either.”

“Then why doesn't he leave?”

It gave a sigh. “He’s trapped. He can’t get out even if he wanted. The chains he was wearing was what bined him to you. He tried to get Fluttershy to take them off so he can leave.”

“Why does it sound like you’re on his side?”

“I’m not... I’m trying to help you understand. I’m not taking sides here”, It answered.

“Then what is your opinion?”

“Do you really want to know?” It asked.

“Yes I do.”

“He’s not completely evil. He’s kept his end of the bargain, and all that he’s done was him trying leave your body.”

“Why couldn’t he just ask?” Hige said with a hint of anger

“He has. All those dreams you’ve had was him trying to reach out to you.”

“No... No! That was him trying to scare me!” Hige protested. “Don't you try to twist it around!”

“My turn is done. I’ve showed you all that I can”, It said.

“But... what now?”

“Now? Now it’s your turn. Do you accept everything that has happened in your past? You need to understand, this is your only chance.”

“Fine... I understand”, Hige said. A familiar dark vortex appeared in the treehouse giving way to the dark alicorn. “What are you going to do?”

“We’re going to make you relive moments in your life you have long kept hidden”, the dark alicorn answered.

“How long will that take!?” Hige asked in shock.

“Don’t be an idiot, it’ll take about half an hour in the real world, but...” the red eyed clone began, but found it hard to finish his explanation

“The moments in your life have already happened, the good and the bad. Your body will be out of your control, and it may take a large strain on your sanity.” The alicorn finished

“Sanity? Never had one... Let’s get this over with”, Hige responded.

Hige took a deep breath as both the the younger version of him and the alicorn version of himself began to walk towards where he was sitting. As they reached Hige, they began to glow white and intensified as they got closer. The white light began to send Hige into various memories. Hige began for feel as if years of his life passed. Once he was done, he found himself in a deteriorated version of his treehouse. He laid there in shock as he realized only minutes have passed in real life.

‘I’m not dead?’ Hige thought as he looked around the room. ‘Good... Still need to take care of Them...’ Hige tried to get up, but found a sharp pain in his head making him dizzy and forcing him back to the ground. ‘Just... I’ll rest for awhile...’ Hige thought as he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

‘Time to leave...’ Hige thought after he woke up. He got up and found that most of the dizziness had passed. He jumped out the door frame and found that his wings weren’t at full strength. He kept his balance and landed on the ground with a loud thump. He retraced his steps and found the rush from where he had walked in from.

Big Macintosh, Vinyl, and Fluttershy turned in reaction to the movement they heard within the brush.

Chapter 15: The Chapter with No Name

Author's Note: Finally got this chapter out, big thanks to ZuperDerpy for inspiring me to get this chapter revised. Also, I'll be making a blogpost about a few things I've come to realize about this story. Other than that, here's chapter 15 (Submit a title if you want, I don't have a clue what to call it)

Kiba walked away from the bush and turned to see Hige forcing himself through it. Hige was smiling as he pushed his way through, it seemed he was finally free from it when suddenly one of his back limbs got snagged and caused him to fall. He felt a magical force lift him up, as he regained his balance he began to see a strange trio of ponies. The white unicorn’s horn glowed the same color as the aura that surrounded Hige’s. The other two were an earth pony and a pegasus who seemed relieved to see him.

“Thank you, miss”, Hige said with a smile.

“Miss?” Vinyl asked. “Why do you call me that?”

“I can’t really talk right now, need to see somepony”, Hige said quickly as he flapped his wings once and shot into the air.

Vinyl turned to Big Mac and Fluttershy with a puzzled look. “He seemed... off...” she said.

“His eyes... were they red...?” Fluttershy thought out loud.

Kiba ran off.

“Let’s find him first and figure out what happened to him”, Big Mac said in a rush as he followed Kiba, which he thought was following Hige.

Marie had finished her shift at the hospital and began to walk home. She walked with a vague expression in her eyes, the previous events had taken their toll on her mood. ‘It must have been a prank... He can’t be alive...’. Hige carefully landed behind Marie, making an effort not to be detected. They both walked in silence, Hige cleared his throat. Marie moved out of the way, thinking that was what the sound meant.

“Sorry”, she said as she turned and bowed her head slightly. She opened her eyes and was shocked at the image she saw. “You...”

“Long time no see, huh?” Hige said with a smile.

“You...” She extended her hoof and placed it at the side of his face. “You’re real...” she said as tears began to form.

“Yep yep! Wanted to say thank you... for everything you did”, Hige said with a slight smile. “At the hospital...”

“I can’t believe it...” She said as she wrapped her arm around him. “I thought you died... You grew up so fast.”

“I am dead...” Hige said in a grim voice.

“W-what?” Marie asked in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“It’s too hard to explain, I’m not gonna be here for much longer...” He explained as he hugged Marie back.

“What?” She asked as she looked him in the face. Hige’s red eyes began to fade into it’s normal green color. “Your eyes... That’s how you stayed alive?”

“It’s a little more complicated than that, but yes.”

“I... I understand. I’m happy to see you’re alive...” she said beginning to understand Hige’s situation.

“I’m sorry, but I need to go. I don’t have much time”, Hige said as he broke off the hug. His pupils becoming slits.

“Oh okay, goodbye”, she said in a sad tone. “Take care of yourself.”

Hige’s expression changed as he walked along the trail. Kiba caught wind of Hige and picked up his pace, once he was able to see Hige, he didn't think twice in jumping on top of him.

“Get the hell off of me you fleabag!” Hige exclaimed as he shook off Kiba. Kiba got up and circled Hige with a strange look, he began to growl. “What the hell do you want!?”

“Hige!” Big Mac called out.

“You, is this your dog!?” Hige screamed. “Get him the hell away from me or I’ll-” Hige’s head snapped in Big Mac’s direction. He had a strange smile. Hige flapped his wings once. A dust cloud arose from the ground concealing Hige. Once the cloud disappeared, Hige was gone. “Another one...” Hige said, his voice now behind Big Mac.

“What the-” Big Mac tried to say, but couldn't finish once Hige slammed his hoof at back of Big Mac’s neck. Big Mac tried to get back up, but found that it was harder than he thought. Hige placed a hoof on Big Mac’s back, ending any progress he had made in trying to get up.

“You think you can just walk around with all that power? You think you have a right to be better than anypony else?! I’m here to put a sto-” Hige suddenly stopped talking. His eyes becoming it’s normal dark green color “Stop!” Hige screamed. His eyes turned a dark red color, but his pupils remained round. “Yeah, ya big bully, stop beating ponies up!” The pupils became slits. “Why the hell should I!?” Hige screamed as if each change in eye meant a change in persona.

Hige became silent. His eyes continuously changing in an even faster pace until they finally stopped in its normal dark green color.

“Are you okay?” Hige asked in a worried tone as he tried to help Big Mac up.

“I’m gettin’ pretty tired of getting beat up by you.” He said jokingly trying to lighten the mood.

“Sorry... Not feeling like myself right now...” Hige said in a sad tone.

“Gonna explain what happened in the forest?”

“Not yet... Maybe back in Ponyville... sorry.”

“I understand”, Big Mac said as he turned his head. “They’re coming.”

Vinyl and Fluttershy could be seen running at them from a distance.

“We... Lost you two...” Vinyl said between breaths. Fluttershy began observing Hige. “What’s wrong with Kiba?” Vinyl asked as she looked at Kiba standing away from Hige.

“Who knows, maybe he’s in another one of his moods...” Hige said trying to avoid suspicion.

“Do you know a nurse in the nearby hospital? Her name is Marie”, Vinyl asked.

The name caused a familiar dizziness in Hige’s head. He turned his head away to avoid them seeing his eyes changing.

“You okay?” Vinyl asked in a worried tone.

“Fine... Just a little dizzy...” Hige was able to say. “Can... Can I borrow your sunglasses?” Hige asked.

“Sure...?” Vinyl said as she took off her glasses and passed them to Hige. Hige put them on and turned to them.

“Okay, better now”, Hige said.

“So, do you know Marie?”

“Yep. From a long time ago, why?” Hige said in a happy tone.

“... She said you were supposed to die.”

“Yeah, Marie told me.”

“He kept you alive?” Vinyl asked

“Yep”, Hige responded.

“What are you talking about?” Fluttershy asked, breaking the silence she had kept since they were all reunited.

‘No... I can’t tell her...” Hige thought to himself.

‘Why not?’ A younger voice asked ‘She was okay with everything else.’

‘This is different...’ Hige added.

‘Stop whining. You don’t need her’, a deep voice said.

‘Oh you shut up. You have issues’, the younger voice replied. ‘By the way, Hige, they’re talking to you.’

Hige began to notice a white hoof being waved in front of his face. Hige snapped back into reality.

“What?” Hige asked suddenly.

“What are all of you talking about!?” Fluttershy asked in frustration. “I don’t understand... Sorry for screaming...” She said feeling embarrassed about her sudden outburst.

There was a moment of silence. Big Mac and Vinyl shared a troubled look while Hige just fought off the voices in his head.

“I... I’ll tell you in the carriage... Just... Please, I need some time....” Hige said in a sad, desperate voice.

“But...” She tried to respond, but couldn’t find the will to push the broken stallion. “Okay...”

Hige took a deep breath and made a weak attempt at a smile. After a few minutes passed, Vinyl decided it was time to lead the group to the nearby hotel where they were going to spend the night. The four of them took two separate rooms. Fluttershy and Vinyl in one room; Big Mac, Hige and Kiba in the other. During the walk to the Hotel, Kiba once again warmed up to Hige, but kept a small distance between Hige and himself. Once they reached the Hotel and got into their rooms, everypony took their turns in the showers. Vinyl and Big Mac where the first to take showers in their respective rooms.

Big Mac walked out of the bathroom. He looked over at Hige, who seemed fixated at staring at the roof. He walked over to Hige and found his eyes rapidly changing. Not knowing what to do, Big Mac slapped Hige across the face. Hige was sent back to reality with a surprised look on his face.

“...You enjoyed that didn't you?” Hige asked as he shook his head.

“Maybe a little...” he answered with a grin, “go take a shower, the water’s boilin’”

Hige rolled out of bed and walked over to the bathroom. He turned the water on and lay in the bathtub. His head began to fill with thoughts, most of which were not his. As the thoughts began to talk about events that were not in Hige’s memory, he felt himself sent back and reliving it. Constantly gaining new memories that didn’t make sense. Memories taken from such a distant point in time, that he couldn’t connect them.

As another memory began to enter his mind, he found himself at a loss of breath. He quickly realized he was about to drown. Hige then forced his head out of the water and took a deep breath. He put his head underwater one more time before he got out of the tub. He shook the excess water off of his head and looked at the bathroom mirror. The thoughts began to flow once again, Hige slammed his head against the wall beside him in an attempt to stop the thoughts.

“Just shut up...” Hige murmured.

“You okay in there? I heard a slam”, Big Mac asked from outside the door.

“Fine... I just tripped”, Hige answered. Big Mac’s hoofsteps walked away from the door and then faded.

For a few seconds it seemed as if the memories had stopped, but the feeling didn't last long. Another memory began to take shape, but was distorted as Hige slammed his head against the mirror causing the glass to shatter. The memory distorted, but continued to take shape. Again he slammed his head, causing the memory to distort even further. Again and again Hige slammed his head against the mirror, hoping it would end the memories; stop him from reliving things that made no sense.

Each time one of the memories ended, Hige found himself back in reality, but he soon found out that the more it happened, the longer it took him to remember his situation. He found himself lost in a world he had no recollection of, as he forgot everything about himself. He looked at the shattered mirror and saw that in between the cracks he could see the images of the dark alicorn and the younger version of himself. They looked at him with a sad and worried look.

“We can’t stop it...” the alicorn told him, “It’s out of our control...”

The bathroom door slammed open, Big Mac had bucked it, breaking the locks. He looked at Hige worriedly. At that very moment, Hige could feel a drop of blood dripping off his chin. What sounded like a metallic chain falling against the floor sounded in Hige’s head. As he looked back at the mirror, he could see two chains wrapping themselves around both the alicorn and the younger version of Hige and dragging them out of sight; taking the memories with them.

Big Mac quickly walked in and looked at the wound on Hige’s head. Big Mac said something before he helped Hige out of the room, but Hige couldn’t hear it. He was more distracted by the bandaged beast taking form in the mirror. He looked at Hige and whispered: “It won’t last forever...” Hige smiled, the memories had finally stopped.

The next half hour passed by in a blur. Big Mac placed Hige on the bed and left the room. When he came back, he was accompanied by Vinyl and Fluttershy. Fluttershy rushed in and looked at the wound. She looked back and said something, Vinyl and Big Mac began to search the room soon after. Vinyl walked back to Fluttershy with a small box marked with a red cross floating next to her, a light blue glow emanating around it. She placed and opened the box next to Fluttershy. At this point, Hige blacked out. When he woke up, he found that a bandage had been placed on his head.

Hige began to remember what had happened. The wound, as he remembered, wasn’t that bad and couldn’t be blamed for a strange pain he was feeling somewhere in his head. The pulsed every few seconds sending a wave of agony all throughout his head. Hige got off the bed while Big Mac was sleeping and walked out the door.

‘Why does my head hurt so much?’ Hige thought as he rested his weight on a wall trying to let some of the pain subside.

‘Because you’re dying.’ A voice responded inside Hige’s head. Hige could recognize it as the bandaged pony.

‘... What do you want?’ Hige asked with a hint of frustration.

‘I want a deal. One where both of us can agree...’ It said simply.

‘And why should I trust you? You almost killed Big Mac back at the library.’ Hige asked, his anger growing.

‘Hey, don’t blame me!’ It quickly responded. ‘Yes, those were my powers, but I wasn’t in control. It was that alicorn clone of yours!’

‘What?’

‘The atmosphere drew him out. Once you snapped, his will took over. He doesn't like other rogue demons, so Big Mac was his first target.’

‘But he saved Fluttershy from you!’ Hige replied.

‘No, he didn't. The only reason he did that was because I was trying to break out. I was never even gonna hurt her...’

‘But... Then why did he lead her to me?’

‘Well... I can’t be sure, but... Fluttershy had her mind set on finding you. She wasn’t gonna leave without seeing you and if he tried to stop her, he’d risk angering you.’

‘Then why did you try to attack her?’

‘I wasn’t going to hurt her!’ he persisted. ‘I just wanted to leave. The least I would do is scare her...’

‘So you’re telling me that the alicorn is evil?’ Hige asked.

‘No... well not completely. He’s a form of you taken from a point in time where you weren’t exactly “yourself”. It’s not his fault he acts that way.’ It explained.

‘And where are they now?’ Hige asked.

‘Held back. You can’t see or hear them, and the memories won’t continue to appear.’

‘For how long?’ Hige asked.

‘Two week at best... Just in time for the Grand Galloping Gala’

‘What does that have to do with anything?’

‘It’s called making an exit’, It said with a faint chuckle.

‘And Yowai? What about him?’

‘It... He... It wasn’t my fault. I gave him what he wanted...’

‘You tried to kill me!’

‘No, HE did. I just gave him the opportunity.’

‘And now you’re on my side?’ Hige asked.

‘I’m a demon. I’m not supposed to think for myself, I’m just supposed to follow the will of my host.’

‘And Big Mac has one too?’

‘Yes. A surprisingly powerful one, but he seems to hold it back... not sure why...’

‘What about Vinyl?’

‘If you’re asking if she has one too, the answer is no. She’s one of the rare series of ponies that have a faint connection to the spiritual plane and have the natural ability to sense us.’

‘I’ve hated you for so long... I despised you... But now... I don’t know what to think... For some reason, I don’t care. Let’s just start over and see where it goes from there. If you’re a part of me, then I better just deal with it...’

‘Agreed.’

‘But I don’t even know your name.’

‘I don’t have one... never needed one...’

‘Then think of one.’

‘... Give me some time, I’ll think of one.’

‘Okay then... Can you do anything about the pain?’ Hige asked. He took the pulsing pain stop as a response. ‘Thanks...’

Hige pushed himself off the wall and began to walk. The series of events that had transpired continued to re-run in his head. So many questions had been made and most of them answered. He’s just discovered part of his life that had been completely hidden from him, but most of all he found himself without hate for the demon who had put him in this situation. He continued to walk into the lobby of the hotel and out the doors. He looked around the area and walked the streets. The silence and the cold air made the shock of the event settle, if only for a while.

Hige began to flap his wings and flew up to the nearest cloud. He felt the fatigue take over and found it hard to stay awake while lying on the small cloud. He soon fell into a deep sleep.

‘Hige...’ A voice rang out in Hige’s head; it didn’t wake him. ‘Hige... Wake up!’ it screamed. Hige was startled awake.

‘What?’ Hige asked, not opening his eyes.

‘You need to get off this cloud.’ It said.

‘Why?’ Hige whined.

‘Because clouds move.’ It answered simply.

Hige opened his eyes and was shocked when he found himself surrounded by landmarks that were unfamiliar to him.

‘Wait, where’s the town?’ Hige asked in shock.

‘Clouds move, you moved with the cloud. The answer must be obvious.’ It answered.

‘But do you know where the town is?’ Hige asked

‘Left from where you’re looking at right now.’ It said.

Hige jumped off the cloud and headed in the direction the demon had suggested. Soon enough, the image of the town became visible. Hige sped up and tried to find the hotel they were in. Once he found it, Hige dived in for a rough landing. Hige walked up to the door, but before he could touch it, the door opened and behind it was Fluttershy. They both shared an awkward look.

“Hi...” Hige said with a faint smile in an attempt to break the silence.

“We were going to go look for you, I need to check your bandages...” she replied with a faint smile.

“Okay then.” Hige said as he followed Fluttershy into the closest room. Hige stood near the door while Fluttershy looked for a pair of scissors and cut of the bandages over Hige’s head. The bandages fell and a look of shock appeared on her face.

“Uh, is everything okay?” Hige asked wondering what she was seeing.

She shook the expression of her face and grabbed the bandages. “Nothing, don’t worry”, she said as she pulled off the remaining the bandages and dropped them in the closets trash can.

Hige placed a hoof on his forehead to find what had surprised her, but he didn't find anything and that surprised him. The wound was completely healed, not even a mark left from what he could feel. ‘There should at least be some sort of mark...right?’ Hige pondered.

“Time to go. The Carriage will be getting here at any minute.” Vinyl said as she walked inside the room. “We'll be riding a Pegasus Carriage, we’ll reach Ponyville in no time at all.” She added.

“Okay.” Hige answered waiting for Fluttershy. Vinyl walked out of the room.

‘Are you going to tell her?’ The familiar voice rang in Hige’s head.

‘Now?’ Hige asked.

‘No, but are you going to?’ It rephrased.

‘Well... yeah. I promised her didn't I?’ Hige answered.

‘But you’re also afraid of the reaction. You know that Big Mac and Vinyl will accept you considering that they already know about me, but you’re not sure how Fluttershy will react.’ It said.

‘Are you telling me not to tell her?’ Hige asked.

‘No, just trying to help you.’

‘And how are you doing that?’

‘By helping you understand why you shouldn’t be afraid, but you interrupted me.’

‘Then continue.’

‘You’re afraid that she is going to be afraid of you because of it, but she’s already seen it. You remember when you woke up and found Fluttershy and the alicorn? She had already met me, and him. Yes, she seemed shocked at the fight we had, but even after that, she still tried to find you. For as long as I lived, and I’ve lived a very long time, I know love when I see it.’

The last part made Hige blush and smile like an idiot. “I can’t believe I’m actually getting along with you”, Hige said out loud.

“Who are you talking with?” Fluttershy asked with a puzzled look

“I’ll explain it in the carriage. It’s gonna take a while”, Hige said with a smile.

“Oh, okay”, she said, still keeping the same expression.

“Let’s go!” Hige said excitedly. “No time to waste!”

They walked out of the hotel and made their way to the same stop that the other carriage had left them at. Once they looked up, they could see the carriage flying in the distance. Strange thing was, Kiba was nowhere to be seen. The carriage landed and Hige began to look around. Big Mac mentioned he took off in the morning with Hige’s saddlebags, but thought Hige would know where he went. As soon as panic began to set in, Kiba was seen running towards the group, saddlebags in mouth.

“You had me worried there for a second.” Hige said as he grabbed his saddlebag. ‘Seems heavier.’ Hige thought. Hige looked at Kiba in the eyes and confirmed it, there was something new in the saddlebag. ‘I should not open it just yet...’.

The group walked in the carriage and closed the door.

‘Take a deep breath...’ The voice said. Hige took a deep breath.

‘Tell them everything...’