Chapter Nine: Pinkie vs Eris Part 2

It doesn’t make it easier for Eris to traverse the bathroom considering the steam filling up the area, but her claws eventually manage to wrap around the curtain separating her from the pink pony just beyond it. It isn’t until she’s about to swipe it away does she hear music in the background start to build up.

“What’s with the ominous music?” she whispers before shaking her head, “Nah it’s nothing, I’m probably hearing things.” With a short chuckle she swipes open the curtains. “I told you that I’d find yo—” She grits her teeth and folds her ears against her head when Pinkie starts to scream. The music has not only become deafening, but incredibly high pitched as well.

Pinkie is seen standing on her hind hooves in the tub; a shower cap covers her mane and tail from the steaming hot water flowing rapidly from the faucet head. As soon as the two make eye contact Pinkie covers her crotch with her hooves and starts screaming.

“For the love of Celestia, stop that!” Eris shouts, shutting her eyes tightly as she does so. Right when she loses sight of Pinkie her screaming stops. When Eris opens them again she finds a soaked tub, minus the pony that was standing in it a second before. Her ears flick with she hears the pitter patter of hooves, and the slamming of a door. She tricked me!

Eris takes off like a bullet after her, but when she moves through the door again she finds no trace of the party pony anywhere. She cranes her neck to look down both sides of the hallway to no avail.

“How does she move that fast?” she asks aloud. She continues to look from side to side while contemplating her next move. She never seems to notice the pink curly tail only a few inches above her. Pinkie’s currently balancing on the doorframe with her back against the wall. She eyes the one below her, waiting for the right moment to escape. But, what she feels is a better idea comes to mind.

Even with Eris helping him out, she still sees Anon as something far below her. Pinkie believes that she needs a little lesson in humility. If Eris thinks she’s going to get anywhere with you, she has to see you as an equal.

As Pinkie reaches into her mane, the sound of clutter rustling can be heard. Eventually, she produces what looks to be a black long sleeved shirt, a pair of night vision goggles, and a black ski mask. When she dresses up in her outfit, she quickly hides behind the curtains of a nearby window. She seems to have trouble stifling her giggles, and those do not go unnoticed by Eris.

“I can hear that, and I will find you.” She takes this time to look along the ceiling.

“Eris,” Pinkie calls. She cups her hooves around her muzzle to throw off her voice. Eris turns to look down the end of one of the hallways. “You’ve been a very bad girl.” Her taunting tone sounds as though it’s coming from the opposite end. The draconequus turns to what she thinks is the source to find nothing.

“Okay Pinkie, I get it, you can come out now.” Eris smirks, a small purple flame sparks to life in the palm of her gryphon hand. “Don’t worry. I only want to play a little game with you.”

“Oh, you mean like the ones you played with Anonymous? No thank you, I wanna play a different game.” Pinkie’s cheerful voice grates on Eris’ nerves, causing her to grind her teeth. “You know, you could have just tried to be his friend, but instead you forced him into something he didn’t want to do.” Eris chuckles while shaking her head.

“That’s not gonna work on me, Pinkie. Besides, he’ll come around.” Her smile drops slightly when the pink mare responds.

“I don’t know you might have to use your magic. No offense, but you’re not gonna get him with the way you are. Maybe if you tried being nicer,” Pinkie trails off.

Eris scoffs, “So fixing his eyes isn’t? Someone whose mean would have just left them the way they were.”

Pinkie’s quick to counter her statement. “Just because you do nice things doesn’t mean you’re a nice pony. Besides, you only did that since you like him. If you didn’t, I don’t think you would.”

“I don’t need to be a good anything to care about him.”

“Well you have a bad way of showing it. You’re the reason why he got hurt at all.”

“Hey I wanted to do something fun.”

“And he didn’t right?”

“Exactly, so I decided to persuade him.”

“By making him do something he said no to?”

“I apologized for what happened and made up for it. Pinkie, seriously I don’t know where you’re trying to go with this.”

“How did you make up for it Eris?”

“With magic of course!”

“There, there it is again! Don’t tell me you can’t see it.”

“See what? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Yes you do, you just said magic.” Eris shakes her head again.

“What does me saying that have to do with any of this?” Her ears twitch when she picks up the sound of Pinkie sighing. Instead of brushing this off though, it starts to fester. To her, it was like the party pony saw her as someone being too stupid to figure out a simple thing.

“You don’t know how to interact with anyone at all, especially Anon. All you do is use spells to try and make everything work. If there’s an argument or if someone doesn’t want to do something you’ll use that before anything. You never try to talk things out!” Eris seemingly dismisses her explanation.

“Why would I do that if I have something to make it easier on me?” Despite her smile and nonchalant attitude, what’s happening inside doesn’t reflect that. Slowly but surely her lips start their decent.

“Because that makes it look like you see everyone below you.”

“That’s because they are. And when I get bored, I find something else to play with.” Eris grits her teeth after she finishes her bitter line. A surprising silence falls between the two for a few moments as her words sink in.

“I’m not surprised you feel that way, not at all. I guess that means you’ll throw Anon away when you get bored with him too, like he’s an old toy.” This is the first time Eris can’t seem to answer back. The words she wants to say are caught in the back of her throat.

“B-But I—“ Is all she can manage before Pinkie picks up where she left off.

“You made him be your coltfriend, but you don’t really care about his feelings. You showed him that on Hearts and Hooves Day and yesterday. If you did, there’s no way you’d make him go through with that agreement.” The search for Pinkie continues, this time Eris flies down one of the ends in hopes of finding her. The pony she’s looking for follows close behind, she’s sure to keep out of sight.

“You’re selfish Eris, really really selfish. You think the world revolves around you; if I could do what you can, I’d think the same thing.” Eris shows no signs of holding back her annoyance now. Her talons and claws are balled up into shaking fists of rage. And, the longer Pinkie goes on, the more her happy, bubbly attitude starts to fade.

“I bet its nice having everything given to you on a silver platter huh? You don’t need to work for anything. Just a quick snap and that’s it right? It doesn’t matter what happens as long as you get what you want. I’m not surprised at how spoiled you are.”

“Shut your mouth!” Eris shouts while throwing the flame she’s kept in her talons. Since she has no real target, the fireball ends up hitting one of the many banners hanging on the wall. Her spell is quick to burn away the lavish fabric until only burnt pieces of cloth remains.

“And the worst part about it is that poor Anon gets to experience it all. He shouldn’t be around somepony like you. It’s not like you care about what happens to him, you’ve done a good job at making Anon’s life miserable so far. You made Anon an outcast in Manehattan.” Eris visibly flinches at Pinkie’s words.

“He’s not an outca—“ Pinkie interrupts her.

“Oh wait, your magic made everything better. That’d be horrible if those ponies were allowed to remember huh?”

“I did that so Anon wouldn’t have to worry about it!” She screams.

“That’s what you tell yourself at least. But, I think the real reason is because if you didn’t, things would get a little too complicated for you.”

“Shut up!” Eris fires off another fire spell, the flames expand. This time, the entire frame of a window is reduced to rubble when her spell makes contact. Pinkie nearly has a heart attack from the draconequus’ display. Had she have chosen her window, she’d have been toast. The air becomes thick as smoke rises from the damage done.

“You shoved yourself back into his life when he’s trying to adjust. You risked him getting hurt because you wanted to do something. You forced him to cater to your wants and needs, and then you shackled him into a one-sided relationship!”

“Anon could have said no!” Eris growls through clenched teeth.

“And then what would’ve happened?” Pinkie asks.

“You know the answer to that already. I told you before this whole thing started.” Pinkie scoffs at her reply.

“Silly me for thinking it’d be different. And ponies call me childish.” As Eris readies another spell, Pinkie makes mention of what Eris’ anger has done, “That reminds me, I wonder what Celestia is going to think when she sees that you messed up her hallway.” The magic almost instantly dissipates, and Eris’ eyes widen at the mess she’s made.

She tries to play it off anyway, “Oh well, I’ll just use a spell and it’ll be good as new.” She manages to keep a straight face, but inside she’s trying her hardest to keep from outwardly panicking. When her talons begin to glow Pinkie starts backing up.

“If that’s how you always act when you get angry, I hope Anon never makes you mad. But I guess its okay since you can fix him like that window right? Go ahead.” When Eris’s magic takes hold of the bits of it, and when it starts to reform both notice at how it’s nothing like how it was. The frame is lopsided and the broken glass juts out from random places.

“Unless you can’t, it makes sense. You probably don’t know how it was before you blew it up do you? I bet Discord had to come behind you and clean up whatever it was you broke.” Pinkie smiles from her realization, and the anxious Eris starts to shiver.

“I believe it since he’s been using his magic way longer than you have.” The Draconequus visibly flinches yet again from her words, “I wonder, does that mean the only reason you were able to fix Anon’s eyes was because you know how they work?” As much as Eris’ pride won’t let her admit it, Pinkie is right. Whenever she wasn’t messing around, or trying to look up perverse videos, she’d be looking through books. She’d been planning this visit to Equestria for a while, and she wanted to be able to help you in case anything went wrong.

The words coming from Pinkie are leaving their mark upon her. The more she speaks the more Eris’ pride as what she is begins to be affected. Whether it’s intentional or not, Eris no longer feels anger towards the party pony. In fact, shocked would be a better way to describe what she’s experiencing now.

For too long Eris underestimated her, thinking Pinkie was nothing. Just an annoyance that could be tolerated, but she was wrong, dead wrong. She had more than that happy, bubbly part of her personality that much was certain. When it came to those she cared about, she dropped that giddy attitude and got serious…

“Discord probably had you memorize a human anatomy book on Earth. If you knew anything about carpentry you could probably make that window as good as new. Though, there is something I know you’re great at without having to study: mind control.”

Eris shows her frustration through growling, “And where are you going with that? What else can you possibly have to say?”

“I bet you’ll do that to Anon.” Pinkie barely has the words out when Eris shouts out her response.

“I’d never use that magic on him, ever!”

“Never? Not once? Well, I bet the thought has crossed your mind once or twice. We know that Anon doesn’t lie down and accept whatever life throws at him. Even though he’s forced into this with you, that doesn’t mean he’s going to do everything you say. He has his own voice, opinions, and thoughts.”

“I understand that Pinkie.”

“And I’m guessing his opinion of you, and the situation he’s in is pretty poor, but he’s stuck with you anyway. Anon is going along with it because he doesn’t want to see anypony get hurt because of your selfishness. If you really cared about him or making friends you wouldn’t have done this in the first place.”

Eris whimpers and her ears press against the sides of her head, trying to block out the pony’s words.

“I wonder how long it’s going to be before you get tired of him being miserable and make him be happy. And even if you don’t mess with his head I’m sure you’ll mess with ours. I know that’s what you’re going to do as soon as you catch me. You don’t like what I did, so I bet you’ll make me not like Anon the way I do won’t you?”

“When I’m out of the way, I bet you’ll do the same thing to his friends until all that’s left is you and you alone.” Eris slowly makes her way over to one of the walls, as soon as she puts her back to it, she slides down until she’s sitting, using the wall as her support. The weight of Pinkie’s speech lies heavy on her mind.

“But, I’m not scared of you, Eris. I’m going to stick around no matter what. And even if Anon decides not to be with me I’ll make sure he’s safe from you, because he’s still my friend. As long as I’m close by you won’t be able to do something horrible to him.”

“I can’t believe you think I’d do anything like that, to him or anypony else. I’m serious about wanting to change.” Her once confident voice has lost most of its volume, and even she doesn’t seem to believe the words coming out of her own mouth.

“Do you think that makes any of us feel better? Everyone thinks that’s a lie. It wouldn’t be the first time. We know about what you did in Manehattan and all those mean things you did with your dad and sister.”

Eris’ head hangs low. With a few words and phrases, Pinkie was not only able to figure out how Eris’ power worked, but she managed to figure out what she’d plan if things did end up going south. If you reacted negatively, she was planning on making sure you wouldn’t tell a soul about it.

When those three days of your captivity were up, you would have gone through what she has already done to Lyra. Eris would do anything to make sure you didn’t see her as a monster, even if that meant getting rid of your will. It’s in that moment a realization comes to her mind.

Pinkie is right, absolutely right. Eris really is a monster. In her eyes what she does is something common. She believed herself to be on top, so nothing else mattered. But, maybe that isn’t the right way to see things.

These ponies have done nothing to her, and yet she wouldn’t hesitate to put them in precarious situations just to get a cheap laugh. That’s when she recalls the moments in Manehattan, and the off-handed lie she told you.

To say she did the same thing her father did would be fairly accurate. But, Eris was quite different from her father in how she went about causing chaos. Those ponies in that city were hurt more often than not...

The hospitals were always full of new unfortunate victims that just so happened to get trampled, or crushed under something. The only reason why the hospitals themselves remained intact was so that when their patients were released, they’d get to experience Eris’ twisted version of fun.

All of her machinations were child’s play to make. Even grabbing Pinkie and bend her will to Eris’ would be the same if she could catch her. After that, systematically converting the others would be a piece of cake.

But, there’s no guarantee that even after all of that, Anon would stay with her. She would slip up eventually, it’s in her nature to be so cocky that she’d let loose information better left a secret. Then, she’d have to do to Anon what she’d do to his friends.

And then, the things that attracted her to you in the first place would be gone. That’s when the panic starts to set in for the draconequus. You being twisted and corrupted into a shell of your former self would be the least of her worries. With all those ponies being made into slaves, it wouldn’t go unnoticed.

Even if she just converted Pinkie, there’s no telling if Eris could keep Pinkie’s personality exactly the same. It’d be lucky for her if Lyra’s personality remained the same. Twilight and her other friends would find out something’s wrong sooner rather than later. When they do, they know exactly who to confront.

“Stop,” Eris says softly.

“I don’t believe a word you say, and neither does he, and everypony, including Anon, will remember you as the monster you are.” As soon as Pinkie’s words leave her maw, Eris fully realizes the severity of the actions she plans on taking.

When it comes to something like taking over Equestria, she can’t have you too. You’ve chosen Equestria over her already a month ago, what would stop you from doing the same again? Even if Eris managed to keep things under wraps until the most opportune moment, you wouldn’t choose her.

Making you into a slave isn’t an option. If she did, then she’d definitely grow bored of you. But, there’s no way she’d be able to keep her plans a secret from you for too long. Celestia would find out either through you or one of your friends, and then everything would come crashing down.

When Celestia came to pay the two of you a visit, it made Eris’ realize she wouldn’t stand a chance against her. Discord was the one who stole their magic and put them on the moon, not Eris. Even when the two were in a weakened state she had doubts about winning against either of them. So, she couldn’t properly gauge just how much power they had.

With the sun princess being back in peak condition, Eris was able to really feel the latent energies at her disposal. Eris was bluffing when she said she’d cause as much chaos as possible before being stopped. If Celestia really wanted to, she could beat Eris in an instant.

The draconequus knew that all too well, and she was sure Celestia did too. If anything she could possibly take on Luna in a fair fight, but there’s no way she’d stop the one who moved the sun or both sisters together. Nothing is in her favor if she went through with her plans. Unless…

If she were to be around either princess while they were weak, she could probably get to Celestia or Luna and make a slave of them. With one or both in her claws she could take over the country, taking over the world could even happen.

But that’d take a large amount of planning, and with only the changelings causing a ruckus every so often in random places, she had nothing to go with. Unless they did something drastic like attacking Canterlot, Eris would have to abandon her plans, at least for now. That leaves her with the forced relationship she’s in with you.

She already knows Pinkie is right when it comes to the draconequus, but, she also knows that the party pony can be quiet gullible. Sure she’s saying all these hurtful, yet true things, but if Eris made it seem like she was looking to change and make up for what she’s done, maybe Pinkie would drop her guard and give Eris a chance.

She might even help her out if Eris sounds really convincing. Besides, she could really use a few lessons in friendship, even if it’s from a source that’s infuriating and bubblegum pink in color. While admitting that she has weaknesses infuriates her to no end, she really doesn’t know a single thing when it comes to seeing something as an equal. Seeing something as a friend seems even more farfetched.

On the plus side, if Pinkie does help her, maybe she can convince her friends too. That leads to convincing more ponies, and eventually she’ll gain the trust of average ponies everywhere. Maybe even Celestia will trust her after a while. Eris would be smiling right now if she could. But, she’s gotta make Pinkie think her words hit her right at home.

With the punishment of being turned to stone again, the feeling of helplessness and psychosis inducing imprisonment rearing its ugly head, tears start to form in Eris’ eyes. The bawling doesn’t start yet, but the crocodile tears are quite clear. Pinkie’s eyes widen when she sees Eris wipe her eyes.

The party pony quickly picks up on Eris’ change in posture and overall mood. Admittedly, this catches her off guard. She has no idea how to react to something like this, she’s never made anyone cry in her life. Seeing someone hurt over something she’s done, even if it is a villain, doesn’t sit well with Pinkie.

Her ears flatten and her once happy attitude disappears. Judging by her posture and off to the side look, she feels guilty for what she’s done. Things only get worse when Eris starts to speak.

“You’re *hic* right Pinkie,” Eris manages, “I really am a monster!” As she continues to act, real tears start to form in Pinkie’s eyes. It’s tugging on her heart strings seeing Eris like this. “I’m trying to get better I really am, but I only make things worse.”

“Eris,” Pinkie stars, she’s immediately cut off by a rather loud sob escaping her.

“I did something so s-selfish to Anon and I bet he h-hates me too, just like all of you, I’ve done so many horrible things and I want to make up for it.” She curls up into a ball, “But it’s w-way too late, I can’t even make Anon happy, how am I s-supposed to get anypony else to like m-me?”

“I’ve never h-had a friend before. I don’t know what to do! I-I don’t w-want to get turned into stone again!” It’s here Eris can no longer get a word out without being forced to choke down her sobs.

Pinkie’s lower lip starts to quiver at the pathetic sight in front of her. The tears now flow from her eyes, same as Eris. With a low sigh, she steps out from behind her hiding spot.

“Eris,” Pinkie says softly while approaching Eris, “I’m sorry, please don’t cry.” She gets no response from her. Instead, it’s as if she gets louder. Though, when she’s no more than a few feet away, the draconequus’ sobbing finally seems to lower in volume.

“W-what,” she wipes her eyes, giving Pinkie her full attention.

“I didn’t know you were serious.” She takes a seat in front of her.

Eris nods, “I am, I don’t want everyone to lump me together with my dad. I want to make things right, but I’ve never tried to do something like that before,” she sniffles before adding, “if only I had someone who could help me. But, who would waste their time? You and your friends would be better off turning me into stone.” Eris turns her attention to the floor.

“But that’s not true!” Pinkie shouts, startling Eris. “Doing that won’t solve anything.” Using her hoof, she lifts Eris’ chin up so she can look into her eyes. “And if you really want to change, I’ll help you.”

“You will?” Eris asks, she shows a hopeful smile that Pinkie returns.

“I’ll make you into the friendliest draconequus in Equestria, it’s a Pinkie Promise. Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!” When Pinkie finishes her little ritual, she stands upon her hind hooves and brings Eris into a hug.

“Thank you,” Eris sighs, trying to hold back another wave of tears, “thank you so much for giving me a chance.” She wraps her claws around the pony in an embrace. The two hold each other for a few moments, and while Pinkie is beaming with joy.

Heh, what a sucker…

“Now we just need to talk to Princess Celestia!”

Fuck my life…

"And we gotta talk about this deal you have with Anon."

You've gotta be kidding me...

Author's Note

So, what's gonna happen to Eris and Pinkie?
Will the party pony really make a breakthrough, or will Eris strike when the moment is right?
Will Anon be caught in the mix?

Find out in the next update.