The Ballad of Royal Blue

Chapters

I walk in the rain, in the rain
Someday we'll find it...
How about a band aid?
I see a red door and I want it painted black
Got a griffon on my back, it's a griffon attack!
Setting his concerns aside, Royal tells all at Twilight's treehouse
Royal Pains
The Rescue Mission
There's something about Royal
Say it ain't so, Royal!
The invasion begins
Royal's realization
The battle begins
Daylight's alright for fighting
Escape to Swelter Canyon
Royal vs Paulie; the last laugh
Paulie's folly
A hero's return
Humble Beginnings
A Swingin' Party
A rendezvous with the princess, and a return to agony

I walk in the rain, in the rain

Royal woke up several hours later. His prediction of pain had been right on the money. He was sore, especially in his neck. Thoughts of he and Derpy crashing into the wall of Applejack's barn came back to him. However, the good thoughts far outweighed the bad. Thinking back, he realized he had learned a lot in just one night. Twilight told him about her love of literature; Applejack and Apple Bloom told him about apple bucking; Rainbow Dash thrilled him with her tales of speed; Fluttershy spoke of her love of animals; Rarity gave him some fashion tips; and Pinkie Pie talked about...whatever came to her mind. He had taken all of it in. After all, they had shown the grace to listen to his life story, so why should he do any different? Overall, it had been a good night, but he was now paying for it.

Suddenly, he heard a knock on the door. He struggled, but eventually made it to a standing position.

"Come in," he said. The door swung open. Standing there was Derpy, holding a tray full of muffins.

"Hi Derpy! What brings you here?" She tried to talk, but all he could hear was mumbling. Pinkie Pie popped out from behind her. This startled the blue pegasus.

"Hiya, Royal!" she said with a happy tone.

"Hi Pinkie! You and Derpy came here together?" She nodded.

"Uh-huh! Derpy told me she felt bad about crashing into you last night. So I helped her make some muffins! They're your favorite flavor: apple! And before you ask, 'Pinkie Pie, how did you know my favorite muffin flavor?' You told me last night when we were talking about food!" Pinkie drew her explanation to a close.

"Well, thank you. They smell wonderful. Come in, come in." Pinkie and Derpy followed his lead and entered his house. Derpy went and set the muffin tray down. Royal started showing them around his humble abode.

“Wow, this is a really nice place you’ve got here!” Pinkie said. She stopped when she saw a framed picture sitting on a table. It dawned on her that this was the old man who Royal had spoken about at the party. Royal caught up to her and stared at the picture as well.

“I probably don’t have to say anything, but that was him. That was gramps.” Pinkie began to tear up, which was an unusual thing for the usually-peppy pony.

“I know what it’s like. I felt the same way when I lost my Granny-Pie.” Royal looked at her.

“Oh, Pinkie. I had no idea.” She smiled.

“But don’t let that chinny-chin-chin of yours hit the ground. You have to hold your head high! That’s what Granny-Pie told me, and that’s what your grandpa would want. I know it!” At that moment, Royal felt like a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He turned to his friend once again.

“You’re right! Grandpa would want me to be happy. Thank you, Pinkie. I needed that.”

“Okey-Dokey-Lokey! Derpy and I have to go now! Goodbye, Royal!” Pinkie said as she skipped toward the door. Royal walked over to the muffin tray. To his surprise, he found half of them missing.

“Uh, Pinkie? Weren’t there a dozen muffins here?” Pinkie knew who the culprit was. She stared at Derpy, and then broke into a laugh.

“Oh, Derpy!” The guilty Pegasus grinned.

“Guilty as charged, captain!” she saluted him.

Royal joined them in a rousing round of laughter. It felt good to laugh heartily again. By the time it ended, his sides began to sting.

"Well, goodbye! For real this time!" Pinkie said. Derpy followed behind her. The silly gray mare waved to Royal, walking backwards as she went. He waved back, with a big warm smile on his face.

Later on, Royal decided to take a stroll around the area. Before too long, he saw that he was approaching Sweet Apple Acres. His day was off to a great start after the visit from Derpy and Pinkie Pie.

That’s right…I needed to stop here today.

He continued on his way until he reached the entrance. He kept walking and saw Apple Bloom playing in the yard with Winona. She noticed him and came running to greet him.

“Hey Royal! What are you doing here?”

“Hi, Apple Bloom. I came by for a visit. I've simply got to have some more treats from Sweet Apple Acres!” The filly beamed.

"Sure thing! Applejack, Big Mac and Granny are all inside!" Apple Bloom resumed her activities with the dog. Royal cracked a smile, and then resumed his journey into the homestead.

A few minutes later, Royal came out of the Apple residence. He was carrying an apple pie in his mouth, and had a few more on his back. He winked at Apple Bloom as he walked by. After he left the confines of Sweet Apple Acres, Winona barked, trying to get the attention of the Apple family's youngest member. Puzzled, Apple Bloom trotted over to where the dog had stopped. There, she found a bag. She tried to lift it, to no avail. However, she was able to drag it along slowly.

Finally, the young pony made it inside. Everyone cast their gazes on her.

“Hey Apple Bloom…what’s that ya got right there?” Applejack asked. Apple Bloom set the bag on the table with help from Big Mac.

“I found it outside. I have no idea what it is.”

“Huh. I hope it's not some kind of attack! Let’s open it and see what’s inside.” Applejack said. She turned the bag over and dumped it out. Bits upon bits came pouring out, much to the surprise of them all. There had to be hundreds, even thousands of bits on the table. The whole family just sat there, speechless. A piece of paper fell out with the rest of the money. Applejack quickly scooped it up. She unfolded it and started to read.

"Dear Apple family,

I heard about your plight from a kind pony I know. Had I attended the Grand Galloping Gala, I probably would have purchased your entire cart. I didn't count it up, but I hope this is enough to do just that.

Sincerely,

An anonymous pony who really, really loves apples."

After a few moments, Applejack spoke up.

“Do…do you know what this means?” Big Mac looked at Granny Smith, and then he turned to his sister. He sported a huge grin on his face, along with the rest of the family.

“Eeyup!”

By that time, Royal was long gone on his way back to his house. Along the way, he passed by the library.

“You know, I need a good book to read. I bet Twilight’s got just what I’m looking for.” he said. Then he remembered all of the food he was carrying.

“Maybe I’ll come back later.” He could feel himself starting to tire out. Things turned for the worse, and he felt himself swaying from side to side. Luckily, Twilight and Rainbow, who had been out, were just down the road from him. Twilight noticed that there was something off.

“Hey Rainbow, isn’t that Royal Blue?” she asked her cyan colored friend.

“Yeah, it is. Why is he so…wobbly?” Rainbow scowled. “Did Applejack give him some of her special apple cider?”

“We should go help him out.” Twilight said. Rainbow took off running.

“Way ahead of ya, sister!” The purple unicorn caught up to her friend; they arrived just in time to keep Royal from taking a dirt nap.

They helped to balance him and led him into the library, where they helped set the massive supply on a table. Royal stopped swaying and shook his head, regaining his balance.

“Oh, Rainbow and Twilight! Whew, you saved me there.”

“You really love your apples, don’t you?” Twilight asked him. Royal nodded his head, blushing in slight embarrassment after the recent episode.

“You shouldn’t carry so much all at once. Who do you think you are? Big Macintosh?” Rainbow chided him. Spike came down from the upper floor and saw the three ponies talking.

“Hi Royal! Whoa, you’re stocking up, aren’t you?” Spike said.

“Yeah, but I might have overpaid just a little.” Twilight looked at him.

“What do you mean by that? Surely they wouldn’t overcharge you. The Apples are very honest ponies.” Twilight stopped to think for a moment.

“Wait, are you…Royal, how much money did you give them?”

“Let’s just say I’ve got a head start on being a lifelong customer of Sweet Apple Acres. I got a lot of money for me and Grandpa’s house. Last night, Applejack told me about some things she wanted to do. Hearing her talk about her Granny Smith got me thinking…so…” Twilight had tears in her eyes at this point.

“So you...oh Royal, that's so sweet!”

“Come on, it was nothing. Celestia knows if I’d gone to the Gala, I would have spent a ton of money on food anyway.”

“Thousands of bits?” Spike asked.

“I’ve always had a big appetite. All that dancing at the Gala would have kept me coming back for more. So what if the other ponies felt they were too good for some Sweet Apple treats? More food for me. Speaking of food, these need to be put away. I’ll see you two later.” Royal said. With those words, he continued down the road.

“What a guy. At this rate, he might become the new element of Generosity. Wait, should I be worried?” Spike said. Twilight smiled.

“I don’t think he’s out to steal Rarity’s spot, lover boy. But that sure was sweet.”

Later that day, Royal was relaxing at home. He heard a knock on the door.

“Uh, come in!” He said. The door opened to reveal the Apple family, minus Granny Smith.

“Royal…about the gift…” Applejack started.

“Gift? Did I give you a gift? I have no idea what you’re…”

He stopped talking because the siblings had trapped him in a group hug. After a few seconds, they let him go. Applejack had the warmest smile on her face.

“Thank ya kindly, Royal Blue. Now Granny Smith can finally get her hip replaced. How can we ever repay you?” Royal shook his head.

“Don't worry about it. As long as I have a go-to place for my beloved apples, I’m good. Thanks for stopping by.” Royal saw them off as they exited his house. However, he couldn't let them go without answering one more question.

"Wait just a second! How did you know it was me?" Applejack turned around.

"Well, I reckon you're the only stallion I know who really, really likes apples." she chuckled.

"I was hoping it would be a little less obvious. Well, I'll let you go now." He could hear them talking as they left.

“Wow! I can’t believe Granny Smith is finally gonna be able to walk normally again!” Apple Bloom said, cheerfully.

“Yeah, it’s been a long time comin,’ Apple Bloom.” Applejack said.

“Eeyup.” Big Mac chimed in. The siblings shared a laugh. Royal grinned as he shut his door.

“Okay, I’m gonna go play dead for a while.” He walked over to his bed and fell on to it. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he was out.

Hours later, Royal woke up to the sound of yelling.

“Scootaloo! Scootaloo! Where are you?” He rose from his bed, feeling very well rested. It was dark outside and a storm was rolling through.

“Whoa, I was out for a long time.” He yawned. A crash of thunder rendered him wide awake in a hurry.

“Scootaloo! Please, answer us!” He opened the shades and stared out his window. He spotted Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom walking in a torrential downpour.

“I thought those voices sounded young! What the heck are those kids doing? I’d better get my umbrella. Between that and my cape, I should be able to keep us all dry.”

After searching around, Royal found his umbrella. He opened the door and trotted out to the fillies.

"Royal! It's so awful!" Apple Bloom said.

“What in Equestria are you two doing outside in this storm?”

"We're trying to find Scootaloo! We were in our clubhouse and the storm came and the wind and the rain and..." Sweetie Belle couldn't contain her emotions. Royal put his umbrella over them.

"Slow down, Sweetie. You two come inside and tell me all about it. Let's get out of the rain." The fillies followed him into his house. In just a few seconds, he brought out some towels and they dried themselves off.

"Okay, now what was your problem?" he asked. Apple Bloom went first.

"We were having a meeting in our clubhouse. Then the storm came, and Applejack came out to get us. It all happened so fast. Scootaloo was running late to the meeting, so she didn't hear Applejack call us." She looked really scared, and almost kind of sick. Royal knew that feeling; the point where you're so worried about something or somepony that you get this sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach.

"She never showed up. We heard an awful noise. Applejack took us out to see what it was, and our treehouse had collapsed. We've been looking for Scootaloo ever since!" Sweetie Belle said.

"I'll help you. Come on, stand next to me." The girls obeyed. After a flash of red light, they opened their eyes to see a red aura surrounding them.

"What's going on?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Remember when I told you about how my cape saved my life? This is exactly how it happened. This shield will keep us dry and protect us from lightning strikes. Now let's go find Scoots!" They walked in tandem. However, they suddenly heard a knock on the door. Royal opened it to find Applejack and Rarity...soaked and quite displeased.

"Don't say a word. Let me get some more towels." Royal said. He defused the aura and left the room.

"That would be wonderful, darling." Rarity said.

"Thanks, Royal." Applejack said. Their glances turned to their sisters.

"Apple Bloom, what in tarnation were you thinking, running off in a storm like this?"

"Sweetie Belle, I demand an explanation as well!" Rarity said. The younger girls were about to explain themselves when Royal re-entered the room.

"I know I have no place in this discussion, but Scootaloo's gone missing."

Rarity's reaction was a simple "Oh dear."

"You mean little Scoots is out in that ragin' storm?" Applejack asked, a worried look on her face.

"I'm afraid so. Fear not, we can get her without dying or getting our hooves wet! Stand back, everypony!" He activated the aura again. AJ and Rarity stared in wonder.

"What in Equestria is that?" Rarity asked.

"This is what saved my life in that story I told last night. All you have to do is step inside and you'll be protected from lightning and rain." The four ladies followed his directions, amazed at the display.

"Okay, now that we're in here, let's go find our friend." Royal said.

"Yeah!" The group yelled in agreement.

They set out to find Scootaloo, only to find that the storm had gotten even worse. A bolt of lightning struck the aura, only to reflect away.

“Are you sure this thing is invincible?” Applejack asked.

“Yes it is. My grandpa and I scientifically tested it a few years ago. I forgot to tell you, but Gramps was kind of an egghead. I wouldn't have brought you with me if I didn't trust my grandpa's handiwork!” Royal said. Apple Bloom looked around, fascinated by the fact that she could watch the storm, but she and the rest of her friends were protected.

Suddenly, Applejack’s ear twitched.

“Hey! I think I hear something!” She said. The group stopped moving.

“What is it?” Royal asked. Applejack paused, trying to make out the sound.

“Uh, it sounds like…crying.” Apple Bloom crept up next to her sister.

“It’s Scootaloo! She’s over there!” Apple Bloom pointed to a large tree. Scootaloo was in plain sight, now. She had taken shelter under the tree, but it didn’t do her a lot of good.

“Let’s get her in here! If lightning strikes that tree, she’s dead!” Royal and the group hurried over and pulled the little filly inside the aura. Just seconds later, a huge bolt of lightning struck the tree. The group covered their eyes.

“All right, let’s go back to my place. It’s the closest to here.” Royal said. The group traveled back to his house, still protected by the aura.

When they stepped inside the house, the aura disappeared, and Royal collapsed to the floor.

“Royal! Are you okay?” Sweetie Belle asked. He looked up at her from the floor.

“I’m fine, Sweetie. It’s just a side effect. Doing that takes a lot out of me. I haven’t used my cape like that in years, and never for a group like this.”

“Well, thank you. Thanks to you, Sweetie Belle and I were able to stay dry and not have our manes ruined by that awful storm.” Rarity said.

"Not a problem, Rarity." Applejack looked out the window.

"Looks like that storm's still ragin' out there. Royal, do you mind if we stay here for a bit?"

"Not at all. I'm not gonna make you go out in that madness. Make yourselves at home. I'm just glad Scootaloo's safe." He looked up at the aforementioned filly, who was asleep on his back.

Eventually, the storm stopped, and the group prepared to leave Royal's house, minus Royal and Scootaloo.

"What should we do with her?" Applejack asked. Young Scootaloo was still asleep.

"I'll take care of her. You girls can go on home. It's late."

"You're sure she won't be a problem?" Rarity asked. He nodded his head.

"I'm sure. Besides, I could use some company on a night like this."

"Okay. We'll probably see ya in the mornin' then. Thanks for helping us find her, Royal." Applejack said.

"Yes, see you later, Blue." Rarity said. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle approached him.

"Thank you for helping us! We'll be back to check on her!" Apple Bloom said. Royal saw them off, and then he retired for the night. Everything was okay now, and all he wanted was some sleep.

Someday we'll find it...

Later that night, Royal woke up to a familiar sound; a sound he had heard earlier along with Apple Bloom and the others. He got up and gently opened the door to his room, where he'd put Scootaloo to bed. He could hear it clearly now; she was crying. He turned on the light, which seemed to startle the poor girl.

"Where...am I?" she asked. Her eyes adjusted to see Royal standing at the foot of the bed.

"Royal?"

"Hey Scootaloo." He walked over to the head of the bed.

“Is this your house?” Scootaloo sleepily asked.

“Yep. You’re staying with me tonight.” Royal could tell she needed some company.

“Can’t sleep?” She nodded her head. Royal smiled warmly.

"Okay. Come on, kid." He walked out of the room, turning the light off after Scootaloo exited with him. He climbed onto his sofa, where he had planned to sleep for the night. Scootaloo followed his example.

"So, what do you want to do? We could listen to some music, or play a game, or...you know what, that's pretty much it. Sorry, I'm kinda boring like that." Scootaloo didn't respond.

"That's okay, Scoot. Take your time." He walked over to the pan of apple muffins. There were two left.

"I always like to keep my favorite snack handy!" Royal spoke in a raspy and boisterous tone. This startled Scootaloo. She looked over at him. Royal grinned, sheepishly.

"Sorry. That was my Macho Equine impression. You want a muffin?"

"Yeah, sure," she said. Royal smiled. At least he knew that the poor girl wasn’t too shell-shocked to eat. He returned to his spot and gave her one of the muffins.

“I think you’ll like it. Pinkie Pie and Derpy made these for me. And then Derpy ate half of them before they left. That was a hoot!” Scootaloo took a bite and swallowed.

“This is good!” she said. She smiled for the first time since she had woken up.

“Considering who made them, how could they be anything but?” Royal leaned back. He looked out the window to see the stars and a full moon.

“It’s such a beautiful night, now that the storm’s over.” Scootaloo looked in the same direction.

“Wow…I’m usually not up so late. I don’t get to see this. This is awesome!” The pair stared out the window for a good amount of time. Scootaloo suddenly noticed the sound of an acoustic guitar. She turned around. Royal was strumming away, playing a song she had never heard before.

“You know, Scootaloo, a night like this calls for a little music.” He launched into a soft song.

Now it’s time to say goodnight. Good night, sleep tight.
Now the sun turns out her light, good night, sleep tight.
Dream sweet dreams for me. Dream sweet dreams for you.

Scootaloo could feel her eyes beginning to close. She had edged closer to her host. She was fairly close to falling asleep on his legs. Royal adjusted himself accordingly, making sure that if she did fall asleep, he would be able to move without disturbing her.

Close your eyes, and I’ll close mine. Good night, sleep tight.
Now the moon begins to shine. Good night, sleep tight.
Dream sweet dreams for me. Dream sweet dreams for you.

Royal was about to enter the last verse, but he felt his own eyes beginning to close, so he kept strumming away softly. He felt something touch him. Scootaloo had fallen asleep curled up next to him. She had fallen asleep with a smile on her face.

Well now, that wasn’t too hard. Sweet dreams, kid.

“Good night, Scootaloo.” He whispered, trying not to wake her, but hoping she could hear him at the same time. Royal put his guitar off to the side quietly, and then fell asleep. He provided his cape as a blanket for the filly.

The next morning, Royal woke up to find Scootaloo missing. Before he had a chance to panic, he found a letter on the table right in front of him.

Dear Royal,

You were still asleep when I came by and I didn’t want to disturb you. I took Scootaloo out for a flying lesson. She said to tell you thanks for cheering her up last night. I didn’t know you were such a good songwriter! Say, aren’t you a pegasus, too? You should come out with us some time. Well, I’ve got to go. Keep it cool, music man!

Rainbow Dash (as if you had to ask).

Royal smiled as he finished reading the letter.

“That’s nice. Scoots gets to spend time with her hero. The way she models herself after Rainbow is pretty cute.” He was startled by a knock on the door. He got up from the sofa, grabbed the muffin wrappers from the night before and disposed of them. He opened the door to see a pony he hadn’t met yet. She was purple, like Twilight, but a different shade of the color.

“Hello. You must be Royal Blue.”

“Yes, that would be me. Who are you?”

“Cheerilee. I’m a teacher.”

“A teacher, huh?”

“Yes. I’m here to talk about Scootaloo.” Royal smiled.

“She’s a great kid, isn’t she?” Cheerilee’s expression changed.

“Yes, well, there’s something you should know.”

“What’s that?”

She’s an orphan.” Royal went into shock at that moment…and then regained his composure just as soon as he had lost it.

“I…I had no clue. Come in, Miss Cheerilee. I think we both need to sit down for this one.” She followed him inside and joined him on the sofa. Cheerilee resumed her story.

“There was an accident last night. Certainly you were aware of that awful storm.”

"Aware of it? I was out in it!" Royal replied. Cheerilee was shocked.

"What were you doing? You could have been killed!"

"Searching for Scootaloo." They both fell silent.

"So, what were you saying?" Royal resumed the conversation.

"A bolt of lightning struck Scootaloo's house. It caught on fire. That, combined with the wind, oh it's just so awful..." Cheerilee stopped speaking. She was clearly trying to hold back the waterworks. Royal knew where this was going.

"I'll take care of her, if she wants me to." Cheerilee looked up, a smile returning to her face.

"That's a very sweet gesture, but do you really think you're up for it?"

"I live on my own, Miss Cheerliee. It gets awfully lonely around here sometimes. If somepony else doesn’t take her in, I’d be glad to."

"You’re very sweet." As soon as she finished speaking, they both heard the door open. Standing there were Scootaloo and Rainbow. They both looked as if they'd been crying. Royal and Cheerilee looked at them with compassionate eyes.

Oh no! Royal’s heart sank.

"We saw it...it was awful!" Rainbow said.

"Everything...everything is gone." Scootaloo said, a look of complete and utter loss present on her face.

A little while later, Rainbow had regained her composure, which is more than could be said for Scootaloo. She was being consoled in a tight group hug by her fellow crusaders, who had come over to check on her as promised. No words were needed. Just the sight of Scootaloo looking so broken was enough. Royal was determined to get to the bottom of this. He already knew what they had seen; now he wanted more information.

"Rainbow, can you tell us a little bit more about what happened?" Royal asked. Rainbow, who was seated near her young fan, nodded.

"We were trying to find a good place where I could teach the squirt some awesome flying techniques. She told me about how she had stayed here last night, so she had to go back home and get something." Rainbow paused, breathing heavily. Scootaloo began talking.

"I...I had a big fight with my mom and dad last night. They grounded me, so I ran away from home. I...I said some terrible things...and...now..." she lost control again. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle continued to comfort her.

"It's all right, Scootaloo." Apple Bloom said. Royal stared at them, smiling.

She's fortunate to have such great friends at such a time.

"What am I gonna do? What's going to happen to me?" Scootaloo said. Royal stood up and walked over to the group.

“Don’t you worry, Scoot. Every pony in this room is ready to open their home to you. You just need to make a choice.”

Royal then walked away and resumed his position on the sofa.

The young pony had a decision to make. She weighed over every possible decision in her head. Of all the places she could live, she was able to narrow it down to four: Sweet Apple Acres, the Carousel Boutique, Rainbow Dash’s house in Cloudsdale, and here. From there, she tried to make a choice.

“Apple Bloom, it would be really fun to live with you and Applejack, but I can’t. Your home is crowded enough already.” She turned to Sweetie Belle.

“Sweetie Belle, I appreciate the offer, but we both know Rarity has her hooves full with her fashion business and you when you visit her.” Sweetie Belle was slightly offended by the remark, but now was hardly the time to show it. Scootaloo moved on to Rainbow. Before she could say anything, the pony with the Technicolor mane spoke up.

“I know what you’re gonna ask, kid. I’d love to have you, but I think you can make a better decision.” Scootaloo was taken aback by this response.

“What do you mean?” Rainbow gestured toward Royal.

“I’m not an expert on any pony’s feelings, but I think that guy needs you a lot more than you need me right now.” Scootaloo thought back to when Royal had told his story at the big party. Despite his loss, he had been nothing but kind and courteous to every pony he’d met, including her.

“I’ll still be around, kiddo. You once said you’d do anything for me. This is it.” Dash flashed her trademark grin, though it was a lot warmer than usual.

“I think you two could bring a lot of sunshine to each other. So, what do you say?” Scootaloo smiled.

“You bet, Rainbow!” She rushed over to Royal.

“So, you’re going to stay here, huh?” he asked. She nodded. Royal was flattered. Had she really chosen him over her hero?

“But why me? I thought your choice was obvious.” Scootaloo jumped up on the couch and gave him a hug.

“A wise pony told me you need me. So here I am.” Royal returned the hug. He looked over at Rainbow, who winked at him.

“That’s good enough for me. Welcome home, Scootaloo.” Cheerilee quietly got up from her spot and urged Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle to follow her. They left, closing the door on their way out. Rainbow stayed, mainly because she still had to take Scootaloo back to the remains of her house to try and find anything that survived the fire. Scootaloo and Royal finally ended their long hug, and the filly hopped down from the sofa and walked over to Rainbow.

“Okay, I’m ready. Let’s go.” Rainbow nodded, and the two prepared to head out.

Come on, Rainbow Dash. You’ve got to hold it together, for the kid’s sake! Rainbow opened the door, only to see some familiar faces. Twilight, Applejack, and Big Macintosh were standing in the doorway. Big Mac was carrying a sack on his back.

"Oh, hey everypony! Come on in!" Royal said. The trio entered his house. Applejack lifted the sack off of her older brother and brought it to the floor.

"This was all we could find, Scootaloo. I'm...I'm so sorry." Twilight said as she stepped back. Scootaloo dug into the bag. She found the Wonderbolt plush that she had received for her most recent birthday. But among the rest of the possessions in the bag, Scootaloo could not find the one that mattered most; a picture of her and her parents in a nice frame.

"The picture! It's not here!"

"What picture?" Applejack asked.

"It's a framed picture of me and my parents. I can't lose that! Not now!"

"Oh no! There's a blizzard coming tomorrow as well! That will turn our chances of finding that photo to zero!" Rainbow said.

Royal turned to Twilight.

"I'll get it. Does anybody have a flashlight?" Twilight shook her head.

"Royal, the house is in shambles. It's getting dark. You'll never find it. I wouldn't recommend rummaging around. You could get hurt." He looked over to his young charge, and then back at Twilight. He directed her attention to Scootaloo.

"Look at her, Twilight. The whole house could collapse on me and I guarantee it wouldn’t hurt that much as she is right now. I'll be back!"

Royal sped out the door and took flight, his wings spreading in the night sky. Guided by Luna's moon, he flew over Ponyville until he reached the house, or rather, what was left of it. He began digging through some of the ashes, frantically searching for the special photo. He knew what such a possession meant to Scootaloo. If he had lost his picture of his grandfather, he would have reacted the same way she did. He kept digging through the ashes, moving closer to the section of the house that remained standing. Eventually, he found the picture.

"Bingo!" He went to grab it, but he noticed it was stuck. Worse yet, it was somehow holding up some large fragments of wood. He sighed with an annoyed tone.

“Nothing’s ever easy, is it?”

Royal knew he had to be as careful as possible. He slowly worked the picture frame back and forth, inching it from its space. When it was close enough, he swiped it, removing it cleanly from the space.

"Yes! I got it! Scootaloo's gonna be so happy! I'm coming, kid!" Royal started walking out of the space, but he didn't notice the structure beginning to shake. Before he could react, he was beaned in the head by a falling structural board.

Everything turned fuzzy around him.

"What's that, doctor? Oh yeah, I'll take two and call you in the morning! Hellooooo, Nurse!" Royal collapsed. He had been knocked out cold. It all took a turn for the worse when more of the structure fell on him.

No pony was going to find him in this darkness, and with a blizzard coming, it was likely no pony was even going to try. If he had been able to stay conscious, the young stallion might have had time to regret rushing off so hastily. Now, it looked like he was in quite the jam.

How about a band aid?

The blizzard came much sooner than expected. In fact, it began snowing only an hour after Royal left his home in search of Scootaloo's precious picture. Two hours passed, and there was still no sign of the kindly blue pony. Every pony was getting worried, especially Scootaloo, but that went without saying.

"What if he's trapped under a pile of wood? What if he's dead? Oh, it's all my fault!" Twilight was quick to correct the young pegasus.

"Oh no, honey. This isn't your fault at all! Royal went there on his own. He didn’t listen to me. He’s being way too reckless...oh, what if something did happen to him?" Rainbow, who was sitting on the floor, slammed her hoof in frustration.

"I'm going after him! I should have gone with him in the first place!"

"I don't know, sugar cube. It looks awfully dangerous out there. The odds of you actually finding your way to him are slim to none." AJ said. Rainbow stared daggers through her.

"I don't care! I’m the Element of Loyalty, remember?" Rainbow opened the door and spread her wings.

"Oh, and by the way, never tell me the odds." With those words, she took off like a bullet, disappearing into the white blanket that made up the sky.

Meanwhile, Pinkie Pie was sound asleep in her bedroom at Sugar Cube Corner. She awoke with a fright, breathing frantically. Her Pinkie sense was tingling, so to speak. It told her that somepony was in a bind.

"Somepony's in big trouble...but who is it?" Her senses told her in the next moment. Her brain registered a photo of a familiar stallion.

"Royal? Where is he? Oh, I've got to find him!" Pinkie got dressed in her winter best, which looked more like combat gear.

"All right, let's save my friend!" Pinkie opened the door, only to get covered in a mountain of snow. She dug herself out and proceeded into the elements, finding it very difficult to move. Before too long, she felt herself being lifted into the air. She flailed her hooves and legs.

"What's going on?" She looked back and saw the familiar face of Rainbow Dash.

"Hey Pinkie." The Pegasus said.

"Rainbow!" She reached to hug her friend, which almost caused them to crash to the ground. Fortunately, Rainbow recovered.

"Did your Pinkie sense tell you that Royal was in trouble?"

"Uh-huh!"

"I know where he went, so hang on!"

"Okey-dokey-lokey!" Rainbow cut through the sky with incredible speed, bringing herself and Pinkie to a landing just outside the house. The ashes were completely covered in snow. Rainbow noticed the standing structure. She headed inside, with Pinkie close behind her. She encountered a pile of wood.

"Geez, this place really got messed up! Pinkie, let's move some of this rubble!" Rainbow, using a few tricks she'd learned from Applejack, bucked some of the rubble away. Pinkie did what she could to move the rubble, until she saw a face.

"Aaaaaaaaaaah! A dead pony!" Rainbow ran over to her. She recognized the face immediately.

"Royal!" She dug the rest of the rubble away from him. She slapped his face with one of her wings.

"Come on, pal! You can't be dead! Wake up!"

Royal could hear a voice calling to him. His eyes fluttered open to see the relieved faces of Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie.

"What the...” the dazed stallion’s eyes adjusted. “Oh hey Rainbow, Pinkie. When did you two become doctors? Are you gonna operate on me?" Rainbow slapped him with her hoof this time. That snapped him out of it. He sat up, grimacing in pain.

"Where am I?"

"You're still in Scootaloo's old house. We've gotta get you outta here! I'll fly you back to your place." She stopped talking, because Royal had grabbed both her and Pinkie in a hug.

"Thanks. You two saved my life."

"Aw, it was nothing." Rainbow said, grinning bashfully.

"Nothing? It was everything! Welcome back, Royal!" Pinkie said. Rainbow broke off the festivities.

"Pinkie, it's dangerous to go back to your place alone. You should come with us." The peppy pink pony nodded.

"Okay!"

Eventually, the trio made it back to Royal's house. They opened the door, figuring everyone would be asleep, which they were. Royal grabbed Scootaloo's picture from under his cape and placed it on the table, next to his own favorite photo. After this, he passed out on the floor, not to move for another several hours. Rainbow had a warm smile on her face.

"Sleep well, you royally awesome pony."

Royal woke up to see Scootaloo staring at her favorite picture, speechless. They were alone again, except for Pinkie and Rainbow, who had yet to wake up. He tried to sit up, but it just wasn't happening. He fell onto his back, which left him looking up at his ceiling. When the door knocked, Royal hoped that Scootaloo would hear it, which she did. She answered the door, revealing that Fluttershy had come for a visit.

"Oh, hi Fluttershy. What are you doing here?" Scootaloo asked her.

"Twilight sent me over here. The hospital staff is booked, so I'm supposed to...oh my goodness!" The wielder of the element of Kindness spotted her target. She literally rushed over to him.

"Scootaloo, honey, help me prop him up!" The filly obliged, and Royal was soon propped up against the table. Fluttershy went to work treating his wounds.

It took some time, but Fluttershy eventually finished her work. Rainbow and Pinkie had gotten up by this time, and they helped her move Royal to the sofa.

"It's a good thing Scootaloo is living with you now. You won't be moving too much for the next few weeks, Royal." Fluttershy said. Royal looked at his bandaged body. The only thing he remembered was getting clocked in the face by a swinging board.

"I regret nothing. Thank you for fixing me up, Fluttershy. How much do I owe you?" Fluttershy shook her head.

"Oh no. You don't have to worry about that. I should be going. Get well soon, Royal!" Fluttershy headed for the door and left Royal's house. Pinkie and Rainbow walked in that direction as well.

"We should be going too. Let us know if you need anything, all right?" Rainbow said.

"Yeah, and I'll bring over some more muffins tomorrow! Oh, wait, that was supposed to be a surprise!" Pinkie covered her mouth. Royal nodded.

"Thanks for everything, you two!" Rainbow shut the door behind her as she and Pinkie left.

After staring at her precious photo for a while, Scootaloo turned to Royal.

"Royal, I don't know what to say." He shook his head.

"Just help me around the house, okay? I'm a little sore."

"Deal!" Scootaloo jumped up on the couch and hugged him tightly. Royal did everything he could to avoid screaming in pain.

"Ow! Gently, kid. I'm damaged goods." Royal said. Scootaloo let go.

"Oh, sorry!"

Royal suddenly realized something.

"Hey, isn't it a school day?" Scootaloo went into a state of shock.

"Oh, no! I'm late!" She began scampering around.

"Get me some paper and a pen. I'll write you a note. You can give it to Miss Cheerilee and get this whole thing cleared, all right?" Scootaloo stopped in her tracks. She was holding a pen and paper in her mouth.

"Of course!"

Scootaloo left for class with the note in her mouth. She hopped on her scooter; one of her prized possessions that survived the fire.

"I'll get there in no time now!" She sped along and, true to her word she reached the school house in lickety-split fashion. She quietly opened the door, catching the eye of her teacher when she strolled into the room.

"Scootaloo!" Cheerilee said. The tardy filly turned around to face her.

"Yes, I know I'm late, Miss Cheerilee. I have a note right here." Scootaloo handed it over to her teacher, who skimmed through it.

"Okay, you're excused. I know you're still getting adjusted. Take your seat, Scootaloo." Scootaloo trotted over to her seat, right in the vicinity of her best friends. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were whispering to each other and giggling. Apple Bloom turned around and stared daggers through them. It was then that DT flashed back to what she had said to them at the beginning of the school day.

(flashback)

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were taking their seats as class began. They started making remarks about Scootaloo's tardiness. The present Cutie Mark Crusaders were not about to accept any jokes directed at their friend, given the circumstances. Apple Bloom leaned in on their conversation. DT and SS took offense to her intrusion.

"What do you think you're doing, blank flank?" DT asked. Apple Bloom had a serious look on her face. She was not in the mood for their attitudes.

"You say one bad thing about Scootaloo, and no pony will ever find your bodies. Have a nice day!" A smile spread across her face as she went back to her seat.

(end of flashback)

*Gulp!* We had better lay off the teasing today! She sounded serious! The pair of "mean girls" sat up straight, not wanting to make eye contact with any of the crusaders.

Scootaloo was happy to make it through the day without a single remark from DT and SS. Every time they tried to speak up, all it took was a look from Apple Bloom and they quickly reconsidered. School had let out, and Scootaloo had easily convinced her friends to come visit Royal. She had told them the details she'd learned from Rainbow.

When the crusaders reached Royal's house, Scootaloo quietly opened the door, thinking that Royal might be sleeping. She was correct in her assumption.

"Okay, crusaders, we're gonna have to whisper." she said.

"Oh, he looks really beat-up!" Sweetie Belle said.

"Well, duh! Were you not listening when I was talking earlier? Rainbow Dash told me he was buried under a pile of wood! It obviously collapsed on...!" Scootaloo covered her mouth, realizing that she had raised her voice well above a whisper.

Royal stirred, and then he opened his eyes. The sun shone directly in his face.

"What? Is it the afternoon already?" He yawned. Scootaloo turned around with a guilty look on her face.

"I didn't mean to wake you!" she said. The blue Pegasus shook his head rapidly. This woke him up in a heartbeat.

“Oh, hey girls. School must be out. Good. The first day is almost over.”

“First day of what?” Sweetie Belle asked. Royal pointed to his bandages.

“The first day of a week of immobility. I don’t regret a thing, but I’ll sure be glad when I’m able to take these things off.” He looked over at his guitar, longingly.

“Once this week is done, I should be able to play my guitar again. That will make the rest of the recovery go flying by.” Apple Bloom walked across the room to the guitar and picked it up. She started strumming a few chords, to Royal’s amusement. Hearing her play made him want to play even more. After about five minutes, the bow-wearing filly finished her song. She carefully placed the guitar back where she had found it.

“Wow. I didn’t know you could play guitar, Apple Bloom!” Royal said.

“Well, I’m not very good.” The young pony grinned, awkwardly.

“Don’t kid yourself, kid. Freddie Mercury said the same thing about his piano skills.” This was accompanied by a long pause and blank stares from the crusaders.

“Who’s Freddie Mercury?” Scootaloo asked. Royal slapped his head, which made him grimace in pain.

“Doesn’t Cheerilee teach you anything?”

A little bit later, the Cutie Mark Crusaders left Royal’s home with a plethora of knowledge about this human called Freddie Mercury.

“Are you going to remember any of that?” Apple Bloom asked her friends.

“I think we’d better.” Sweetie Belle said.

“Yeah, Royal’s pretty passionate about that kind of stuff.” Scootaloo said. She suddenly stopped dead in her tracks, causing her fellow crusaders to bump into each other.

"Ow! Why'd ya stop?" Apple Bloom asked, shutting her mouth when a shadow fell over her. The youngsters looked to the sky. A griffon flew directly over the trio, occasionally looking down on them. Scootaloo started shivering. She had never seen a griffon before, but she had recently learned about them in school. They were dangerous creatures. However, as soon as it had appeared, the griffon flew in the other direction, leaving the sight of the fillies.

"We need to tell somepony about this!" Apple Bloom said. Scootaloo knew who they had to find: none other than the scholar herself, Twilight Sparkle. They headed toward the library.

Spike and Twilight were chatting about everyday things when they heard a knock on the door. Spike got up from his spot.

"I'll get it!" Just when he reached the doorknob, the door swung open, crushing him against the wall. The three fillies burst into the room, attracting Twilight's attention.

"Well, if it isn't the Cutie Mark Crusaders. What can I do for you?" The purple unicorn was eager to help. Scootaloo stepped forward.

"Twilight, don't freak out or anything, but we just saw a griffon fly over Ponyville."

"A griffon? I haven't seen one since Rainbow's friend Gilda came to visit. That...didn't end well."

"Do you think it's some kind of sign?" Sweetie Belle asked. Twilight smiled.

"I'm sure it's nothing to worry about. You three run along now. You should be doing kid stuff, like seeing who can do the most spins with a loopty-hoop!" The wise student smiled. She was trying desperately to take the fillies' minds off of the situation.

"Okay! Cutie Mark Crusaders, move out!" Scootaloo shouted. They exited the library, being careful not to smash Spike this time. The purple dragon, who had spent the extent of the crusaders' visit recovering, stumbled over to Twilight.

"You know, I'm going to be sad when the day comes that those three won't be the Cutie Mark Crusaders anymore." Twilight said. Spike nodded.

"Well, nothing lasts forever, Twilight. We all have to make our move eventually." She looked at him, surprised.

"Wow, Spike. That was deep!" He grinned.

"Yeah, well, I have my moments!" This caused Twilight to giggle.

That night, Apple Bloom told her family of what she had seen.

"It was a big griffon! I mean this big!" The filly made a gesture with her hooves. Applejack sat and thought for a moment, while Big Macintosh tended to Granny Smith, who was recovering from the hip replacement surgery she had desperately needed.

"I believe ya, Apple Bloom. But what would a griffon be doing flying around here? Did it look female?" Apple Bloom shook her head.

"We couldn't tell. Why?"

"I was thinkin' maybe it was Gilda coming back to make amends with Rainbow. Never mind."

Sweetie Belle spoke with Rarity on the same subject, and got mainly the same response. Both fillies went to bed that night with more questions than answers. Maybe Twilight was right. Maybe they needed to go back to doing kid stuff rather than worrying about one freak encounter. They fell asleep, looking forward to the day ahead.

I see a red door and I want it painted black

The next day, Royal heard a knock at the door. Scootaloo, who he had appointed as his #1 assistant for the week, answered it. Fluttershy had stopped by yet again; this time she brought a wheelchair.

“Royal, this should help you move around a little easier. Come on and try it out, if you don’t mind, that is,” the quiet mare said. She helped him stand up from the sofa and sit down in the chair.

“Okay, this button moves you forward, this one moves you backwards, and this one brings out a cupholder so you can have a drink with you when you get thirsty.” Royal listened closely to her instructions.

“Thanks, Fluttershy. This will make moving around a lot easier, especially with the service coming up later today.”

Fluttershy got a bashful smile on her face.

“Oh, no need to thank me. I’m just glad you’re okay. I have to go now. Get well soon, Royal.” With those words, the meek mare left his humble home. After a few steps, however, she realized she had forgotten something. She opened the door, walked right over to Scootaloo and grabbed her, holding her in a hug for about fifteen seconds. She then let go and turned toward the door.

I’m so sorry, Scootaloo, honey,“ Fluttershy said; her voice got very emotional as she exited the house.

Scootaloo knew the service Royal was talking about. After overcoming the initial shock, Twilight Sparkle took it upon herself to organize a memorial service for the filly’s parents, who were lost in the freak occurrence. Royal wished he could have gone to the library to help her, but his injuries prevented it. Being so new to Ponyville, he hadn't met Scootaloo's parents before the accident that took their lives. However, his own recent loss made him able to identify with the filly.

The service, as one might expect, was very emotional. Naturally, Twilight and the other element bearers attended, along with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. Some of the Pegasi from Cloudsdale came down to show their support, since Scootaloo’s parents were well-known back in the sky city. In fact, part of Scoot’s interest in the Wonderbolts came from the fact that her parents had gone to flight school with Spitfire and Soarin. Scootaloo didn’t know either of them, mainly because the four had gone their separate ways after that.

The service was short, and everypony went on their way after wishing Scootaloo well. Soon, the only remaining ponies were some of the first ponies who had shown up; Twilight and the gang, plus Spitfire and Soarin. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle approached Royal after the service.
“Royal, is it okay if we spend the night with Scootaloo?” Apple Bloom asked. He nodded.
“I get your thinking, and I approve. The Cutie Mark Crusaders really ought to be together in times like these. If it’s okay with your sisters, it’s okay with me.”
“Oh, they already said yes. In fact, they said we should!” Sweetie Belle said. Royal glanced over at the two older sisters; Applejack and Rarity smiled and nodded.
“Well then, a deal’s a deal. You two get your stuff and come over whenever!”

Spitfire and Soarin approached Scootaloo. The filly was intimidated by their presence. The Wonderbolts were larger than life even to such a cool pony as Rainbow Dash. And they apparently wanted to speak to her.

"You must be Scootaloo. Your parents were two of the best friends I ever knew. You look just like your mother when she and I were that age." Spitfire smiled. Royal walked over and stood next to the filly of which he had taken charge.
"Oh, hello. Rainbow told me you were going to take care of her." Royal smiled.
"That's correct. She's going to be like my little sister." Spitfire and Soarin were both touched by his sentiments.
"Watch over her. The daughter of my wingpony deserves the very best." Spitfire said.
"I will...always." Royal said, surprised at himself for not getting nervous around those daring ponies who had been his heroes as a filly. He looked over at Scootaloo, who had now joined a conversation with her fellow crusaders.

Looks like my life just took a new turn. I will protect you, little sister...

Ever since Royal could remember, he had always recovered from injuries quicker than his peers. The first week of immobilization ended up being the only week. Royal had thought Fluttershy would be the examiner, but this was not the case. The yellow pegasus had explained to him during a prior visit that she had only filled in for Nurse Redheart, who had been busy treating other injured ponies after the blizzard, along with Nurse Tenderheart. Nurse Redheart showed up at his door on this fair morning.

"Hello, Mr. Blue. I'm Nurse Redheart. I'm here to perform the examination."

"All righty, then. Where should I begin?" The pink-haired nurse looked at him.

"Well, we will first test your legs. Stand up, please." He did so without any signs of pain, which surprised the nurse. She scribbled down some words in her notebook.

"Good. Now walk around for me, please." Royal nodded.

"Okey-dokey." The blue stallion said. He strolled around the main room, still without feeling any pain. He had not experienced any setbacks thus far.

"Mr. Blue, you are looking well, but there's one more test we need to run. Your wings were also damaged in your accident. I need to see you fly. It doesn't have to be anything astounding, just make sure your wings aren't broken. We'll need to go outside for this one." Royal nodded and followed her outside. Nurse Redheart proceeded to unwrap the bandages from his wings. He spread them immediately.

"Oh yeah! Does it feel good to be outta those bandages! All right, time for me to fly!" He began flapping his wings vigorously.

Wait...I think I'm flapping too hard. Uh oh. He suddenly shot into the air like a rocket. He flew up past the clouds.

Now you've done it, Royal.

Royal had always considered himself a fairly decent flyer, but he was clearly out of practice. In fact, the blue stallion was going so fast he couldn’t gain control. He freaked out and thus, he froze up. He free-fell toward the ground, knowing that he was about to set himself back several months, if the fall didn't kill him. The only thing he could do now is call for help. He yelled, hoping that some pony, any pony, would hear him. Luckily, Rainbow happened to be on her daily rounds. She spotted something falling from the sky. A closer look told her it was Royal.

"I'm comin,' Royal! Just hang on!" She sped up dramatically. Royal looked over and saw a rainbow drawing close to him.

Oh, thank Celestia! It's Rainbow! The aforementioned pegasus snatched him out of his freefall, slowly lowering him to the ground. Royal felt immense relief when his hooves touched the surface. He turned around to greet his saviour.

"Wow, that was a close one. Thanks, Rainbow. I'm a little out of practice with my flying."

"Yeah, just a little. You're lucky I was around." The blue pegasus said. Nurse Redheart approached them, after writing some more notes in her book.

"Mr. Blue, I'm happy to announce that you have a clean bill of health. Your legs are healthy, your body's healthy, and your wings are definitely healthy. Let's go back inside and get those bandages off." Royal could hardly contain his glee as he followed her back into his house.

Later that day, school let out for the fillies of Ponyville. Scootaloo sped away from the crowd on her scooter.

Royal said today was the day he would be well enough to teach me how to play the guitar! I've got to get home on the double!

She wouldn't have to get too far to see him. The now-healthy pegasus saw her while flying above Ponyville. He flew down until he was right beside her. Needless to say, she was surprised to see him.

"Hey Scoot! How about a race?" He asked. She nodded.

"Okay, but you won't beat me!" She sped up, leaving him in the dust.

"That's what you think!" Royal sped up as well until he was right beside her again. This pattern continued until they made it back to the house. For anyone wondering, Scootaloo won the race.

Royal opened the door and let Scootaloo in.

"Wow, I haven't done that in a while," he said. Scootaloo was still amazed that he was walking; nevermind the flying.

"Royal, it's only been a week. How did you get better so quickly?"

"I've got my grandpa's genes in me. He recovered in weeks from injuries that sidelined others for months. See, the only thing that ever stopped Gramps was time itself." The young stallion paused, taking a second to gaze at his favorite picture.
Scootaloo went over and grabbed the guitar. Royal saw her and broke out of his silence.

"Oh, yes! I said I would start teaching you how to play the guitar today. Let's get cracking!"

A couple of hours later, the first lesson had finished. Scootaloo had gotten frustrated, but Royal was a patient instructor. He calmed her down and got her to try again. The entire lesson had taken place outside, because, in Royal's words, "it's too nice to stay inside all day." Toward the end of the lesson, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle had shown up. The musical pegasus took this as a sign that he had done enough teaching for the day. He had a long time to teach the young pegasus how to play the instrument; now was a time for her to spend with her friends.

"Thanks for the lesson, Royal! See you later!" Scootaloo said as she left with her friends. She only made it a few steps when she heard him call out to her.

"Wait, Scoot!" The fillies turned around.

"Yeah?" Scootaloo asked. Royal pointed to his guitar.

"Before you go, would you like to hear a song?"

The fillies nodded.

"I'll play you one of my favorites." The girls came back and sat in a circle around him.

"My father taught me this song before he passed away." He began strumming.

Why are there so many songs about rainbows, and what's on the other side?
Rainbows are visions, but only illusions, and rainbows have nothing to hide.

So we've been told and some choose to believe it.
I know they're wrong, wait and see.
Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection.
The lovers, the dreamers, and me.

The fillies started swaying their heads to the music.

"I like this song. I bet whoever wrote it is a big Rainbow Dash fan!" Scootaloo said. Royal chuckled as he kept playing.

"Actually, I'm pretty sure this song was around long before she was."

Who said that every wish would be heard and answered
When wished on the morning star?
Somepony thought of that and someone believed it.
Look what it's done so far.

What's so amazing that keeps us stargazing
and what do we think we might see?
Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection.
The lovers, the dreamers, and me.

All of us under its spell.
We know that it's probably magic.

Have you been half asleep, and have you heard voices?
I've heard them calling my name.
Is this the sweet sound that calls the young sailors?
The voice might be one and the same.

I've heard it too many times to ignore it.
It's something that I'm supposed to be.

Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection.
The lovers, the dreamers, and me.

At the end of the song, the fillies rushed up to him.

"That was amazing, Royal!" Apple Bloom said.

"Can I sing it next time?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"You should sing it to Rainbow some time!" Scootaloo said.

"I'm glad you all liked it." Royal then heard a familiar voice from behind him.

"Liked it? Darling, we loved it!" The young stallion turned around to face Rarity, who had (obviously) spoken, along with the rest of the Mane 6.

"That's such a sweet song, Royal. Where did you learn it?" Twilight asked.

"My father taught it to me when I was about their age," he said, pointing to the crusaders. Twilight smiled.

"I bet whoever wrote it is a big fan of mine!" Rainbow said. Royal laughed.

"What's so funny?" she asked.

"Scootaloo said the exact same thing, almost word for word. It must be the old pegasus bonding at work. To answer your question, this song is older than any of us."

Applejack broke the brief silence. The Cutie Mark Crusaders had gone off on their own, as was their original plan.

"So, anypony else notice the weird weather patterns we've been having lately?" she said. Royal nodded.

"A tornado followed by a blizzard, but the snow melted in just a day. I've never seen anything like it, Applejack." he said. Rainbow came over to them.

"I'm on the weather team and even I have no idea what's going on. I'll take it up with headquarters later today."

"My Pinkie senses have been going off a lot lately!" Pinkie Pie said. Twilight nodded.

"Yes, and if I've learned anything about Pinkie since I met her, it's that her senses never lie."

"I've been having odd dreams lately. But then again, I've had weird dreams before that have meant absolutely nothing. I'm sure this is more of the same." Royal was trying to remain optimistic and brush off the perceived threat he was feeling.

"Rainbow told us all that you were feeling better, so we decided to drop by for a visit." Fluttershy said.

“I heal fast. It’s been in my family for years. We Blues might get black and blue at times, but it’s never too long before we’re
back on the go.” Royal spread his wings and took off into the sky. He flew through some clouds and performed some loops before coming in for a landing and settling on the ground. Rainbow, for one, was impressed. This was a far cry from the episode she had experienced that morning.

“I spent the whole morning flying around Ponyville, because I really needed the practice. I think I’m getting the hang of it again.”

“That's good. You really should come out with me and Scootaloo sometime.” Rainbow said.

"Sure thing. How about tomorrow?"

"Yeah! Tell Scoot about it when she gets home tonight! Well, we've got to go. Take care, Royal." Rainbow flew into the sky. The rest of the ponies bid him farewell and went their separate ways as well. Royal sat there for a moment, thinking about his current situation.

Finally, I get to take to the sky with Scootaloo! Life is good.

Later that day, Royal decided to get in some more flying practice. After all, he wanted to look like he was a halfway competent flyer in front of a heroic mare like Rainbow Dash. He zoomed through the clouds at a modest speed, for he wasn't nearly as fast as she was; no one could make such a claim unless they were lying. He looked back to see the ground from his current altitude. It had been a while since he had flown this high in the sky. Suddenly, he felt himself smack into something. Had he run into a cliff side or something like that?

“Hey! I’m flyin’ here!” Royal’s vision adjusted to the figure in front of him.

Holy moon princess! It’s a griffon! He regained his composure. He wasn’t stupid enough to make one of these creatures angry. He smiled, hoping to appear courteous.

“Hey there. What brings you ‘round these friendly skies?” The griffon did not share his enthusiasm.

“Listen and listen well, pony. I’m on a mission. I’m looking for a very important individual. A little pink pony. Have you seen her?” Royal nodded.

“Oh, you must mean Pinkie Pie! Wait…what business do you have with her?” he said, eying the stranger suspiciously.

“My business with her is none of your business. Now, kindly move out of my way!” Royal refused to budge. He had a bad feeling about the situation. This did not sit well with the griffon.

“What, exactly, do you think you’re doing? Do you not realize that I could kill you if you pushed me to it?”

“I don’t like your tone. Now tell me what you want with Pinkie Pie!” The griffon’s scowl turned into a crooked grin.

“Okay, okay. I’ll tell you exactly what I want with your little friend. See, I know someone. That stupid little pink pony hurt her deeply. I’ve come to hunt Pinkie Pie down and make her hurt the same way!” Royal held it in as well as he could, but his emotions got the better of him and he burst out laughing. Naturally, this angered the griffon.

“How dare you?” Royal stopped laughing immediately and stared his new adversary in the eye.

“How dare you? I’m sorry for your friend, but you’ve got the wrong mare, believe me! She’s one of the sweetest souls I’ve ever met!” The griffon, much to Royal’s surprise, began to back off.

“So, in other words, you’re not going to let me near her.” Royal shook his head.

“I’m afraid not, no. Now kindly let me get back to flying.” The angry bird displayed an evil grin.

“Okay, I’ll go. But mark my words, my little pony, I’ll be back sooner than you think.” The griffon turned around and flew back the way he came. Royal flew back toward Ponyville, with the griffon’s words etched upon his mind. Upon landing, he was greeted by none other than Pinkie herself.

“Hi Royal! Whatcha doin’?” The pink pony’s cheerfulness almost made him forget what he had to tell her. However, he retained his serious demeanor.

“Pinkie, watch your flank for the next few days.” With those words, the blue coated pegasus trotted away. Pinkie turned her head and stared at her cutie mark. After a few minutes, her neck began to feel sore, so she returned to her regular position.

“Silly Royal! There’s no way I can do that for three whole days!” Pinkie happily trotted back toward Sugar Cube Corner. She wondered, however, if he had meant something different with his words.

Got a griffon on my back, it's a griffon attack!

The griffon that Royal met earlier that day had finally reached his destination. It was a cave inside of a canyon, a hideout just south of Canterlot. He flew into the canyon, soaring until he reached the cave entrance, where a familiar face waited for him. He landed and greeted her.

"Hey Gilda. I think I may have finally found that Ponyville place you were talking about where that nasty pink pony lives." Gilda smiled.

"Good. I can't wait to get my hands on that stupid little dweeb. I would have just given you directions, but I blocked out the memories of that awful place after my experience. That little pink punk turned my former best friend against me!" Her expression changed to one of anger and sorrow.

"Dash was my only friend...until I met you, Paulie." She held back the tears, at Paulie's urging. Paulie hated to see her cry. He had vowed revenge on both Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash for what they had supposedly done to his close friend.

That stallion from earlier today said that he was friends with this Pinkie Pie. He didn't budge when I commanded him to take me to her. But that was when it was just me. There's strength in numbers, so they say. I think it's time me and my buddies pay him a little visit.

Later that night, under Luna's moon, a flock of griffons soared through the sky, actively searching for Ponyville, where they would find their target for the night. At that exact moment, Royal and Scootaloo were laying on their backs under a tree in their yard, watching the stars on this clear night.

"The stars look so awesome tonight." Scootaloo said.

"You've got that right, kiddo." Royal said. Suddenly, he remembered something he’d been meaning to say. He glanced over at the filly.

"Scootaloo?" She looked at him.

"Yeah?"

"Do you mind if I say something?"

"Sure." He paused before continuing.

"You know that I'm doing everything I can to give you a good home, right?" Scootaloo nodded.

"Yeah, I know. Thank you for taking me in."

"You're welcome." He paused again.

"I've been having weird feelings lately, like something bad's gonna happen." Both of them sat up, and then stood up.

"What I'm trying to say is…if anything should happen to me, I want you to know that I love you. Yeah, I know it's mushy, but we can't be macho all the time." Scootaloo ran and jumped up on his back, squeezing his neck in a hug.

"I love you, too." Royal began to walk with the filly riding on his back.

"Let's go inside. It's late." When they made it to the front door, Scootaloo slid off of Royal's back so he could get the door open. Once inside, it didn't take long before he heard a knock on the door.

"What the buck? Who could possibly be at the door at this hour? Scootaloo, stay here." She obeyed. Royal exited his house, only to see a group of griffons waiting for him. There must have been about six total. He recognized the one in the middle. It was Paulie, though Royal didn’t know his name because he'd never introduced himself.

"Well, if it isn't my little pony friend. So, blue boy, are you ready to fess up now?" Royal shook his head.

"First of all, if it's gonna take six of you to capture sweet little Pinkie Pie, that's pretty pathetic. That's okay, though, 'cause I wasn't gonna tell you anyway." The griffons laughed at him, as Scootaloo looked on from the window, terrified.

"You'd have to be awfully stupid to continue protecting your friend against six of us." Paulie said.

"Well, if stupid is what it takes..." Royal said; a slight smile on his face. He knew he was in for trouble, but he couldn't let these guys just waltz into his town and kidnap one of his friends. The lead griffon's smile turned upside down.

"Kill him." Appropriately, some thunderclouds rolled in as soon as Paulie had given the word.

Pinkie Pie woke up screaming, which in turn woke up everybody else in Sugar Cube Corner, including the babies, Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake. While Mrs. Cake tended to them, Mr. Cake rushed in to check on Pinkie.

"Pinkie! What's wrong, honey?" Her eyes grew wide, her breathing grew heavy.

"Friend...trouble...I've gotta go!" She dashed past Mr. Cake, nearly bowling him over in the process.

"Pinkie! Come back! It's storming out there!" Pinkie's father figure yelled, to no avail. Mrs. Cake came to his side, having settled the babies back to sleep.

"What's wrong with Pinkie Pie?" Mrs. Cake asked her husband. Mr. Cake shook his head.

"She said something about a friend, and trouble. Oh, Pinkie Pie. Be careful."

Royal stepped back to avoid a swinging claw from one of the griffons. He had been able to get a couple of blows in, but he knew he had to stay light on his feet or the numbers game would catch up with him and he would be a goner. Even if he did die, he wasn't about to sell out Pinkie Pie. Inside the house, Scootaloo had hidden under the blanket on Royal's bed, where she now slept every night.

This isn't real. Royal's not getting beaten down by a bunch of bullies outside. This is all just a bad dream. We'll wake up soon, and it will be a bright and sunny morning in Ponyville.

Outside, just as Royal had feared, the numbers game indeed had caught up to him. Two of the griffons held him in place as Paulie pummeled him. Every now and then, Paulie stopped to ask him a simple question.

"Are you ready to tell us where Pinkie Pie lives now?" Royal, his face starting to show signs of the beating, shook his head.

"Sorry. Your call did not go through. Please hang up, and go buck yourself." That earned him another solid blow in the face from the agitated bird.

"You know, we griffons are known to eat ponies." Royal grinned.

"Is that so? Well I hope you have a nice tall can of Spitfire Cola handy because I don’t go down easy!"

"We'll just see about that." Paulie, showing off his strength, ripped a tree from its roots and bashed Royal in the head, causing him to fall forward. Scootaloo, who heard him cry out in pain, had rushed to the window.

“Royal, no!” She saw the six griffons rise into the sky. They were going to converge on Royal for the killing blow. Scootaloo burst out the door and rushed to Royal’s side. She was crying.

“Royal! Get up! You’ve got to get out of here! Please, Royal!” Her self-appointed guardian did not respond.

"Royal, this can't...happen!" The young pony saw a flash of lightning, which lit up Paulie’s face, making him look ultra-terrifying to her. She cowered against Royal’s body. It was then that she remembered one of the greatest lessons her father had taught her. It was something Rainbow had repeated to her daily. She imagined both of them, side by side, lecturing her.

Scoot, if you’re going to be a Wonderbolt, you’ve got to be fearless. You’ve gotta laugh in the face of danger.

I’ve seen great potential in you, Scoots. Show me why you’re gonna be the best. The speech concluded with Rainbow speaking to the filly. She opened her eyes and stood up. She walked several steps in front of Royal. She looked up at the skies, at Royal’s oppressors.

“Griffons! Do you know who I am? I’m Scootaloo, from the town of Ponyville! I’m going to be the greatest Wonderbolt of all time! I'm not scared of the likes of you!” The griffon army was amused. Royal, having now regained consciousness, stared at the one who stood over him, protecting him.

"Scootaloo…why is she out here?”

“I’m going to kick you out of Ponyville myself! You hear me?” The army began laughing, and Royal looked on.

“Scootaloo!” She turned around.

“Royal, get inside! I’m not gonna let them hurt you!” She turned back to the griffon group.

“Come and get me!” The vicious birds did not need to be told that twice. They dove out of the sky, approaching Scootaloo. The brave filly stood her ground, her legs trembling at the thought of death.

“NOOOO!” Royal shouted in agony. Then, ignoring his injuries, he sprung up and ran toward Scootaloo. When he reached her, he spread his wings, levitating into the air. At that moment, a bolt of lightning was headed directly for the entire group. Royal used every bit of energy he had left to activate his special shield, protecting himself and Scootaloo from the bolt, which reflected off of the shield and headed straight for the griffon group, roasting each one of them.

Pinkie Pie was running along the road to Royal’s house when she saw a brilliant flash of light. She covered her eyes in order to avoid being permanently blinded. This only lasted a few seconds. She opened her eyes and noticed that the storm was now over. She could see the weather team clearing the skies. She kept running until she came across the scene and let out a gasp. She saw Royal and Scootaloo, both laid out on the ground. Surrounding them were several griffons, burned to a crisp. She ran over to her friends.

“Royal! Scootaloo! Are you okay? You’ve got to wake up! Please, wake up!” Pinkie began shaking Royal's body, then Scootaloo's, which was probably not the best way to treat an unconscious lifeform. However, it worked. Both ponies opened their eyes at the same time. Pinkie had tears in hers. Royal and Scootaloo faced each other, lying on their sides.

"Well, it's over. We did it, kiddo!" Royal said, with a big smile on his face. He then noticed Pinkie Pie.

"Pinkie Pie...what are you doing here?" She helped him sit up.

“Royal! You’re okay! My Pinkie sense told me you were in trouble!” She was ecstatic that he was alive.

“I was.” He pointed toward the fried bird bodies. “But Scootaloo saved my life.” He and Pinkie looked at her, but she shook her head. The filly had tears in her eyes.

“It was Rainbow Dash. I know it was! That was her lightning bolt! She knew we were in trouble!" Scootaloo's thoughts were confirmed when a familiar figure came flying through the clouds and landed right next to Pinkie Pie. She surveyed the damage, and then turned to Royal and Scootaloo.

"Oh my gosh! Are you two okay?" The sky blue mare asked her friends. Scootaloo tackled her, nearly bowling her over.

"Shh, it's okay, kiddo. I'm here now." She consoled her young protege. Royal stood up, noting some pain in various body parts.

"We're fine. Thanks, Rainbow. Did you see Scootaloo stand up to those bullies? She was awesome!" Rainbow patted the filly's head.

"Darn right you were, Scoots!" Rainbow suddenly noticed that Pinkie was standing next to her.

"Oh, hey Pinkie. What are you doing here? Wait, let me guess, Pinkie sense." Pinkie nodded.

"You got it!" There was one more question on the girls' minds. Rainbow asked it.

"Royal, why were those griffons trying to kill you, anyway?" Royal looked over at Pinkie, then back to Rainbow.

"It's a long story. They're after somepony, and I'm not about to sell out. Tell you what, let's have a meeting at the library tomorrow with Twilight and the others. I'll explain everything then, I promise." The girls nodded.

"Okey Dokey lokey! Good night, everypony!" Pinkie, her joyous spirit returned, trotted away in her usual manner. Rainbow stayed for a little while longer. She still held Scootaloo close to her.

"So, are you still up for flying tomorrow?" Royal asked her. She looked at him, surprised.

"After all you went through, you still want to fly?" He nodded.

"It's not like they broke my wings or anything. Besides, I promised Scootaloo we'd go. I can rest up after our little meeting tomorrow.” Rainbow smiled. She was growing more impressed with the Fillydelphian with each passing encounter.

“You’ve got yourself a deal! But…it’s kinda late. Let’s push it back to, say, noon, all right?” Royal nodded.

“Sweet! See you two bright and early!” Rainbow flew off into the night sky. Royal sat there, chuckling.

“Bright and early, she says. Rainbow Dash, you are a riot!” His expression softened. “You’re also a bigger hero than you realize.” He brought the now-sleeping Scootaloo back into the house with him and put her to bed. He kissed her on the forehead.

Thanks kid. No matter what they say, you're the most incredible pony I know. He then settled onto his sofa and fell asleep in an instant. After all, there’s no way he wanted to be too tired to fly with his favorite filly.

The next morning in the aptly named Swelter Canyon, Gilda was stirred from her sleep by a tap on the head. As her vision adjusted, she saw that it was Paulie, burned to a well-done black color. Naturally, this presented her with all sorts of questions.

“Paulie! What happened to you?” Paulie slammed his claw against the cave wall.

“Forget about Pinkie Pie! She’s impossible to find!” Gilda turned to him, amused.

“What do you mean, impossible to find?” The charred griffon was in no laughing mood.

“There’s a blue stallion protecting her. I can’t get rid of him no matter what I do!” Gilda’s expression did not change.

“So? Just dust him and get on with the Pinkie search!” Paulie’s head turned on a swivel and brought the rest of his body with it.

“You don’t understand. That blue stallion has some kind of magical, mystical voodoo power! He called upon the power of lightning to smite 5 of our friends last night!” This got Gilda’s attention. A devious smile formed on her face.

“I don’t deal in magic, but I think I just got an idea! Listen here, Paulie.” Gilda spilled out the details of her entire plan to her friend, whose own grin became more malicious with each sentence.

“If we can do that, we can harness that power for our own! Then we can rule Equestria, you and me, Gilda!” Paulie said, his eyes filled with fire. “And with a little help from our friends, Equestria will be no more. Only Griffonia will remain!” Paulie ventured further into the cave. Gilda just stared at him.

“Griffonia? Really?” she snarked. Paulie just shook his head.

“Come, my dear. We have much to discuss about that blue bandit!”

Meanwhile, morning had arrived in Ponyville as well. Royal was up bright and early to watch the sunrise. He had not forgotten the events of the previous night. He reached over to grab something when he felt the presence of another next to him. Scootaloo, as it turned out, had joined him in sleeping on the sofa. Royal decided it would be best not to disturb the young sleeper, so he made sure to step lightly as he made his way over to grab a leftover muffin from the new batch Pinkie had brought him just a few days prior. However, on the way back to the sofa, he tripped over Scootaloo’s scooter and made a loud crashing noise. Predictably, this woke her up. She looked around before gasping at the sight of her guardian sprawled out on the ground.

“Royal? Oh no! I’m so sorry! I didn’t want it to sit out in the rain so I brought it inside!” He resumed his position on the sofa as she was talking.

“It’s okay, Scoot. You can do whatever you want as far as I’m concerned. You saved my life last night.” The pink-maned filly shook her head again.

“Royal, it was Rainbow Dash, remember?”

“Don’t be so modest, kid. I wouldn’t be here talking with you right now if you hadn’t come out and distracted those griffons.” Scootaloo thought for a moment. She leaned up against him, her eyes filling up with tears as she realized how awful the morning could have been. She couldn’t bear to lose someone else so soon after the accident.

“What I said out there…I was just making stuff up to distract them from hurting you. I can’t fly. I’ve never been able to fly. All I ever wanted was to be like Rainbow Dash. She’s the coolest pony I’ve ever seen. I’m surprised she talks to a loser like me.” Royal held her close.

“I’m not special, and I’m pretty sure the only reason Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle like me is because we’re all blank flanks.” Royal just continued to hold her. She was depressed.

Finally, Royal decided he couldn’t take it anymore.

“Scootaloo, stop it! This negativity has no place in my home!” She looked up at him.

“Why do you always sell yourself short? What you did last night; that took guts, kid. That took the confidence of ten Rainbow Dashes! And you did it! I never could have done that at your age.”

"You mean that?" He nodded.

"Oh yeah. You're more like Rainbow than you realize, kid. I've only known you a short time, but I've seen the way you interact with your friends, and how you carry yourself. Even if you were just making that stuff up last night, standing up to a bunch of griffons that could have torn me to shreds, that was amazing. Sure, Rainbow helped out, but you’re the one who protected me." He hugged her again.

"Sky's the limit, Scootaloo. Think about it. You get to tell all your friends at school about how you saved my life. And no matter what anypony says, you'll always be special to me. Don't you ever forget that." Scootaloo hugged him back. Both of them had tears in their eyes now. They sat in that position for a few minutes, then Royal looked out the window and noticed the sky had grown a bit brighter.

“Hey kid, as long as we’re up let’s watch the sunrise. I haven't done that in a while.” Scootaloo snuggled up next to him as they watched the sun come up over the horizon.

"Do you really think I can do anything?"

"Anything you want. There's no such thing as impossible. And I will always be rooting for you." Scootaloo hugged him as the pair drifted back to sleep. They had survived a vicious ordeal together, and now it was time for some well-deserved rest.

Setting his concerns aside, Royal tells all at Twilight's treehouse

Royal fell asleep again. It was hard not to while watching Scootaloo curl up against him. They slept until about 11:00, which meant both of them popped out of bed with youthful vigor. They knew they weren’t going to let themselves miss this of all opportunities.

Eventually, the pair made it to the park.

“This looks like the place. Lots of wide open space here.” Royal said.

“Yeah, this is where me and Rainbow go all the time.” As soon as she said that, a rainbow streak sped right between them and continued into the sky.

“Look at that, Scoot. She started without us! That’s not fair!” He took off into the sky with Scootaloo riding on his back. Royal soared until he spotted her, basking on a cloud. He flew over and stepped onto the cloud.

Huh. I forgot I could walk on clouds. The joys of being a Pegasus. Royal tapped her on the head, which got her attention. She opened her eyes.

“Oh, hey. It’s about time you and the kid got here!” she said.

“Rainbow, you told us to be here at noon, and we’re 15 minutes early.” Royal snarked. Rainbow quickly made it to a standing position.

"Really? In that case..." she purposely took her legs out from under her, causing her to fall back into her previous state.

"come back in about 15 minutes." Royal moaned. Scootaloo, who had been on his back the whole time, whispered something in his ear. He lifted his head and grinned.

"Go for it, kiddo!" he whispered back to her. He turned his body to the side so the filly had plenty of room to jump. Scootaloo mimicked a diving board routine, leaping off of Royal's back and plunging flank-first into Rainbow's stomach. That woke her up in a hurry.

"Hey! What's the big..." she opened her eyes to see her favorite kid's grinning face.

"Rainbow Daaaaaaaaaaaash! I want to go flying! You said we were gonna go right nowwwwwwwwww!"

"5 more minutes, kid. I need my beauty sleep." Royal laughed, much louder than he intended. Rainbow turned her head up to look at him.

"What are you laughing at?"

"Beauty sleep, huh? Since when does the great Rainbow Dash use beauty-anything as an excuse?" he said, trying and failing to stifle another giggle. Rainbow suddenly turned beet red. She looked like a completely different pony.

"Come on, Scoot. Last one to the ground's a Fillydelphia Fried chicken!" Royal said. Scoot hopped on his back and the two of them took off, leaving a still-embarrassed Rainbow Dash in their wake.

Royal Blue, I am going to get you for that!

"Wait for me, you two!" she yelled as she chased after them. Royal was still laughing as he soared through the sky, pulling off basic flight stunts along the way.

A couple of minutes later, Royal came in for a landing and let Scootaloo off of his back. Almost immediately, he was tackled from behind. He turned his body to look up. Standing triumphantly over him was Rainbow. She wasn’t mad, but her expression was one of amused annoyance.

“You told her to do that, didn’t you?” she pointed at Scootaloo, staring Royal in the face. Royal innocently scratched the back of his neck.

“Who, me?” Rainbow scowled, but then she smiled.

“D’aaaaw, I can’t stay mad at you guys. All right, Royal. Show me what you’ve got!” Royal raised his eyebrow.

“Is that a challenge?” Dash nodded.

“Of course. Just who the hay do you think I am?”

Rainbow and Royal showed off for the young filly, thought it was mostly the Rainbow Dash show. Royal was just as awed as Scootaloo at the tricks Rainbow was pulling off. But there was something tugging at the young one’s mind. Rainbow looked down after finishing her latest trick. She descended from the sky and landed next to Scootaloo.

“What’s up, kid? You’ve been pretty quiet for the last few minutes.” Scootaloo looked up.

“Could you…could you take me up to the nearest cloud?” Rainbow nodded. When they reached their destination, Scoot hopped down from her idol’s back and stared into the sky. Rainbow was dumbfounded.

“You know kid, if you wanted to do that, I could have just left you on the ground.” She got no response from Scoot. Moments later, however, the filly finally spoke.

“Hello, mom.” Scootaloo began. Rainbow’s eyes went wide. Of course! Today was Mother’s Day. How could she have forgotten? It was a very tragic Mother’s Day in light of current events. Scootaloo’s shoulders began to shake.

“It’s Mother’s Day today, and I just wanted to say that I love you. I know that we were mad at each other the last time I saw you, but none of that matters now.” A tear dropped from her eye. Rainbow quietly crept up next to her.

“I miss you so much, mommy. I’ll always be your little girl…” Scootaloo’s voice cracked and so did she. She began sobbing.

Rainbow was quick to grab the filly in a tight hug. Royal, who had flown up to see what was happening, quietly watched them. This was their moment, and he didn’t want to impose. When the time was right, he approached them and turned his own gaze to the sky.

“Mother, I apologize. I almost forgot what day it was. Happy Mother’s Day.” Scootaloo and Rainbow looked over.

That’s right…he lost his parents when he was young, too. Rainbow remembered the story he’d told.

“Not a day goes by that I don’t think of you and your beautiful smile. I love you, I miss you, and I hope Dad isn’t being too much of a headache.” The young stallion emitted a small chuckle. He felt something brush up beside him. This strange sensation was Scootaloo hugging his leg. Rainbow hugged the rest of him, and he hugged them back. The three decided to watch the sunset together. From high in the sky, it looked even more majestic. As the moon came up, they caught a glimpse of Princess Luna. They waved at her and called out to her. She likely could not hear them, but she did happen to turn her head at the right time and waved back.

After this, it was time for them to head back to Ponyville. Royal carried a tired Scootaloo on his back as he and Rainbow walked back toward the library.

“So…about this meeting…how are you going to break the news that you almost died?” Rainbow asked. Royal shook his head.

“I’ll just flat-out say a group of griffons tried to kill me. It’s the honest truth.”

“Now you’re sounding like Applejack. Brutally honest to the core. I like it.”

The trio finally made it inside the library. Gathered inside were Twilight and her friends, along with Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom.

“Well, the gang’s all here.” Royal said, noting everyone’s presence. Twilight noticed him.

“Oh good, you made it! Okay everypony, this meeting is officially underway!” Apple Bloom turned to her friends.

“That’s our cue to leave, girls!” The three of them went up to Twilight’s loft, but they ended up spying on the meeting, unknown to the older ponies. Twilight began.

“Royal, I understand you have something you have to tell us.” The richly blue Pegasus stepped forward.

“Yes I do, Twilight.” Royal paused, and then he continued.

“Last night, Scootaloo and I were stargazing. Soon enough, we decided to go to bed. After we stepped inside, I heard a knock at the door.” Royal went on to describe the entire story in detail, including how Scootaloo saved his life. Rainbow filled in on certain parts, such as how she bucked a cloud at just the right time to send a lightning strike into the fray. The other ponies were shocked, understandably, at this revelation.

“Royal dear, how did you get involved with those ruffians in the first place?” Rarity asked. He took a deep breath.

“Will you believe me if I tell it to you straight?”

“Of course we will, sugar cube. You’ve never given us any reason to doubt you.” Applejack said, offering a reassuring smile. Royal took another deep breath. He looked into Pinkie Pie’s eyes.

“Revenge.” he said.

“Revenge?!” The other ponies cried in unison.

“I ran into the leader of these griffons a few days ago while flying just south of town. Apparently Pinkie Pie emotionally damaged his friend so much that he wants to get revenge on Pinkie. As you can probably imagine, I didn’t let him, which is why I almost died. I may not be a lifelong resident of Ponyville, but I’ll protect it and its inhabitants, even if it kills me. That’s the story, up to now.” The others approached him.

“Royal, why didn’t you tell us about this earlier? You could have died and we never would have known about it.” Twilight asked. Royal shrugged.

“To be honest, I thought I could handle it myself. I was wrong, though. I guess I didn’t want any of you in danger.” Rainbow turned her head to look at him.

“Yeah, that’s real sweet and all, but we’re the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, if you didn’t know. We turned Nightmare Moon back into Princess Luna. We turned Discord back into Princess Celestia’s favorite garden decoration. We even helped Princess Cadance and Shining Armor pay back Queen Chrysalis and her pale imitation army for almost ruining the royal wedding! We can handle ourselves just fine.” Rainbow said, smiling.

“What Rainbow is trying to say is that you are very sweet for thinking of us like that, but we’ll be okay.” Fluttershy said in a soft, gentle tone. Applejack approached him.

“She also meant to say that if those griffons come back, we won’t let you fight them alone.” Finally, Pinkie walked up to him. She was close to tears, obviously having heard everything he’d said.

“So this is what you meant.” He nodded. She got a bit closer, and then hugged him. Royal hadn’t expected this. He returned her hug, feeling just a bit awkward as all eyes were on him, even those of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who still watched from the loft. Pinkie finally released him.

“Thank you.” The tender tone of his favorite party animal had taken him completely by surprise. He had never seen her so…calm, so vulnerable. Though, it could have had something to do with the fact that he almost died just to protect her.

Twilight resumed the meeting once Pinkie had gathered herself.

“The question remains…what do we do now? We have to expect another raid by the griffons.” Fluttershy trembled in fear. Rainbow grinned.

“Oh, I don’t think we have to worry about them.” Royal remembered the previous night as well.

“Yes, this might be in poor taste, but Rainbow scorched those griffons like a well-done daffodil burger!” The rest of the group recoiled in horror at his statement. An awkward silence followed.

“Sorry, I have a really twisted sense of humor. You girls aren’t used to it, and that’s okay. My point is that this little spat is over. Let’s all go back to our nice little lives here in Ponyville.”

“Yee-haw! Who’s up for some cider at Sweet Apple Acres tomorrow night?” Applejack said. Her friends yelled in agreement. It was decided: everything was back to normal, and Royal looked forward to growing old with his new friends and raising Scootaloo into a beautiful young mare.

Back within the limits of Griffon Village, Gilda was busy tending to a bandaged Paulie.

“The doc says you’re gonna need a few months to heal up, Paulie. Makes sense, I mean, you almost died, after all.” Paulie sat and stewed in his anger.

“I should have died along with them…but I didn’t. Do you know what this means?”

“You’re the luckiest son of a namby pamby princess who ever lived?” Gilda asked.

“No…it means something much deeper, my dear. I’m clearly meant to defeat that blue colored fiend!” He’s relaxing now, but mark my words…in a few months that boy will rest…in…peace.” He began to laugh, which saw Gilda join in with him. She wondered if it was such a good idea, however, to change their focus. She only wanted revenge on Pinkie. She had no interest in Paulie’s new antagonist, this “Blue Boy.” And when she said she wanted revenge, she maybe just wanted to humiliate Pinkie in the same way as Pinkie and her former best friend had humiliated her at the party. Dash had run her out of town like she was some kind of criminal. She had sat dormant for a little while, but now it was time to strike. In a little while, the wait would be over.

The next afternoon, Royal found himself starving. Scootaloo had not yet returned home from school, so he was alone again, naturally. As he got up from the sofa, he felt his stomach rumble. At that moment, he felt like a traitor to his body. He had given himself a lazy day…having fallen back asleep immediately after giving Scootaloo her good morning hug, and had slept until this exact time of the day. Given a few minutes, however, he was perfectly wide awake and ready to take on what remained of a beautiful Ponyville afternoon. The fact remained that he was starving.

“Guess I should go over to Sweet Apple Acres or Sugar Cube Corner.” One second later, he heard a knock at the door.

Okay, but make it quick. I’m starving. He opened the door to see Pinkie standing there.

“Oh, hi Pinkie. What brings you here?”

“Hiya, Royal!” He could see that she had the usual bounce in her step, which was good.

“Oh, where are my manners? Come in, Pinkie!” The pair moved into his main room, and Pinkie set something on the table.

The mysterious item piqued Royal’s curiosity.

“What’s that?” Pinkie smiled.

“Why don’t you open it and find out?” she said, in her typical bubbly tone. She needed to say no more. He quickly dispensed with the top of the box, which revealed a cake. His eyes immediately went to what was inscribed on it in icing:

To my #1 protector.

He sat there for several moments, reading the text over and over. After that, he turned back to her. She had moved closer to him. This allowed her to give him another hug. Royal held her again, not as shocked as he was the night before. When she eventually pulled away, she started to speak.

“Thank you, Royal. You’re the best protector ever.” They both smiled. The response was short, sweet, and above all else, it was totally Pinkie Pie.

“That’s me,” he said. Pinkie started toward the door, but then she turned around.

“I know what Rainbow Dash said last night. But even the element bearers need help sometimes.” Within a few seconds, she was back to normal Pinkie.

“See ya later, alligator!” Pinkie happily waved as she walked backwards out of Royal’s house. Royal smiled.

The bruises will heal with time. I'd get beat up a thousand times to keep my favorite party pony safe. That griffon was really full of it.

Meanwhile, “that griffon” rested in his hospital bed. He was dreaming; dreaming of a scheme to capture that meddling blue pony and destroy him. As he dreamed, a smile formed on his face. Gilda watched him sleep. She could have sworn she heard him muttering about something, but she couldn’t tell exactly what it was. Her mind just kept repeating the same thing.

I want to humiliate that little pink dweeb. She took my best friend away from me. Guess what, Pinkie? Soon…

A smile formed on Gilda’s face as she, too, fell asleep in Paulie’s room.

Royal Pains

That summer turned into one of the greatest of Royal's life. He grew even closer to Scootaloo during this time. Scoots would never have admitted it, but she was quite heartbroken when Rainbow Dash didn't take her in, instead suggesting the filly's current living situation. At the time, she wanted to be respectful of Royal's feelings, so she never brought it up. However, her secret desire to live with her hero was always there. At least it was until the night Royal protected her from those griffons. She, in turn, with the help of Rainbow Dash, defended him from the final wrath of the gang. From that point on, Royal and Scootaloo were as close as siblings.

Royal branched out and met more ponies in the past few months. They included two friendly pegasi named Cloud Chaser and Flitter. He met the former in town, and accompanied her to lunch. He had met the latter sometime after that. Royal had a case of “small world” when he found out that the two similar looking ponies were, in fact, best friends. While he did meet plenty of new friends, he grew ever closer to his older friends, specifically the element bearers. He had stayed up late on several nights discussing literature with Twilight. He had lent a helping hoof to the Apple family during their busy season and had really formed a bond with Apple Bloom. Pinkie Pie enlisted him to help her bake some treats for that year’s Summer Sun Celebration, an episode that led to some playful moments between them, such as having whipped cream wars. When one of Fluttershy’s pet birds suddenly died, he was there offering moral support every day until she got better. He even served as a model for Rarity as she tried out some new stallion-oriented designs.

And then there was Rainbow Dash. Royal got to spend the most time with her, mainly through his interactions with her and Scootaloo. He found it highly amusing how similar they were. If he had just met them the other day, he could have easily assumed that they were sisters. Royal had always wanted a kid sister, and he felt like he had that with Scootaloo. He didn’t make her call him her father or anything like that. He was the older brother she had never had, and she was the sister he had never had. Rainbow was like a cool, older sister to both of them; she was two years older than Royal and had started calling him nicknames usually reserved for Scootaloo. He didn’t mind; he knew that she was just teasing him like any friend or sibling would.

On this fine afternoon, Royal was relaxing in his home. Scootaloo had gone to Sugar Cube Corner in order to meet up with her fellow crusaders and have some delicious treats. After that, they were going crusading for a while, so he knew she would not be back right away. As long as the three of them didn’t stay out too long, he was okay with it. He nodded off to sleep, with a simple thought in his head.

Life is awesome…

Royal woke up several hours later. He got up from the sofa and peered into Scootaloo’s room. She wasn’t there. He scratched his head.

“Scootaloo’s more responsible than this. Maybe they had a sleepover and she forgot to tell me?” It was a reasonable explanation, but he knew better than what his brain told him to say. He shook his head.

“I know! I’ll go to Sugar Cube Corner!” Royal opened his front door, spread his wings, and soared into the sky. Along the way, he heard somepony call his name. He peered down, noticing that a lone mare stood below him. At that moment, he noticed that he was passing by Sweet Apple Acres. He landed next to the mare.

“Royal! Apple Bloom hasn’t come home yet! Do you know anything about this?” Applejack’s tone was one of worry. She loved her sister dearly. He shook his head again.

“Scootaloo didn’t come home, either. I figure those fillies lost track of time, or something’s really wrong.” Applejack’s heart sank.

“Oh no…Apple Bloom…poor, sweet, little Apple Bloom.” Applejack began to cry softly. Royal noticed this and held a hoof up to her eyes, drying her tears. He offered a reassuring smile.

“Don’t worry, AJ. Nothing’s gonna happen to those kids. Trust me. I was on my way to Pinkie’s place. You want to come with?” She nodded, sniffling.

Eventually, the pair made it to Sugar Cube Corner. The place was a mess. There were definite signs of a struggle. Pots and pans were all over the floor. What caught Royal’s eye was the sight of Pinkie Pie, huddled in a corner with a fearful expression while cuddling Pound and Pumpkin Cake.

“Pinkie!” The pair rushed over to her. Mr. and Mrs. Cake approached Royal.

“We’ve been trying to get her to talk, but she won’t say anything to us!” Mr. Cake said. Royal turned to Pinkie, and then back to the Cakes.

“Maybe she’ll talk to me.”

He approached her with a gentle smile. The moment she noticed it was him she gently set the babies down and bolted for him, nearly knocking him over as she embraced him. It was then that the sobs started. They did not stop for a good five minutes, and then Pinkie let go. Royal was about to ask his question, but she started telling the story anyway. It had been a fairly ordinary day by Ponyville standards. Pinkie had received a surprise visit from the Cutie Mark Crusaders. She visited with them and gave them some treats. Just as they were leaving, a group of griffons entered the shop. They grabbed the fillies, left a note on the front counter, and made an incredibly awful threat as they left.

“He…he said if I told anypony…he would…he…would…eat Pound and Pumpkin!” Pinkie began to cry again. This time, Applejack rushed to her aid. Royal turned toward the door and started walking, grabbing the note as he did so.

“Where are y’all going?” Applejack asked him.

“I never told them my name, but I’m going to make sure they remember it…forever!” Pinkie tried to stop him.

“Royal, no! They’re after you! They’ll hurt you!”

“Not if I hurt them first.” He turned to Applejack.

“Applejack, stay here and protect her. I’ll have Bloomy and the others back by morning. Count on it.” Applejack nodded.

“All right, but be careful, sugar cube.”

“I will.” Royal headed out the door. Once outside, he spread his wings and took off.

I will…unless something happens to those kids. Then all bets are off!

Not too long after he left, the group heard a knock on the door. Naturally, they freaked out…until they heard a familiar voice.

“Hello? Pinkie darling, are you home?” It was Rarity. Everypony breathed a sigh of relief.

“Come in!” Mrs. Cake said. Rarity was surprised to find Applejack at SCC so late at night.

“Applejack? What are…oh no!” The fashionista was about to faint. Applejack steadied her friend.

“Don’t worry, Rarity. Royal’s on his way to settle all of this right now!”

“Settle what? Where is my dear Sweetie Belle?” Applejack knew she was not going to take the news well. But she had a duty to tell her friend what had happened.

When AJ finished, Rarity did, in fact, pass out. Luckily, Mr. Cake caught her before she hit her head on the floor.

“I knew she wouldn’t like that.” AJ said. She looked over and saw that Pinkie had gone to sleep, still cradling the foals in her arms. The cowpony smiled.

Sleep well, sugar cube. You heard Royal. He’ll have everything taken care of by morning…I hope.

Royal flew as fast as he could toward Swelter Canyon, the destination in the ransom letter. His mind raced as he tried to make sense of everything. Why was this happening? He thought hearing about the barbecuing of seven other griffons would keep the rest of them from ever coming back to Ponyville and the surrounding area. He started to worry about the fillies, and that caused him to fly even faster toward the canyon.

These griffons don’t know who they’re messing with. They’d better be ready, because I will kill to protect those kids!

The Cutie Mark Crusaders cowered before their kidnappers. The day had started out so normally for the three fillies. Out of all of the griffons, Scootaloo recognized the leader immediately.

“Hey! I know you!” The filly said, becoming angry. “You tried to hurt Royal!” Paulie’s lips formed an evil smile as he now recognized her.

“Aren’t you surprised to see me?” Scoots shook her head.

“Actually, I could care less.” The villainous griffon nearly fell on his face. This got a chuckle out of the other griffons, including Gilda. She stared at the filly, a strange sensation coming over her.

Heh heh! She got you good, Paulie. That little spitfire reminds me of…Dash. Gilda was brought out of her trance by the shrill yelling of her best friend.

“You’ve got spunk, filly! I hate spunk!” Scootaloo stood her ground; Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom trembled in fear.

How is she so…not afraid? Sweetie wondered.

It must be all that time with Rainbow Dash. Apple Bloom thought, unknowingly answering her fellow crusader’s question.

Paulie was growing annoyed with the young upstart.

“State your name, filly.”

“You know my name, you featherbrain. I’m Scootaloo!” The griffons in the room stopped laughing and stared at Paulie. They knew how violent he could get if pushed to it. Indeed, Paulie was comically raging. After a few moments, however, he calmed down. That evil smile came back, and he began cackling.

“I’ll show you to be so brash, young filly! What you don’t realize is that I have an entire army at my disposal. If you breathe wrong, I can give the order for them to level your precious little village!” Scootaloo took a step back, not wanting to draw his ire any further.

“I’ve got a better suggestion!” The crusaders heard a familiar voice. Royal poked his head out from the darkness.

“You let the kids go, and I don’t report your actions to Princess Celestia and Princess Luna!” Paulie thought his predicament over for a second. The girls ran to Royal and hugged him.

“Hey, you three! Don’t worry, I’m here now. I’m going to beat down these ugly birds and then we can all go home.” He turned around and faced the griffon again. Paulie grinned.

“Actually, I’ve had a change of heart. Little ones, you are free to go! Run along home, now!” This threw everyone for a loop. Royal turned to the fillies.

“You heard him. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, your sisters are worried sick about you. Scootaloo, you can hang out with them tonight, okay?” The three fillies looked worried.

“Aren’t you coming?” Scootaloo asked.

“In a minute. I’ve got to make sure ol’ featherbrain over here is gonna keep his word and let you go.” Royal turned back to the griffons.

“You heard him, Cutie Mark Crusaders! Move out!” Scootaloo commanded. The girls marched toward the exit; they soon disappeared completely.

“Hmm, I’m impressed, featherhead. You actually stuck to your word. Well, if you’ll excuse me, I’d better join the girls.” Royal turned around to head for the exit himself, relieved that this business, however strange, was finally over. Paulie motioned toward an unseen source as the young stallion walked away. Suddenly, a bolt of energy whizzed toward him. Royal never saw it coming. The bolt stunned him. Paulie conducted the mystery force as it continued its assault on his enemy. Royal felt his entire body raise from the ground.

“Hey! What’s going on? I can fly just fine on my own, thank you!” Those would be the last words he would speak that night. The mysterious magic field controlled his body as it smashed into one of the walls inside the canyon cave. A couple of hard blows were all it took; Royal was knocked out cold; he was now in the clutches of the enemy.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders headed toward Ponyville, following Royal’s instructions. They hadn’t stopped, figuring he was kicking flank and taking names. He was fine, or so they thought. The only question now was how were they going to get home? It seemed like a long way back to Ponyville. Would they have to camp out for a night while on their way back? They had never been this far away from home aside from that one field trip to Canterlot, which kickstarted that whole Discord fiasco. One thing was certain; the Cutie Mark Crusaders were lost. Or, at least they thought they were.

“Hey! Where are you kids at? Apple Bloom? Sweetie Belle? Scootaloo?” The trio heard a familiar, scratchy voice. Their faces lit up with joy.

“It’s Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo said. They yelled to her, getting her attention.

Sweet, I found ‘em! Rainbow landed right next to them.

“You three are a sight for sore eyes!” She received a group tackle-hug from the fillies, nearly knocking her over.

“Hey, hey, easy now. It’s okay. What were you three doing all the way out here, anyway?” The trio was dumbfounded. Hadn’t she been briefed on all of this?

“Rainbow…we were kidnapped!” Sweetie Belle said. Rainbow’s protective impulses went off. Her expression changed.

“Kidnapped? By who?” The pegasus was really angry now. If she had a super form, she likely would have transformed at that moment.

“Griffons…” Apple Bloom chimed in. The revelation hit Rainbow like a ton of bricks. She thought back to the explanation Twilight and Applejack gave her. She had bolted from her evening cloud as soon as Twilight finished saying “We need you to find the Cutie Mark Crusaders!” She hadn’t stuck around for the rest of it; a decision she now regretted.

“Wait…if you were kidnapped, how did you escape?” Scootaloo stepped forward.

“Royal came and rescued us. He said he was going to stay behind and make sure we got away. Then he was gonna kick all their ugly flanks!” she said. Rainbow’s face held a skeptical expression.

“That crazy kid! I’m gonna go help him. But first, I’ve got to get you home. Come climb on, all three of you!” Rainbow lowered herself so the crusaders could get on her back. Once they were ready, the rainbow maned pony took off, relieved that nothing had happened to her three favorite fillies.

Applejack heard a knock on the door. She stayed up as long as she could, but sleep had overtaken the mare with the cute southern accent. Barely awake, she kept her guard up in case it was an attack. In a way it was. When Apple Bloom was reunited with her sister, she attacked her with a tackle hug. Rainbow and the remaining crusaders left, smiling as Rainbow closed the door, seeing Bloom and AJ engage in some playful wrestling.

Poor Rarity had cried herself to sleep worrying about the whereabouts of her precious baby sister. She heard a knock on the front door of the Carousel Boutique. Showing how out of it she was, the knock hardly phased her. She could have cared less if a band of griffons grabbed her and flew off with her. Slowly, the fashionista crawled out of bed and set her hooves on the floor. She walked through the house until she finally reached the door. Opening it, she immediately perked up when she saw Sweetie. Her eyes began to water.

“Oh! Sweetie Belle! I’ve been so worried!” Sweetie didn’t even get a word in; Rarity pulled her into a tight embrace. After sobbing for a couple minutes, she let Sweetie go and hugged Rainbow tightly, nearly choking the heroic mare.

“Oh thankyouthankyouthankyou!” Rarity said, finally letting go of Rainbow a few moments later.

“You’re welcome, Rarity. Good night.” Rainbow said with a smile. She and Scootaloo left.

The pair walked along, heading back toward Sweet Apple Acres. Scootaloo looked up at Rainbow.

“Rainbow?”

“Yeah?”

“Royal told me I could sleep at Apple Bloom’s tonight.” Rainbow smiled down at the young filly.

“That’s why we’re going. It’s better than you being alone.” They seemed to reach their destination in no time at all.

“Here we are. Try and get some sleep, okay?” Rainbow said. Scootaloo nodded. Rainbow leaned down and gave the young filly an affectionate peck on the forehead.

“Good night, squirt. Have fun.” Scootaloo smiled. She had been used to Royal kissing her good night, but this was something extra special to get one from her hero. Scootaloo turned around and headed inside the confines of the Apple family’s domain. Rainbow smiled as she watched the filly walk away.

Rainbow flew up to a nearby cloud. She was too tired to go back to her house, so she figured she would take advantage of her natural pegasus right to sleep on a cloud. Sleep came surprisingly quick for her. She dreamed of flying with the Wonderbolts, as usual, and what she was gonna say to tease that courageous young stallion in her life. A young stallion whose courageousness she hoped hadn’t gotten him killed.

"Oh Royal...I hope you're okay..."

The Rescue Mission

Apple Bloom woke up a few hours later. She didn’t know what time it was, but the fact that the moon still lit up the sky meant that it wasn’t time to wake up yet. She was about to fall back asleep when she heard a noise. Scootaloo tossed and turned in her sleep. The fillies were sharing Apple Bloom’s bed at the moment. Bloom knew she had to do something about her friend’s behavior. She pinned Scootaloo to one spot. Realizing she was restricted, Scootaloo woke up to her close friend staring at her, concerned.

“Apple Bloom!” she said, relieved. Bloom rolled over, allowing her friend to catch her breath. But as Scootaloo tried, she started crying. This got her an immediate hug from Bloom.

“What’s the matter, sugar cube?” It was the first time Scoots had ever heard her use big sister Applejack’s favorite term of endearment. After some good, hard sobbing, Scootaloo calmed down enough to talk.

“It was Royal. He was fighting all of the griffons at once. He…he didn’t make it!” On that note, Scoots continued to cry while being held by her best friend.

“I know, I know. I’m scared, too. But it’s okay. Rainbow said she was going to help him. Those two together can’t lose.” Bloom smiled as she cuddled her friend. Scootaloo stopped her crying, and smiled as well.

“Thank you, Apple Bloom.” The two friends finished their embrace, lied back down, and closed their eyes.

“But if you tell anyone at school about me crying, I’ll pound you!” Scootaloo said, coyly. Bloom smiled.

“I know. G’night, Scootaloo.”

“Good night, Apple Bloom.” The two friends finally fell asleep. Scootaloo was finally able to smile again.

Rainbow awoke with a start. She had experienced a similar nightmare to Scootaloo’s. This was a strange feeling. Confident as she was, she didn’t get nightmares too often. Something was wrong; she could feel it. She shook off the cobwebs and shot off into the night. She knew where to go; Scootaloo had told her when she was taking the CMC home. At the moment, she was mentally beating herself up about falling asleep.

I should have gone to help him right away! Oh Royal, you’d better not die on me, kid!

Meanwhile, Royal awoke. He was captured in chains designed to prevent an easy escape. He rattled the chains, attempting to do just that. After struggling for a while, he gave up.

Stupid griffon! Should have known he’d pull something like that! At least it's not the kids.

Royal sat stewing in his own frustration. He’d fallen for the oldest trick in the book. However, it wasn’t the trick that had made him so angry. It was the fact that the griffon had gone so far as to kidnap three innocent fillies and threaten their safety. Whenever he got free, he promised that the first thing he would do would be to punch the griffon in the face. Then he’d teach him a crash-course in manners. Royal’s thoughts were interrupted by evil laughter. “The griffon” had re-entered his makeshift throne room.

Royal stared at him as he ascended to his throne. Paulie looked down at him, literally.

“So, I finally have you where you belong, Blue Boy…in isolation!” Royal noticed that he was wearing a crown.

“Where’d you get that? The Burger Prince Filly’s Club?” Royal flatly asked Paulie.

“This coming from the pony wearing a cape that makes him look like Super Stallion.” Paulie scoffed back at him.

“What do you want from me, anyway? This is all because of Pinkie Pie, isn’t it? Well forget it! You’re not gonna hurt her! I won’t let you!” Royal struggled to escape his chains again. This time, a beam of energy from Paulie’s talon shocked him, and sent him backwards. Royal felt a weird sensation, as if he’d been struck by lightning. Whatever it was, it hurt like all of those injuries he’d suffered as a kid trying to mimic Soarin and Spitfire’s greatest tricks. Paulie kept shocking him, smiling with glee as he did it, listening specifically for Royal’s painful cries. Finally, Paulie ended the torture, allowing Royal to fall to the ground, nearly unconscious; nearly burnt to a crisp.

“I will hurt whoever I want to, thank you. And you’re gonna help me!”

Royal was not quite knocked out, however. He could still hear everything going on around him. He listened as Paulie began talking.

“These special powers you gave me really are amazing! I could do that to him all day!” Paulie chuckled.

“Indeed. Just remember our little deal, Paulie. Once we’re through, you rule the northern half of this world, I rule the southern half.” This was a voice Royal had never heard before. It sounded feminine, yet slightly warped at the same time.

“Once more, make sure you bring me Twilight Sparkle, and her little friends, too!” Paulie appeared slightly intimidated by her presence, Royal thought.

“Yes, my queen. Everything is going according to plan. We’ve got our ace in the hole right here!” Royal was sure they referred to him. He wanted to open his eyes, but the pain was just too great. He didn’t even notice Paulie lining him up for another round. More energy came out from the griffon’s talon, hitting Royal squarely, and causing him to cry out in pain yet again. Royal felt himself weakening with every passing moment. Eventually, he couldn’t feel anything anymore.

Paulie was clearly enjoying himself, if overdoing things just a little. He was interrupted by a familiar voice.

“Paulie! That’s enough!” Surprisingly, the plea for mercy came from Gilda. Paulie stopped what he was doing and turned to face her.

“Excuse me? Enough? Gilda, time and time again, this blue pain has ruined my plans to get Pinkie Pie for you!” Gilda remained unfazed by his overreactions.

“Time and time again, eh Paulie? You mean all of twice, right?” Gilda snarked at him.

“Your point, Gilda?”

“My point is I think the kid isn’t the guilty party.” Paulie just smiled.

“You’re right, dear. He isn’t the guilty party…but he’s about to be!” Paulie aimed for Royal’s head and gave him one more good shock. Royal cried out in pain, and then he was silent. Paulie then turned back to Gilda.

“If you’re so concerned about him, don’t be. I’m not going to kill him. I am, however, going to make him wish he was dead.” Gilda looked at him, skeptically.

“Really…how are you going to pull that off?” Paulie kept his evil grin.

“Just watch me…”

Several hours passed, and it was nearly noon in Ponyville. Applejack and the others were growing worried about Rainbow Dash’s whereabouts.

“Has anyone seen Rainbow? I don’t like this. Royal’s not back either.” AJ said. Pinkie shivered.

“What if…they…” Pinkie couldn’t even finish her sentence before she broke down in tears. Fluttershy rushed to comfort her. AJ stood there and offered up a confident smile.

“Rainbow would never let that happen, and you know it, Pinkie.” Rarity nodded her head in agreement.

“Yes, dear. Why, Rainbow Dash would sooner, what’s that phrase, knock their blocks off!” The posh mare nodded defiantly. Pinkie smiled, sniffling just a bit. Fluttershy let her go.

“Somepony should stay with Scootaloo during this time. I’ll go!” Pinkie regained that bounce in her step as she bounded off toward Royal’s house. The others smiled as they watched her go.

“You think I should tell her that Scootaloo is with my sister right now?” Applejack asked.

“Don’t worry, darling. They’re out crusading. Pinkie might run right into them.” Rarity said.

“I sure hope so…” Fluttershy said as she watched her close friend bounce off into the distance.

Another round of so-called “shock therapy,” as Paulie called it; was in session. Royal, who had already lost so much strength from the previous round just hours ago, was in a whole new world of hurt. The strange energy coursed up and down his body. He screamed in pain, but his cries fell on deaf ears. He swore that his blood had converted entirely to this energy that tortured him. Gilda stood and watched the proceedings occur. Something in her screamed at her to stop her psychotic best friend/boyfriend before he killed their prisoner. She watched him as he flailed about in pain. There was something about his face…he was so young!

He really is just a kid! Gilda ran over to Paulie.

“Paulie, that’s really enough!” Paulie stopped his punishment on a dime; briefly giving Royal two more light shocks. As was the case earlier, Royal had slipped into unconsciousness.

“I suppose you’re right, Gilda. After all, he can’t be much fun if he’s dead.”

“If he’s dead, you’re dead!” Gilda’s head perked up. She knew that voice. Rainbow Dash entered the area, and she was ticked off. She ran right to Royal’s side, attempting to undo the chains. It was then that she noticed the scuff marks all over his body. She turned a murderous gaze toward Paulie, not noticing Gilda at first.

“What the buck did you do to my friend? Speak up, or I will buck your teeth right down your throat for your next meal!”

Rainbow’s temper was at its peak. She had never been this angry before. She got closer to him. Paulie made a gesture. A bolt of magic came from out of nowhere and zapped the chains, knocking Rainbow backwards, and making the chains disappear. Royal was free. When her eyes readjusted, she ran as fast as she could toward him, catching him before he hit the ground and lifting him on to her back.

It was at this point, that she looked up and saw Gilda. Their eyes met; eyes that were full of regret at something wonderful that had gone wrong.

“Hey Dash,” Gilda said.

“Gilda…please don’t tell me you’re with this guy!” Paulie got offended by that statement. He quickly shot a bolt of energy at Rainbow, knocking her for a loop.

“Paulie!” Gilda shouted.

“Leave now, rainbow one…before I change my mind and kill you both!” Rainbow started to leave, with Royal still on her back. She turned around when she was nearly into the darkness.

“If Royal dies, I will come right back and kill every last one of you.” Gilda was shocked.

You must really care for him, Dash. Good, at least someone does. Get out of here while you still can!

Rainbow stared back at her for a brief moment.

Gilda, I…I’m not good at this. I care about you. Please don’t tell me you’ve betrayed the whole world!

Rainbow left the canyon, preparing to fly with some extra baggage. She took off, noting a bit of weight, but it was nothing she could not handle.

Oof! You’re not as light as a colt, kid. But I’ll manage.

She flew across the afternoon sky, keeping an eye out for Ponyville. She intended to return Royal to his house, where she would keep watch over him until her weather team duties called. She took another look back at him. What if he did die?

Please don’t die on me, squirt! I need you. I’m not good with the whole big sister thing. You’re a wonderful brother to her, and you’ve done a much better job than I could.

The mare suddenly had a realization in mid-air.

You two are both like siblings to me. In that case, I need to try and be the best big sister ever. Now I know how Applejack and Rarity feel. Hang in there, kiddo…I don’t want to lose my little brother! Tears fell from her eyes as she kept flying through the clouds.

True to Rarity’s prediction, Pinkie Pie had crossed paths with the Cutie Mark Crusaders. She walked with them all the way to Royal’s house, after reassuring the fillies that he and Rainbow Dash would be all right. Pinkie kept a smile on through it all, but in reality she was scared to death. These griffons had said that they would eat her precious adopted siblings if pushed to it. What if they had eaten Royal? This despair got to her face. The CMC noticed this and wrapped Pinkie in one of their patented group hugs.

“Don’t worry, Pinkie. He’ll be okay.” Scootaloo said.

Suddenly there came a knock at the door.

“Who’s there?” Pinkie asked.

“Only the most awesome pony in Equestria!” The four ponies rejoiced. Rainbow Dash had returned! They let her in, and their excitement diminished considerably when they saw the condition Royal was in.

“Scootaloo, help me get him to bed. You’re gonna stay up with me as long as possible and watch over him, okay?” Rainbow asked of her number one fan.

“Okay!” Scootaloo nodded. She got in for a closer look. Royal had marks all over his back. They had really done a number on him. Tears formed in her eyes.

“W-what did they do to him?” Rainbow shook her head.

“I don’t know. He was like this when I got there.”

Rainbow set Royal down in his bed. She felt like crying, seeing him like this. Scootaloo was crying. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Pinkie Pie stood by the door, with their heads hung low. They slowly approached Royal’s bedside. Pinkie gently held him, as tears began to fill her eyes. This had all happened because he protected her multiple times from the griffon gang. The Cutie Mark Crusaders shared a group hug. Usually, Scootaloo wasn’t into hugging, but she made a few exceptions, and this was one of them. Eventually, Pinkie stood up. She wiped the tears from her eyes and offered a supportive smile to the group.

“I have to go back to Sugar Cube Corner now…” she softly said, sounding more like Fluttershy than herself. Rainbow nodded.

“We’ll stay with him until the moment he wakes up. You’ll be the first to know, Pinkie.”

“Thank you…” Pinkie left the house, trying to collect herself along the way.

Back at Swelter Canyon, Paulie had a thought he could not get off his mind.

“Gilda, I don’t get that exchange between you and that rainbow pony earlier. I thought you hated her.” he said. Gilda turned, shielding her eyes in the process.

I thought so too. But for some reason, I don’t. Maybe her friendship with that pink dweeb was the real deal. Gilda was so lost in thought, that she didn’t even notice her surroundings.

“Paulie, I grow tired of waiting. The takeover of Canterlot and the rest of Equestria is a day I’ve dreamed about since I was small.” The mysterious partner was now standing right next to Paulie. Gilda looked up and freaked out. The figure was tall, black, and had holes all over its body.

“Gahh! Paulie, who’s the Swiss cheese pony?” Paulie started laughing nervously. His partner was not amused.

“Gilda, meet Chrysalis, Queen of the Changelings!” Gilda just stared, nervously, at the figure.

So she’s the one who gave you those powers…I wondered how you got so strong and could suddenly use that strange energy.

She stood back, in awe of the one in front of her. Chrysalis commanded attention and respect. She was ready for another crack at taking over Equestria, and the entire world.

"So...you must be Paulie's girl. Would you like to hear the story of how he and I met?"

There's something about Royal

Gilda felt a sensation she hadn’t before. Often the fearless type who bullied and intimidated others to satisfy her own ego, she found herself recoiling in fear of the queen who now stood in front of her.

Why do I feel so…cold? I’m Gilda! The toughest lady griffon in all of Griffon Village!

Such mental reassurances did nothing to help her. In fact, she admitted to herself at that moment that she felt like that meek, yellow pegasus that she yelled at in Ponyville Square during her first and only visit to the small village. All the while, Queen Chrysalis awaited a response from the young griffon.

“I asked you a question, dear. Would you like to hear the story of how we met?” Gulping, Gilda nodded, beads of sweat developing on her forehead. Paulie came over to her, bowing before the queen. He pulled Gilda down with him, much to her chagrin.

“Yes, your highness, we would love to be regaled by such a tale.” Gilda rolled her eyes at him.

“Very well.” Chrysalis started. “Your charming friend happened to meet me on the outskirts of Tartarus. I made my home there shortly after those meddling little ponies ruined my wedding. I had just secured control of Canterlot AND captured them. But then, that prissy little Princess Cadance and the stallion who was supposed to be MINE defeated me and now I cannot wait to get my hooves on that little bi-“ Chrysalis caught herself ranting and suddenly stopped.

“She’s a little bitter.” Paulie whispered to Gilda, who just sat in silence.

“One day, your little boyfriend traveled to the outskirts near my home, ranting and raving about some little blue pest who wouldn’t leave him alone. The truth is, I had been lying in wait for the perfect opportunity to take over again, and this is it. With an able, young body by my side, I’ve learned I don’t need love to conquer Equestria. Paulie and I, we’ll just take it by force!” Chrysalis let go a terrifying laugh. Gilda sat there, trying to process everything she had just been told. A question suddenly popped into her mind.

“Wait a second…if Paulie is all you need to take over Equestria, then what do you need the young stallion for?” Gilda smirked, thinking she had the mighty queen in a mental bind. However, the leader of the changelings just smiled.

“That young stallion is very important to our plan. I’m not taking any chances this time around. We will attack Canterlot first. I’ll imprison the royal princesses, and we will use Canterlot as an example of what will happen to everypony else if they do not submit to the mighty Changeling Queen!” Chrysalis stopped speaking, and an even bigger, even more maniacal grin appeared on her face.

“No…I just got an even better idea. We’ll use Twilight Sparkle’s precious Ponyville as our example!” Gilda sat there in shock. All she wanted was a bit of revenge on Pinkie Pie. She would get it if this plan unfolded…so why was she suddenly so unsure of the idea? She’d had a lot of time to think things over. In that time, she realized that Pinkie Pie meant no harm to her friendship with Dash. But she always shrugged it off because she had far too much pride to admit to such a thing.

Tough call, Gilda. You want to get Dash back as a friend, but you also want to see Paulie happy, psychotic as he is.

Meanwhile, Royal still lay in bed, unconscious while Scootaloo and Rainbow watched over him. Apple Bloom and the others had dropped in and out during the afternoon. Their visits were appreciated by the pair, but not much could be done for a pony in a coma. Nurse Redheart had made a house call to check on Royal, but she could not find any answers to comfort the two ponies who watched over him vigilantly. Eventually, the time came for Rainbow to head off to Cloudsdale. She sat down to talk to Scootaloo.

“All right, kiddo. I’ve gotta go lead the weather team.” She stood up, biting her lip. She didn’t want to leave, but she knew the weather was her greatest priority, with Royal being a close, close second.

“Rainbow?” Scootaloo looked up. She had never seen her biggest hero cry before, but there it was in plain sight. Rainbow turned to leave, but she felt something grab her leg. Scootaloo hugged her, which caused her tears to subside. Rainbow smiled and hugged her back.

“You watch over him extra special for me while I’m gone, okay?” Rainbow whispered. Scootaloo nodded. Rainbow broke away from her and headed out the door.

“I love you, kid!” The champion flyer spread her wings and soared in the direction of Cloudsdale. Scootaloo watched her fly away.

I love…you t-too, Rainbow Dash! The filly turned to head back inside. She went back to Royal’s bedside to watch over him.

Later that night, Scootaloo had fallen asleep at the foot of Royal’s bed. She had done her best to stay awake and support him, but sleep eventually overtook the young pony. Scootaloo was so out of it, she did not hear the door creak open. Rainbow was back. She quietly walked over to the foot of the bed and smiled at what she saw.

These two are perfect for each other. I don’t think I’ve seen a more natural pair of siblings besides Applejack and Apple Bloom.

Rainbow plopped to the floor, exhausted from a long evening of weather duties. She looked back up at the bed.

Sleep well, you two. The tired mare closed her eyes, drifting off into dreamland.

Hours later, morning came to Ponyville. The sun poked through Royal’s bedroom window, waking him up in the process. His head hurt, despite the fact that he had slept for plenty of hours, mostly due to the damage induced coma inflicted on him. He opened his eyes. They adjusted to the room, and he saw Scootaloo sleeping at the foot of the bed. Looking down to the floor, he saw Rainbow, curled up in an adorable sleeping pose. Unknown to her, he had been briefly jolted from unconsciousness when she hefted him onto her back while rescuing him, so he knew that she had been the one to bring him back. He wanted to give her a kiss on the cheek in appreciation, but he shied away from doing so.

I can’t do it. She sees me as a brother, not a lover. She’s way out of my league, anyway. Besides, we all know what happened the last time I fell in love.

Royal flashed back a couple of years. He had attended a party with some friends and a mare he had been seeing for the better part of that year. While at the party, he proposed to his marefriend. The response he got was not what he expected; she laughed in his face.

“Me, settle down with you? Honey, I could have any stallion in the world! Get a load of this guy!” She went around to nearly every stallion at the party, giving them kisses just to further humiliate Royal. Royal bolted out the door, flew back to his grandfather’s house and cried himself to sleep that night, and for many nights afterward.

It was after that incident that he swore he’d never fall in love again. But…was he falling in love with Rainbow Dash? He quickly got the thought out of his mind. He remembered that today was his travel day. Tomorrow, he was to have an audience with Princess Celestia, of all ponies. He'd received the letter the week before. He had been specifically instructed in the princess’s letter to come alone. He slowly and quietly departed from his bed, and then his house, trying his best not to wake up his two adopted sisters. Royal walked along an empty street in Ponyville. It was early in the morning, so there were not a lot of ponies out and about. He wanted to visit Sugar Cube Corner and tell Pinkie he was okay, but he didn’t want to risk being late. He was heading to Canterlot early to get in some sight-seeing, as he had never been to the city.

Royal made it to the train station an hour ahead of schedule. He bought his ticket and looked at a nearby train schedule. The next train was not due for an hour. Once again, he thought of visiting Pinkie.

No, I can’t chance it. The train is always so unpredictable. I’d better stay here.

He compromised, telling himself he would write the friendly pink party mare a letter when he got to Canterlot. Royal’s decision paid off as the train arrived 30 minutes ahead of schedule. If he had left to see Pinkie, he would have missed it. He boarded the train, finding an open seat almost immediately. As he sat and watched, he noticed the famous DJ Vinyl Scratch among the crowd joining him on this ride. Next to her was a grey, elegant mare that looked to be about the same age. The grey mare was not happy with her laid back friend.

“Vinyl Scratch, what were you thinking? Sticking your head in a bowl of whipped crème? Pinkie Pie can’t serve something like that to her customers now!” Vinyl found a place to sit down…right beside Royal. This was not lost on him.

“Aw, you’ve gotta chillax, Tavi. Live a little! You know what I’m saying?” She slapped Royal’s back, which led him to have a painful reaction; he had not quite recovered from Paulie’s shock therapy. Royal grimaced, trying not to cry, but the slap had left him in a world of hurt.

“Vinyl! Oh, I am so sorry, Mr…” The grey mare started.

“Royal…” he managed to grunt out, still in pain.

“Right. I’m sorry, Royal. My friend is a bit high strung.” Vinyl grinned, while “Tavi” glared at her.

“Yeah, just a little. So…Tavi?” Royal said, still wincing from the pain.

“My name is actually Octavia, but Vinyl calls me Tavi. Is your back okay?” He nodded.

“Good.” Octavia smiled. “Vinyl can be a bit…forward sometimes.” Royal grinned. He had known a few ponies like that back in Fillydelphia.

As Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo still slept, the other citizens of Ponyville began business for the day. Pinkie Pie woke from her slumber with a little less bounce than usual. She was still worried about Royal. He had gone through so much to protect her from something that had literally been happening behind the scenes. She didn’t even know that there were griffons after her until he had said something. Despite that, she knew she had to do her duty; serve her customers with the brightest smile in all of Equestria. While she prepared the store for another day of business, the door suddenly burst open. This caught Pinkie’s attention.

Meanwhile, Big Macintosh, who had dosed off while opening Sweet Apple Acres that morning, woke up to find a good chunk of his apple supply missing.

“Applejack! Apple Bloom! Granny Smith! Everypony get in here now!” The stallion’s voice boomed across the small house. Apple Bloom was first down the stairs. Her bedmane looked so adorable, Mac almost forgot what he was so upset about, but he shook his head.

“Morning, big brother.” The adorable little filly said, unaware of her brother’s mood. Applejack was next in line.

“Big Macintosh, what’s with the shouting? You could have blown the roof off of the house!” Granny Smith, new hip and all, emerged from the other room.

“What in tarnation?” she said. Big Mac directed their attention to where he was looking.

“Our apples!” Bloom said.

“They’ve gone missing! We don’t sell that many apples in a day! We’ve been robbed!” Applejack said, in horror. She began to walk out the door.

“Wait, where are you going?” Big Mac asked his sister. Applejack turned around.

“Where do you think? To find out who robbed us, of course! How often do we have crimes this big in Ponyville?” AJ turned back and galloped out of the house, leaving her family in her wake.

Pinkie turned her head to see who the mysterious guest was. To her great surprise, it was Royal. However, something seemed slightly off about him. For starters, he was not wearing his trademark cape. Since she had known him, she had never seen him without his cape. None of that mattered. He was okay. She ran to hug him, but she noticed him turning his body as she drew closer. She was facing his backside. He reared back and kicked her with his back legs, sending her flying through the air, and crashing into the nearest wall.

Pinkie cowered on the floor as he drew closer. Why had Royal done this to her? Didn’t he like her anymore? Unknown to both of them, Mr. Cake had opened the door to his room. He had seen what Royal did to Pinkie. As Royal moved in for another strike, he got ready for one of his own. When the right moment hit, Mr. Cake pounced on Royal like a lion. He wasn’t about to let some two-bit stallion have their way with the pink pony he saw as his adopted daughter. Mr. Cake grabbed Royal by the head and bashed the back of his head into the floor a few times, dizzying him. This was all very confusing for the patriarch of Sugar Cube Corner. Royal Blue was a good kid. Why was he attacking the pony he’d proven he cared for very much? At that moment, it didn’t matter.

Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash finally woke up at that time. Scootaloo, in her sleepiness, tried to jump down from the bed, but she ended up falling from it. However, she did not hit the floor. She looked up and saw that she had fallen into a basket.

“Ow…” she said, catching Rainbow’s attention. The mare looked down to see Scootaloo in the bucket, but it was also not the only bucket in the room. In fact, there were about ten, all filled with apples. This got Rainbow thinking.

That can’t be right. Royal went from almost dying last night to being strong enough to carry ten buckets of apples back here? There’s no way! Where is that kid, anyway?

Rainbow’s thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door.

“Come in!” she said. She was surprised to see Applejack, who was equally surprised to see her still staying at this house.

“AJ? What are you doing here?”

“I…could ask…you…the same…thing!” AJ said, trying to catch her breath. Once she did, she noticed her missing apples. She shook her head; she’d just woken up minutes ago.

“My apples…” she said in disbelief. Rainbow suddenly got defensive.

“Now wait a minute! If you’re going to blame Royal for this, that’s stupid! Royal would never steal from anyone! You know that!” Applejack sighed.

“I think he just did, sugar cube. How else do you explain all of my apples being here at his house?”

“He bought them! Duh!” Rainbow said with a hint of annoyance in her voice. She didn’t like hearing false accusations leveled against anyone.

“No he didn’t. If you’ll listen to reason, I’ll explain why.” AJ said, calmly.

Mr. Cake lay in a heap on the floor of Sugar Cube Corner. Pinkie cuddled him close to her body while crying. To his credit, before his defeat, he had done a number on the cape-less Royal, as the blue stallion now walked with a noticeable limp. Royal turned toward Pinkie. She looked up at him with tear-filled eyes.

“Why? Why are you doing this, Royal? We’re your friends! We care about you! Why?” Pinkie collapsed into a fit of sobbing. Royal smiled, turned his back on her and walked away, leaving Sugar Cube Corner in shambles. In the midst of her sobbing, Pinkie opened her eyes for a second. As Royal left, she caught a glimpse of his flank. What she saw quickly escaped her, as she went back to sobbing over the injured body of her father-figure.

The truth is, his actions in SCC were the last thing on the agenda. He’d torn an assortment of new dresses to shreds at the Carousel Boutique. He had found Twilight’s old Smarty Pants doll and dismembered it. He had mocked Derpy for her unique eyes, causing her to fall into a deep sorrow. He had viciously murdered one of Fluttershy’s pet birds, making sure she had a front row seat to it. He had selectively left Rainbow Dash and the Cutie Mark Crusaders alone. Yes, cape-less Royal had done some horrible things, and Royal Blue himself was unaware his reputation in Ponyville had just gone down the shaft. The uncaped one spread his wings and flew away, leaving behind a path of destruction and some shattered and angry ponies. One thing was sure; a certain blue pegasus had some explaining to do upon his return.

Say it ain't so, Royal!

Royal, cape and all, was chatting with Vinyl and Octavia on the train ride to Canterlot. He’d told them about everything; his childhood in Fillydelphia (Vinyl mentioned her first big gig was in Filly), and how he came to Ponyville and made so many wonderful friends, including an adopted sister. Vinyl and Octavia were both touched by his stories.

“And now I’m on a train ride to meet with Princess Celestia. I don’t know what she wants with a nopony like me…” Octavia stopped him.

“You? A nopony? After you nearly gave your life to protect Pinkie Pie? Hardly. You’re probably getting a medal of valor.” The refined mare said. Vinyl grabbed him by the shoulders.

“Yeah! It’s gonna be like, hail the conquering hero! Da dadada dada!” she sang as she shook him back and forth, upsetting his still-aching back. Octavia saw the grimace on his face.

“Vinyl, stop it!” Vinyl obeyed her friend.

“Why, Tavi?” All “Tavi” had to do was point to Royal, who was clearly in pain.

“Oh. The back thing. I forgot. Sorry, pal!”

For what it was worth, Royal thought about the possibilities a visit with the princess could bring. Did he dare assume that he was getting rewarded after everything he had gone through? He never expected a reward for protecting Pinkie Pie and Scootaloo. He didn’t even expect a thank you, but he had gotten those. The question remained; what in Equestria would Princess Celestia, half of the royal sisters who ruled all ponykind, want with him? He was just a no one…a kid from the mean streets of Fillydelphia. He was tough, but there were tougher. He was fast, but there were faster. He was kind, but there were kinder. He could not come up with a single reason.

Eventually, the train reached Canterlot. Royal was excited to go do some sightseeing. He wasn’t seeing Celestia until the next morning, after all. He was a bit star struck just being in the city. After all, this was the same city in which some very famous ponies lived. Rarity had told him about her encounter with Fancy Pants, perhaps the highest of Canterlot’s high society ponies. The new royal couple, Cadance and Shining Armor, also called Canterlot their home, residing in the castle. However, Royal’s highest priority remained his morning visit with the princess.

“Hey, if you want, I could show you around some of my favorite hangouts!” Vinyl said. Octavia smiled for a moment, but then she shook her head.

“Wait, don’t you have a gig tonight, Vinyl?” The DJ nodded.

“That’s not until 8. We’ve got plenty of time!” Octavia sighed.

“If you say so. Let the tour begin.”

“And that’s what happened. I’ll admit I didn’t see who took the apples, but who else would bring them to this house?”

Applejack finished telling the story of her missing apples. Rainbow and Scootaloo were still skeptical, refusing to believe their honest friend.

“This doesn’t make any sense! Applejack, I know you would never lie to me, but Royal almost died last night. I know…I rescued him from the same griffons that kidnapped your sister, the squirt here, and Rarity’s sister. Please, you have to believe me.” Rainbow’s emotions got the best of her.

“I don’t know where he’s gone, but I’m worried about him…he doesn’t have the strength to bring these buckets back here! Someone’s trying to set him up!” Her voice cracked as she finished pleading her case.

“I guess I jumped to conclusions a bit too quickly. I’m sorry Rainbow. But, as long as Royal doesn’t own these apples, do you mind helping me bring them back to the farm?” Rainbow sniffled and nodded.

“Sure.”

After returning the buckets of apples to Sweet Apple Acres, Rainbow left the farm and thought about what she would do that day.

I can’t just leave squirt, I mean, Scootaloo all alone like that. I’ve got to find Royal. That kid has a lot of explaining to do!
Leaving without explanation and making both of us worry!

Needless to say, she was not happy with a certain blue stallion. While out, she decided to pay Pinkie Pie a visit, mainly to ask her if she had seen him. Rainbow decided to fly at top speed, which got her to Sugar Cube Corner in 10 seconds flat. She knocked on the door, noticing that the “closed” sign was still displayed in the window.

“Pinkie Pie?” she yelled, “it’s way past time for this place to be open!” There was no response. After about 5 minutes of waiting, Rainbow went to open the door, finding it unlocked.

“Guess it was open after all. Pinkie!” The mare continued to search for her peppy friend. She found Pinkie on the floor, nuzzling a fallen Mr. Cake. Obviously, this image horrified her.

“Pinkie! What happened?” Pinkie looked up, acknowledging Dash’s presence.

“Oh…hi Dashie.” Pinkie nearly whispered her words. She had been crying, Rainbow noticed.

“Mr. Cake! Are you okay?” Pinkie’s father figure woke up, fluttering his eyes open.

“Royal…Blue…” was all he could muster. Rainbow shook her head. This couldn’t be happening. The kid was too weak to do something like this; something he would never do in the first place. However, undisputable evidence would come from Pinkie…who showcased a bruise on her flank from smashing into the wall with so much force.

“Royal…” was all Pinkie could whisper before she started crying all over again. Rainbow, not knowing what else to do, offered herself up for a hug, and was immediately wrapped up by Pinkie. As she comforted her friend, her thoughts went to him.

Royal, I don’t know what’s going on, but I don’t like it one bit! I don’t want to believe you did this awful thing, but I’m starting to consider it.

Later, Rainbow left Pinkie and the Cakes, after helping Mr. Cake get set up for a hospital visit, of course. She didn’t get that far when she suddenly felt something smack into her leg. Actually, it was two separate parties: Spike and Angel. Rainbow looked down.

“Uh, can I help you two?” The usual sarcasm was absent from her voice, in the face of current events.

“Rainbow, Twilight won’t talk to me this morning, and I don’t know why. I’m her #1 assistant, and basically her son! I think something terrible has happened!” Spike said, pausing to breath between each word. Rainbow, without saying a word, flopped both of them onto her back and flew them to the Treebrary. She knew where she had to land, right outside Twi’s bedroom window. She knocked on the window. No answer. Spike took his turn, and got the same lack of response. Finally, Rainbow pried it open, only to see another horrific sight; Twilight was trying to gather together the pieces of her precious Smarty Pants doll. Rainbow got a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach.

“Come on, guys. Let’s help her.” The trio entered through the window, surprised that Twilight seemed to not care that they had entered unannounced. Her attention was on her doll.

“Twi…I’m sorry that…” the purple pony glanced up at Rainbow. She smiled weakly.

“Don’t worry, Rainbow. I can repair her. I just can’t figure out why anypony would do such a thing!” Rainbow sighed with relief. At least there was no tangible evidence that her worst fears might be confirmed.

“Hey…it’s kinda dark in here…mind if I turn on some lights?”

“Go right ahead.” Twilight said; her concentration entirely on her doll. Rainbow went over and turned the lights on, making the room brighter. She reacted in shock. Written in red all over the walls was the simple phrase, “Royal was here.”

“Twi…you might want to see this…”

Back in Canterlot, Royal was having the time of his life as Vinyl tugged him along on her super tour of the city.

“I tell ya, kid, there’s none better than Canterlot! Celebrities, awesome dining, the Grand Galloping Gala, it’s all that and a mega bass cannon, man!” Royal nodded, but kept silent. Octavia could tell something was wrong.

“Royal, what’s the matter?” she nudged him. Royal turned to her.

“Oh, I’m just thinking about Scootaloo. She would love it here. I wish I could share this with her.” Vinyl appeared touched by these sentiments.

“Awww, why didn’t ya? I love kids!”

“Princess Celestia requested that I come alone.”

“Oh well, you’ll have to come back to Canterlot some time! Now let’s get back to the tour!” Octavia sighed as she and Royal were dragged along by her hyperactive pal. While along their way, they shared a glimpse of the newlyweds, Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor. The trio exchanged glances with the royal couple, and both parties waved friendly, greeting each other.

Back in Ponyville, Rainbow had left, accompanied only by Angel, as Spike stayed behind at the library.

“Angel, why did you follow me all the way out here? Did something happen to…” she stopped. She tried to suppress the thought from her mind.

Royal, if you did anything to my best friend, I am going to…to…! Rainbow could not finish her thought because she heard the sound of crying. Her heart sank.

Oh no…

“Hang on Fluttershy!” Rainbow grabbed Angel and tossed him on her back. She spread her wings and flew as fast as she could, until she saw Fluttershy, sitting in her garden. Rainbow landed and galloped over to her. The yellow pegasus didn’t even bother to look up at first.

“Fluttershy? Are you okay? You’re not hurt, right? Please tell me he didn’t do anything to you!” Fluttershy slowly raised her head. At first, Rainbow sighed in relief because there were no signs of foul play. However, Fluttershy’s cheek had some blood on it.

Rainbow couldn’t believe what she had seen. Her head was filled with so many emotions.

“Fluttershy…who did this to you?” For the first time that day, Fluttershy’s eyes met hers.

“Not to me, Rainbow…” She slowly stood up, exposing the body of one of her birds. Rainbow’s heart sank again.

Fluttershy, who had only broken her sobs to speak to her best friend, started sobbing all over again. Faithful friend that she was, Rainbow immediately went to her side and provided her a shoulder to cry on. All the while, she grew angrier at a certain blue stallion that she thought was her friend. As the day continued, word spread about the mysterious actions of Royal Blue. All the while, Royal remained oblivious as he spent the day with Vinyl and Octavia.

The next morning, Royal woke up early. He didn’t feel any adverse effects from the previous night, mainly because he had excused himself early from the party at which Vinyl performed her disk jockey duties. He’d stayed in a guest room at the castle, a service set up by Twilight after he had told her about the letter. Royal shook off the cobwebs and looked at himself in the mirror. He smiled.

“You look all right there, Blue. Now it’s time to find out why Princess Celestia wanted to meet me so badly.” With those words, he trotted out of the guest room, and towards the main chamber of the castle.

The mood in Swelter Canyon was very low-key. Preparations were just about finalized for the mother of all invasions. Queen Chrysalis yearned for the moment of attack. She had been humiliated at the hands of the young royal couple, Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor several months ago. This came after she assumed her plan was perfect. She had even sung a song about her evil plan and not been suspected of a thing. Of course, the pony towards which she wanted revenge the most was Twilight Sparkle, the only pony that raised such suspicions; and the young unicorn had been completely right. One could argue that Twilight was the only reason the day ended up successful for Cadance and Shining. Chrysalis wanted to crush her this time around.

Paulie, on the other hand, wanted to crush Pinkie Pie on his way to total control of Equestria and the surrounding areas. In recent months, he had also become obsessed with taking down a young stallion who had managed to foil his plans at every turn. He appeared to have finally done it. Royal was in terrible shape when Rainbow rescued him from the clutches of the evil griffon. If he had survived, Paulie figured it wasn’t by much. He and Chrysalis shared one common goal: the domination of Equestria plus other areas, and removing all opposition by force. Since that stupid kid was no longer around, he could plot and attack as he pleased.

Royal’s heart skipped a beat as he walked up the steps of Canterlot Castle toward the throne room.

I talked about it all day yesterday, but now it’s finally happening! I’m about to meet Princess Celestia, herself! He was met by one of the castle guards at the gate.

“State your business, young pegasus. Who are you, and why are you here?” The guard said, eyeing him suspiciously.

“I’m Royal Blue, and the princess sent for me.” The guard’s eyes lightened up.

“Oh! So you’re the stallion the princess keeps talking about! Sorry for being so suspicious! We had to tighten up our security around here after that changeling attack.” Royal smiled up at the tall guard.

Walking through the halls of Canterlot castle, the guard continued to escort Royal.

“Wouldn’t you know it, it was my wedding day! My sister was the only one who suspected a thing! Yeah, Twily really saved us all that day.” Royal nodded, before shaking his head.

“Wait, Twily? Then that would make you…” the guard nodded.

“Shining Armor, captain of the Royal Guards, at your service!” Royal could see another unicorn with wings walking down the hall toward them. Shining also noticed her.

“Right on cue! Royal, meet my lovely wife, Princess Cadance!” The princess smiled as she approached them.

“It’s lovely to meet you, dear. I’ll take you to see my aunt right away!”

“Aunt?” Royal asked.

“Oh, yes! Princess Celestia and Princess Luna happen to be my aunts! It’s a complicated family tree. If I was to explain it to you, you would need to stay here for another night.”

“Oh.” Royal said, relieved that his question received some kind of answer.

“I’m going to take him in, now. You should go back out front and guard the castle, honey.” Shining Armor obliged and left the room. Cadance turned back to Royal.

“Come with me, dear. Your meeting with the princess awaits.” Royal gulped, feeling a little nervous now that the event was this close to happening. He was about to come face to face with the ruler of the daytime, the princess of the sun.

The invasion begins

Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo were left in a stupor that afternoon. Royal Blue, the pegasus both had come and known to love as a brother, had up and left Ponyville, telling them not to follow him. The young stallion was deeply hurt by Rainbow’s reaction to him returning from Canterlot; telling him that he had never even gone for the audience with Celestia, and instead had done some truly heinous things to the ponies that he considered the greatest friends he had ever had. He never even decided to seek out Applejack or his remaining friends. He had seen enough through two of the ponies he cherished the most; his newest group of friends had finally had enough of him.

Scootaloo started to cry. It was her first reaction to Royal’s words. It had all happened so fast, and now it hit her; her big brother had left and he was never coming back. It was more than she could take. First her parents died in an accident, costing her them and her home in the process, and now the stallion who’d taken her in was gone as well. Something in her emotions kept telling her that he wasn’t responsible for any of the awful deeds he’d just been accused of doing. Rainbow slowly approached her.

“Kiddo, I’m sorry…” Rainbow went to hug her, but came up with nothing but air. Scootaloo had dodged her. Rainbow turned around, only to see her self-proclaimed protégé with an angry look on her face; her eyes stained with tears.

“How could you? Royal didn’t even have a chance to say anything!” Rainbow stood there, shocked at the kid’s sudden outburst.

“Scootaloo, you heard what I said, didn’t you? He’s done some horrible things! It’s an important lesson for ya, kid. Some ponies will try to be your friend, and say that they’ll be there for you, and then they do something like this. Not everypony can be trusted.” They stared at each other for a moment. However, this statement only served to anger Scootaloo further.

“Royal can be trusted! You’re just blowing everything up! It’s like when the girls and I were Gabby Gums, only much worse!” At this mention, Rainbow got defensive.

“Are you calling me a liar, Scoots?” Scootaloo did not waver.

“Maybe I am, Rainbow Dash. Maybe I am.” Rainbow looked down; her mane covered her eyes.

“I’m leaving.” The statement hit Scootaloo like a ton of bricks.

“What?” she uttered, nearly whispering. Rainbow pointed toward the door.

“You heard me. I’m going back to my house in Cloudsdale. Goodbye, Scootaloo.” Rainbow walked to the door, suddenly turning around.

“I’m disappointed in you, kid.” Scootaloo’s idol left her standing in the doorway of the house. She couldn’t even watch as Rainbow flew away. The filly’s entire world had been shattered in the span of two minutes. Even though she knew Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle would never abandon her, it offered her little comfort. Her big brother was gone. Her hero was gone. Life was going to be a lot tougher for her from now on.

That night, Royal arrived in Canterlot, having taken the train back to where he’d been just a day before. He sighed. It was tough knowing that his recent life had been almost perfect, and had only fallen apart once he had gone back to Ponyville. It was a painful reminder of how quickly things can change, for better or for worse. He thought of Scootaloo. She probably hated him now, too. She adored Rainbow, and was probably thrilled that he was gone so she could live with her real hero. He was jolted from his thoughts by a rumbling of thunder and drops of rain. That had to be Rainbow’s doing. Quickly, he scurried to the nearest shelter.

As he stood under the protective roof, he noticed a door swing open. Catching a glimpse inside, he could see that he’d stumbled upon some kind of bar. He wasn’t a heavy drinker, but if there was ever a time to drink himself stupid with cider, this was it. Upon entering the bar, he saw a crazy scene; Vinyl Scratch was trying to drink a big, tough stallion under the table. Initially, Royal thought nothing of such a scene and sat down. He had bigger things to worry about, like piecing his life back together after his latest failure at making friends. It was enough to make him think he had become nothing more than a big curse to everyone with whom he came in contact. Just as he was about to give the bartender his order, he heard a crash. Turning around, he noticed that the stallion had Vinyl in a headlock. In her drunken stupor, Vinyl was far weaker than usual, and was fading fast.

He’s gonna kill her! Not on my watch! Royal sped over to the big stallion and plowed into him, sending him tumbling into the wall, causing him to drop Vinyl. Assuming the large stallion was down and out, he went over to the drunk DJ.

“Vinyl? Are you okay?” Royal asked, checking her pulse to make sure she hadn’t been killed by the brute. The poor mare could barely keep her eyes open.

“Yeah…I think so…who are you?” Royal didn’t expect her to remember him; he just wanted to get her out of harm’s way.

Unfortunately, before he could, he felt himself get lifted off the floor and chucked into the wall like a frisbee. Satisfied with his work, the big stallion saw Vinyl on the ground. The DJ’s eyes rolled and she groaned. She knew she couldn’t get away…not in her state. The stallion picked her up and threw her as well. Fortunately, Royal was already standing again. He caught her and placed her on his back.

“Just hang on to me! I’m getting you out of here!” Vinyl nodded. Royal couldn’t see the big brute, who happened to stand right next to them.

“Now I’ll really make you scream!” He brought his foreleg up, intending to make a dent. Royal activated his aura just as the stallion hit him, causing him to slam into the aura, which brought him a lot of pain. Royal retreated from the bar as fast as he could. He finally deactivated his aura when the pair were up the road considerably. As it was now, he just kept walking. During his time in Ponyville, he had considerably built up his strength, which made him able to use his aura without feeling faint, as he had after rescuing Scootaloo.

As they walked along, Vinyl eventually came to her senses. She was still drunk. However, she could notice that she was out of that bar, and away from that stallion who had goaded her into the drinking contest. She tried to piece together her memory and realized that Royal had been responsible for her safety, and was now carrying her on his back.

“Hey…you’re that kid from the bus!” Vinyl said softly, obviously meaning the train.

“Yeah, that’s me.” Royal said, surprised that anyone would acknowledge him at this point. He was even more surprised when Vinyl leaned in and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He stopped walking.

“Don’t tell Tavi, she’ll get jealous that she’s never been rescued by such a handsome stud!” Royal smiled, but on the inside he knew it was just the cider talking. After all, Vinyl was absolutely hammered. Eventually, Royal reached Vinyl and Octavia’s house on the other side of the city. He’d been here once before, when Vinyl’s “Canterlot Tour” passed by.

“Do you think she’s home?” Royal asked.

“No, but I do know one thing.” Vinyl smiled genuinely, despite her drunken stupor.

“Oh?”

“You’re my hero.” This struck him, and tears began to fill his eyes.

“No Vinyl, I’m no hero. Just some stupid kid from the big city.”

It was late in Ponyville. By the time the day was over, everyone had heard what happened. Unwilling to deal with the truth, or so they all thought, Royal had left for good, abandoning Scootaloo in the process. Many families had already offered to open their homes to the young filly; even the families of resident bullies Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. But any plans for the former’s family to take Scoots in went up in flames when DT made a rather untimely remark about Royal “being no better than those creepy stallions you hear about in the newspaper.” Had her fellow crusaders not been there to hold her back, there would have been blood. Diamond later apologized in school, admitting she had gone too far.

Unknown to everyone, Scootaloo still loved Royal like a big brother. She had only left the house that day to go to school. Otherwise, all she did was sit on the sofa, staring at the framed picture of her, him, and Rainbow Dash. She planned on spending all her nights inside the house she had come to know as her home. All she wanted was for everything to be back to normal. She didn’t believe Royal had done any of the awful things the big ponies said he did. It had to be an imposter. Heck, it wasn’t even a full year ago that those nasty shape-shifting changelings had invaded the royal wedding. Scootaloo wanted nothing more than for her big brother to come home. A single tear escaped her eye and rolled down her cheek.

Royal was inside Vinyl and Octavia’s home. Thankfully, Octavia was home at that moment, and Royal was able to bring Vinyl inside and put her to bed. She had fallen asleep on his back shortly before Octavia had answered the door. Royal was invited to chat for a while with Octavia, so he accepted.

“I can’t thank you enough for bringing her back here. I imagine she’ll have quite the story to tell in the morning.” Royal expected her to forget everything.

“I hope she wasn’t too much trouble, Royal. She’s been like this since the two of us became friends, but she held off on drinking until she was legal.” Royal shook his head.

“No trouble at all. She actually saved me. I was gonna go get drunk off my flank just like her. But then everything happened as it did. I left the bar without a drop of cider. I think Celestia sent an angel to me tonight.” Octavia wanted to burst out laughing at the notion of her rough and tumble friend being an “angel” to anyone, but she was touched by his sentiment and smiled instead. However, she knew she had to ask him the important question.

“Royal…what brings you back to Canterlot?” Royal sighed, sadly.

“You wanna know? Okay, here’s the full story.” He told her everything, including the part about Vinyl’s kiss, which admittedly slipped out.

“It sounds like you’ve had it rough. Well, Vinyl and I know that you didn’t do anything. How could you? You were here in Canterlot during the time those events happened.” Royal sighed.

“Yeah, but try telling that to Ponyville. They think I’m just some kind of heartless monster.”

“Why don’t you go back there and prove your innocence? We’ll come with you!” Octavia said, offering a reassuring smile. Royal shook his head.

“They wouldn’t believe I knew you. If I ever do go back, it’ll have to be on my own.” Octavia sighed.

“What about that little filly? Scootaloo, was it?” Royal’s head sank.

“No doubt she hates me too. Rainbow Dash is the kid’s hero. Most of the time, it’s the cutest thing in the world.” He sighed.

“I wish someone could tell me what I did to deserve this…”

Royal felt the sunlight hit his eyes. He opened his eyes, only to notice he was back in his own bed. This confused him. Was he not just talking with Octavia, the dignified mare who played in the Canterlot orchestra? He got up, not giving it a second thought, and decided to step outside…and what he saw horrified him. Ponyville…his beloved home, was decimated. The skies were grey, and the atmosphere was very foreboding. Immediately, he thought of his friends.

This shouldn’t be happening! We have the bearers of the Elements of Harmony on our side! What’s going on?

Royal flew around Ponyville, but each house he flew over had taken heavy damage. He saw broken windows, and wear-and-tear everywhere. He landed in the town square, which was completely empty. This would not have been anything out of the ordinary for an early morning, but he figured it had to be the afternoon. Royal heard sinister laughter off in the distance. He snapped his head around to face the direction of the laughter. He heard it again; this time, it was much closer. He looked up at the sky and saw a shadow. It revealed itself to be a familiar figure. It was Paulie. He let out another chuckle.

“Hello, blue boy! Do you like it? I consider it my magnum opus. I call it, “Ponyville, No More!” Royal’s temper began to rise.

“Where are my friends?” Royal’s voice cracked under the strain of his anger and desperation. Paulie laughed again.

“Well, some were tougher than others, but I must say, they made excellent appetizers for my fellow griffons!”

“You’re lying! If you’re telling the truth, that only makes me want to rip the flesh from your bones even more!” Paulie reared back.

“Oh no! Whatever shall I do?” He was interrupted by the sudden urge to belch.

“Oh, excuse my manners! I just finished off one of the little ones. She made for a nice snack.”

“Which little one?” Royal asked; his rage rising further.

“Oh, you want a description? I didn’t think you were that morbid, blue boy! Well, she had a pink mane, and she gave me quite a challenge. She went awfully fast on that scooter of hers!” Paulie couldn’t even get another word out before Royal had him on the ground. Unfortunately, Royal’s rage blinded him, which allowed Paulie to gain the upper hand. Royal soon found himself under the griffon as they tussled.

“It’s all over, blue boy! Ponyville is mine, and soon Equestria with it! And it’s all on you! If you had just allowed me to have Pinkie Pie, none of this would have happened! And now, it’s time to finish you off!” At that moment, Royal completely shut down. He had a faraway look in his eyes as Paulie lifted him off the ground for the final blow…

Royal woke up with a scream. Immediately, he started crying. Unfortunately, he forgot that he had fallen asleep in a foreign house. In short, his emotional outburst woke up Vinyl Scratch. Battling a hangover headache, the DJ stumbled through her bedroom door and out into the main room. She made her way over to him and sat down next to him.

“Come here…” she said, gently pulling him into a hug. A million thoughts started going through her head.

Those nice girls I met at that wedding? What could this kid have possibly done to upset them so much?

At that moment, an army approached Canterlot Castle. Marching in the lead were Paulie and Queen Chrysalis, looks of stone cold determination on both of their faces. This was it; their moment to strike and dispatch all three high princesses of the royal court. Soon enough, the castle was in view. Princess Luna, watching from her high tower, noticed the army’s approach.

“By Star Swirl’s beard! It’s an ambush!” She left her post to alert the guards.

In short order, the castle had been put on notice of the army. Shining Armor stood watch at the front of the castle; an army backing him up. He eventually came face to face with Paulie and Chrysalis. The stage was set for an epic showdown.

“Step aside, stallion. We have no business with you.” Paulie said. Shining stood his ground.

“Any attempt to harm the royal family is my business. You wanna dance? Let’s dance, bird!” Paulie smiled. He turned to Chrysalis, who kept her eyes on the captain of the guard.

“Changelings…decimate him!”

Royal's realization

The next morning, Royal sat on the sofa, speechless. His nightmare had reduced him to a sobbing, incoherent mess the previous night, as if he had been the one drinking instead of Vinyl. Was that horrible, horrible dream sequence the fate of Ponyville? Paulie’s words, though only in his imagination, tore him up as well.

“All my fault…it’s all my fault…” After saying these words, he fell silent again. Octavia and Vinyl watched him.

“Poor Royal, he must have had quite a nightmare.” Octavia said, sighing. Vinyl stared at him.

“Yeah, the poor kid was a wreck last night. I think he should stay here for a bit. We can’t let him wander the streets in this condition.” Octavia smiled.

“Well, he did save you last night. I’d like to be able to repay him somehow. It’s a deal.” Vinyl glomped her best friend.

“Aw, yeah!” The pair approached him and declared their decision.

“Thank you…I have nowhere else to go…” he said, weakly. They smiled warmly at him.

"Consider yourself our honored guest." Octavia said.

Meanwhile, Canterlot Castle had changed ownership almost overnight. After ambushing the royal army, Paulie and Chrysalis combined their strengths to overpower the three princesses and Prince Shining Armor. Afterwards, they imprisoned all four of them in lime green goo cocoons. Truly, there was only one more thing standing in front of them. This is why they had stayed for the night; to seek and destroy the Elements of Harmony.

“Well, here it is…the location of the Elements of Harmony. Let’s get them out and make sure we destroy them. Without them, Twilight Sparkle and her friends won’t stand a chance against us!” Chrysalis said. Paulie nodded.

“Good thing we got that spell from Princess Celestia before we imprisoned her. You said you can’t undo it,” he said.

“Why would I want to? You don’t free your enemy, ever!”

Paulie, deciding it would not be in their best interest to go off on a tangent, chanted the spell, and the chamber door opened. A blank space appeared in front of them, and there was no box containing the elements of harmony. This shocked them.

“Strange…perhaps they are located somewhere else in the castle…” Paulie said. Chrysalis shook her head.

“All that matters is that if Princess Celestia can’t even keep track of her most important weapon, her precious ‘girls’ can’t have them, either! We’ve almost won, Paulie. Now we need to lure Twilight and her friends to us so we can rid ourselves of our last obstacle!” Chrysalis grinned. This plan was actually going off without a hitch. But she knew she had to get those pesky girls out of the way, first. Twilight was the only one to see through her plan to pass herself off as Princess Cadance and marry into the royal family.

“The next step of the plan: level Ponyville!” she said, laughing maniacally.

It was another sunny day in Ponyville, but all was not well. Scootaloo, for the second day in a row, just sat inside the house; staring at the photo of her and the two ponies she cherished the most; now both of them were gone. She was starting to think it was her own fault. She was self-aware; she knew that she could be quite the handful. She had called her greatest inspiration a liar…a mistake made in the heat of the moment; one that cost herself a dear relationship. Now she could never win back the respect of her surrogate big sister.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Not motivated enough to move, the filly simply told the guest to come into the house. She was surprised when the guest was revealed as Rainbow Dash. Scootaloo looked down, woefully. Had her idol come back to lecture her some more on her poor choices?

“I’m sorry.” Scootaloo looked up. Rainbow had tears in her eyes.

“This morning, I went to Sugar Cube Corner to help Pinkie take care of Mr. Cake. We talked about things…I found something out that made everything make sense.” Scootaloo sat down, listening intently.

“Royal wasn’t wearing his cape. When he turned to leave after doing the damage, Pinkie noticed that…he had no cutie mark! It wasn’t Royal, kid. I was wrong. Can you ever forgive me?” Scootaloo didn’t need to think twice about it. She ran back into the embrace of her hero, her big sister.

“I’m so sorry…I said those things because I thought he really had turned on us…I wanted to protect you. It’s true what I said…not everypony can be trusted. I was wrong about Royal. I have to take care of some weather things at the factory in Cloudsdale. We’ll go search for him first thing tomorrow morning, okay?”

“It’s a deal!” Scootaloo said, the joy finally returning to her face. She had her big sister back. The Rainbow Dash Apology Tour was about to begin. And soon, she hoped, she would have her big brother back, too.

Twilight sat in her treebrary, reading a book, as usual. She had been expecting a letter from Princess Celestia since the morning, but nothing had arrived. This was new to her. The princess was never late to send a letter, to her or anyone. Especially if she knew the letter was coming. The student-mentor pair exchanged letters once every couple of weeks, and this was Celestia’s week.

Some strange things have happened recently. Could the princess be in trouble? Perhaps I should take a trip to Canterlot…

Royal stood up from the sofa, a spot he had not left since the previous night. This caught Octavia and Vinyl by surprise.

“Royal? You feelin’ okay, buddy?” Vinyl asked. He turned around to face her. The tears were gone, but a sense of sadness still remained.

“I want to thank you for letting me stay here, but this isn’t where I belong. I belong back home…in Fillydelphia.” Octavia nearly spit out her coffee.

“You mean Ponyville, right?” Royal shook his head.

“No. I should never have come to this area…I should have stayed there.” He turned toward the door.

“I appreciate all that you’ve done for me…but I’m going to grab a train ticket and head back home. I don’t belong here…I don’t think I ever did.” Octavia gasped.

“But what about your dream?” Royal turned around.

“They can handle it. Those six wield the magic powers of the Elements of Harmony! They can stop anything that crosses their path. Everything will be fine…without me.” He turned to exit the door.

“No! Don’t go!” Vinyl said.

“Relax…I’m just going for a walk right now. Who knows…maybe something will happen that can convince me to stay. I’ll see you when I see you.” Royal exited the house.

I appreciate everything…I really do…but I’ve seen now that I just don’t belong here.

As Royal walked down the street, he engaged himself in some hard thinking.

I could sneak back to Ponyville, grab my stuff and say goodbye to Scootaloo. The poor kid didn’t cause any of this. I have to see her one last time before I go back to Filly.

Royal suddenly felt a chill rush down his spine. What was this dark, foreboding feeling he suddenly experienced? His answer flew over him, quite literally. A griffon and an odd-looking pony soared in the sky, followed by an army of smaller creatures. Royal hid, freaked out at their appearance. They had not seen him, but he recognized the griffon.

It’s Paulie! What are they doing here in Canterlot?

As soon as they were out of sight, Royal bolted from his hiding spot in the direction of the castle. He had to check things out for himself. Once he arrived at the castle, he saw that the door had been left open, which puzzled him. Suddenly, he realized that the army he had seen had been to the castle. He rushed inside, stopping to gaze at the horrific scene. Bodies were strewn everywhere he looked. The entire royal guard had been taken out by the invaders. Moving further along, he came across the cocooned princesses and Shining Armor.

“Oh my gosh! Can you hear me?” From within the cocoon, Shining could only read the pegasus’s lips. He signaled for Royal to come closer. Royal got right next to the cocoon.

“Royal, I need you to listen carefully. I don’t know who that griffon was, but that pony with the swiss cheese body was Queen Chrysalis. You might not recognize her, but she’s the one who almost ruined my wedding!” Royal nodded, and Shining continued.

“She and her Changelings are on their way to Ponyville right now! They might have the Elements of Harmony, too! Without the elements, Twily and the others…they don’t stand a chance!” Shining lowered his head.

“We were caught off guard. Now there’s no way I’ll be able to help my sister in the battle! Just like the wedding!” Royal stood up.

“I’m no hero, but I have to get back there…to protect Scootaloo! If anything happens to her, so help me, I’ll…” he stopped speaking and ran out of the building, flying the rest of the way back to Vinyl and Octavia’s house. When he got there, he found both of them still at home, waiting for him.

“Oh! Royal! I guess you’ve come to say goodbye. Good luck in Fillydelpha.” Octavia said.

“I’m not going back to Fillydelphia.” This response surprised the pair, since he had left with every intention to, well, leave.

“Then you’re staying here?” Vinyl asked. Royal shook his head. This also surprised the girls.

“I just found out a terrible piece of news. That griffon I told you about? He’s heading to Ponyville to try and destroy it right now. I’m going back so I can help stop them. Most of all, I’m going back to protect Scootaloo. She’s my little sister…and she needs her big brother right now.” Both Vinyl and Octavia smiled warmly.

“Good luck, Royal. You can be a hero yet!” Octavia said. The stallion shook his head.

“I’m no hero…I’m just a dumb kid going back to set right what I screwed up.” Vinyl approached him.

“Don’t sell yourself short. You’re a lot better than you think you are. You saved my life. That’s about as heroic as it gets. You are a hero. Don’t let anyone tell you differently. Now go on, kiddo…prove it to everypony.” For the first time in a couple of days, Royal smiled.

“I’ll be going, then. Goodbye, girls. Thank you for everything. Stay safe!” Royal bolted out the door, not wanting them to see the tears forming in his eyes. They had saved his life. He was in the pits of despair when he had walked into that bar. Saving Vinyl, the reward kiss, their incredible hospitality towards someone they didn’t even know; it was all too much for his emotions. He wanted to stay, to enjoy their company, but after the news from Shining Armor, he knew he had to go back. He wasn’t about to let anypony hurt his little sister. He only hoped she still wanted to be his little sister.

Paulie, Chrysalis and the army continued their journey. They still had a considerable distance to go to reach Ponyville. The two were chatting along the way, as if they were old friends.

“Chrysalis, I’m so glad I decided to venture out and seek your assistance in eliminating these pests! You’re so much more effective than Gilda! That girl wouldn’t know a good scheme if it bit her in the talon! In fact, she’s off the mission! As soon as we level Ponyville and return to the canyon, I’m kicking her off the team!” the griffon chuckled.

“I just can’t wait to watch Twilight Sparkle cry as we destroy everything she holds dear! She’s the only reason I’m not living in the lap of luxury right now!”

“I’m feeling hungry. I think once we arrive, I’m going to seek out that spunky little filly I once dealt with and have a little snack!” Paulie licked his chops.

“Whatever you want, dear. I’m sending my Changelings straight for Twilight Sparkle…wherever she may be.” The queen laughed maniacally.

Royal had flown to the Canterlot train station and bought a ticket for the express. He now sat on the train, hoping he could make it to Ponyville before the evil army and its commanders did.

If anything happens to Scootaloo, I can never face my friends again. I’ll never be able to forgive myself.

Several hours later, night had fallen on Ponyville. Scootaloo sat inside Royal’s house, thinking about things. Today had been a return of sorts to normal life. She had gone crusading with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle for the first time since Royal’s fallout with Rainbow Dash. She knew she had to get to sleep in a little bit. She wanted enough energy to keep up with her hero as they searched for the blue stallion they both cared for so much. All she wanted was to see her big brother’s face again; to hear his voice say “hey kiddo, I missed you.”

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Being that she was home alone, this naturally freaked the filly out. She hid under the sofa, until she heard a familiar voice.

“Hey kid, are you home? It’s Rainbow!” Feeling a huge sigh of relief, Scootaloo went to the door and let her hero into the house. They shared a quick hug.

“How are you holding up?” Rainbow asked.

“I’m okay. I want to get to bed so we can look for Royal in the morning!”

“Okay, squirt. We’ll leave first thing tomorrow morning, so get some sleep.” Scootaloo nodded and jumped onto the sofa, falling asleep almost instantly.

Unknown to her friends, Scootaloo had made Royal’s bed and never even thought about sleeping in it since he left. She was saving the bed for him. Now, it seemed she was about to get him back. A smile formed on her face as she slept, leaving Rainbow to smile up at her.

I guess it’s about time I get to bed, too. Good night, kiddo.

Rainbow grabbed a blanket and covered Scootaloo, then herself as they slept on the sofa. Scootaloo instinctively snuggled up to Rainbow in her sleep. Rainbow smiled again, and went to sleep herself. An exciting search awaited them in the morning.

The battle begins

Royal arrived in Ponyville late that night. The streets were quiet, as usual. He could only hope that this meant he had outrun the army in returning to his new hometown. He knew it was too late to return to his house; he didn’t want to wake Scootaloo at this hour.

“Well, I’ve got some bits left. I think I’ll book a room at the local hotel.” He walked down the road from the train station and found the corresponding building. He paid and headed for his room. Once there, he fell asleep almost immediately.

Don’t worry, little sister…I’m almost home…

Rainbow Dash awoke several hours later. It was about 5 a.m. She tapped Scootaloo on the head lightly, but got no response from the filly. Dash chuckled softly.

“Squirt, you’re the one who said ‘bright and early.’ This is bright and early. Come on, chop chop!” Scootaloo rolled over and opened her eyes.

“I didn’t mean that literally!” she said, groaning. But, she remembered who they were going to look for, and immediately perked up. Rainbow smiled at her.

“Atta girl! Let’s go!” Scootaloo nodded and followed her idol as they departed for their adventure.

In the center of town, Paulie and Chrysalis stood and thought, trying to cook up a strategy for how to best spread out the changelings. Chrysalis directed them similar to how an orchestra conductor would order his players around. Her plan: spread out across all areas of Ponyville and attack when the time feels right. Paulie walked over and whispered in her ear.

“Chrysalis, do you think this is really the best approach? Shouldn’t we have the entire army at our disposal to seek and destroy properties as we see fit?” The changeling queen shook her head.

“That might take too long…if they’re spread out, they can each work on conquering a different corner of Ponyville. Remember, this is only the first step of the mission.”

Unfortunately for the pair, they were standing right outside the hotel where Royal was staying. He had awoken from his slumber because of another dream involving Scootaloo. This one was more pleasant, as it featured them spending time together as they had before the faux scandal happened. The dream made him realize that he was only a few minutes away from his own home where his little sister waited.

Royal had ventured outside the hotel walls and was standing right inside the entrance. At that moment, Chrysalis conveniently forgot what time of morning it was.

“Yes, leveling Ponyville is only the first step in the grand scheme. The way I see it, we can install leaders in four main locations. Here, Las Pegasus, Canterlot, and…Fillydelphia!” Royal shuddered as he hid behind the door.

They’re gonna go after…my hometown? Over my dead body. Trying to kill me is one thing. But trying to kill everyone I love? Congratulations, dumbflanks. This just got personal.

“Let’s go back to the canyon. The changelings will take care of things, and we’ll bring our leader in later on. For us, we’ll discuss plans for the conquering of Las Pegasus!” With those words, Paulie and Chrysalis flew away.

Royal waited for them to depart. He then lightly walked along the Ponyville square. He had to get to somepony’s house and warn them. He walked along until he saw a sight for sore eyes; Twilight Sparkle’s library. He quietly snuck over to the door and gave it a firm knock. Inside, Twilight opened her eyes. She had fallen asleep studying at her desk close to the front door. Sleepily, she stumbled over to the door.

“Who’s there? Princess Celestia hasn’t even risen the sun yet! Who besides the Apples would be awake now?”

“It’s Royal. Please, Twilight…you’ve got to listen to me.” Twilight immediately snapped to her senses. She opened the door, allowing him to enter.

“Come on in, Royal.” As soon as Twilight closed the door, she quickly hugged him.

“Uh…hello.” Royal did not expect this as a response. Twilight backed off, embarrassed.

“Oh, I’m sorry! I just…I missed you.”

“I missed you too, Twilight. I missed everyone.” He noticed a now-repaired Smarty Pants, guessing that his doppleganger had included the doll in his “desecration” of the library.

“I’m sorry about what happened here.” Twilight shook her head gently.

“It’s not your fault, Royal. Pinkie told me everything yesterday morning.”

“I know. I’ve cried over this enough. I’m back now, for good.” Twilight smiled.

“I’m very happy to hear you say that. I thought you had a meeting with Princess Celestia that day.”

“I did. That’s why I’m here. I’ve got some news for you, and not the good kind, either.” Twilight listened intently, bracing herself for whatever came out of Royal’s mouth next.

Nearly two hours later, it was still dark. Royal spent that time inside the library with Twilight, trying to come up with a viable strategy to dethrone the villains before they could even get started. If Twilight didn’t already believe Royal’s news about the princesses being locked away in cocoons, she sure did now. The sun and moon had risen as normal the previous day because Celestia and Luna were granted temporary release at the appropriate times. Chrysalis cast a spell on the castle’s guards, gaining their allegiance. The releases were done to avoid suspicion, but the cover was now blown. Somepony forgot to release Celestia in order to repeat the process on this particular morning.

Rainbow and Scootaloo crossed paths with Big Macintosh on their search for Royal. Their search had led them straight to Sweet Apple Acres.

“Hey, Big Mac!” Rainbow said. The big red stallion greeted them.

“Good morning Rainbow, Scootaloo. What brings ya out here?”

“We’re looking for Royal. Have you seen him anywhere around here?” Big Mac, having not been present at the recent meeting, only had the bad memories of when Royal supposedly stole more apples than he sold in a day. He turned away.

“Sorry, I couldn’t care less about that thief.” Scootaloo hung her head. Rainbow gave her a hug with a single wing, offering a moment of moral support.

“I know we can’t convince you otherwise, but try and reconsider your thoughts. Sorry to trouble you, Mac.” The pair started to walk away. When they were about to leave the farm, they heard him speak again.

“Good luck, you two.” They turned around to see him smile warmly in their direction. Big Mac hadn’t yet heard that Royal wasn’t the thief, but he knew that they cared about him. They smiled back and continued on their way. As soon as they left Sweet Apple Acres, the sun began to rise. This puzzled Rainbow.

“Did Princess Celestia sleep in or something? The sun should have been up 3 hours ago.” Scootaloo shrugged.

Paulie and Chrysalis continued to fly towards their destination, and they too were puzzled about the sun not rising on schedule.

“I think your henchmen are in a different timezone, Chryssy.”

“I should have known…never leave a grunt to do a queen’s job!” she scowled.

“But why does that matter? We’ll have control of Ponyville and Canterlot after today. It’s a time of celebration!” Chrysalis smiled.

“Yes, and the attack should begin right…about…now!”

Almost as if they could hear her counting down, the changelings appeared from their hiding places and immediately began running amok in Ponyville. Some of them appeared right in front of Rainbow and Scootaloo.

“What th…get behind me, kid!” Scootaloo obeyed her mentor. Rainbow stared down the creatures she never thought she’d see again.

Changelings? Well, that explains the fake Royal perfectly! How dare they try and frame my little bro like that?!

“You wanna fight? Good. You’ve gone and made fools of all of us, and I’m not happy about that!”

Before too long, changelings had popped out of nearly every corner of the village. Royal had left the treebrary and knew he had to see Pinkie before heading home. On the way, a few changelings engaged him in combat. He quickly blew past them. Nothing was going to stop him from seeing Pinkie again. Inside Sugar Cube Corner, a group of changelings had already surrounded Pinkie and Mrs. Cake. The pair stood tall, forming a barrier between the creatures and Mr. Cake, who held the twins Pound and Pumpkin close to himself, protectively. Unfortunately, they had no weapons and neither one of them were the fighting type. Pinkie’s party cannon was in her room, and she couldn’t very well leave the Cakes to fend for themselves. They braced themselves for whatever came next.

In one stunning flash of light, a familiar blue figure pounced head-on into the fray. Royal struck anything in the pile that moved. He was in complete melee mode. However, he took his fair share of hits as well. The melee appeared to be over when the changelings piled on top of him. It looked like the numbers game had caught up to the angered young stallion. However, they soon flew off and crashed into the walls of SCC when Royal activated his aura. He stood up, though slightly bruised.

“Royal!” Pinkie yelled. He deactivated his aura and turned to her.

“Hey Pinkie. Is everyone okay here?” She said nothing, but immediately charged towards him.

Oh no, is she going to deck me again? He braced for the worst.

Pinkie did quite the opposite. She pulled him in for the biggest hug he’d ever received in his life.

Meanwhile, Rainbow flew over Ponyville, with Scootaloo riding on her back. She’d had no choice but to flee the battle.

My pride hurts after running from that fight, but what choice did I have? She glanced back at the filly she was carrying.

If the squirt got injured or killed, I’d never be able to forgive myself. Better drop her off with AJ so she’s not alone.

Soon, she happened upon the farm, but the scene was similar. Big Macintosh was fighting off changelings near the house, protecting his sisters and Granny Smith, who hid behind the door. Naturally, AJ wanted to help, but that was out of the question, according to Big Mac. Rainbow decided to come in for a landing near the door. She let Scootaloo slide off of her back.

“Get in the house, kid.” Scootaloo obeyed and immediately huddled under a blanket with Apple Bloom.
Rainbow turned around and prepared to join her good friend’s older brother in warfare.

“Hey Big Mac…you look like you could use an extra pair of hooves.” He turned around.

“Eeyup.” Rainbow grinned.

“I was hoping you’d say that.”

Back at SCC, Pinkie finally released her grip on Royal, allowing him to gasp for breath. He was not expecting this kind of welcome.

“Oh! I’m so, so sorry, Royal! I just…I wanted to say I’m sorry, and I missed you, and I really care about you, and look out!”

Royal activated his aura, causing the now-recovered changelings to smash into one another and fall to the floor.

“Pinkie, I’ll hold them off. You get your party cannon and we’ll force these beasts out of here!” She nodded and sped up the stairs to her room. Royal kept his shield up and felt the force of the blows from behind as the changelings tried to claw him apart. He saw from the corner of his eye that one of the creatures had gotten past him. The lone changeling took a leap of faith towards the Cakes, but a sudden blast knocked it backwards. Pinkie was standing at the bottom of the stairs with her party cannon in tow.

“What part of ‘stay away from my adoptive family’ do you not understand?” Royal turned around to face the changelings once again. Now that he had some backup, he had nothing to lose. He flew up to one of the changelings and slapped it.

“Come and get me, swiss cheese!” Royal bolted out of SCC and was immediately surrounded by more changelings. Even worse, they were running amok through the peaceful little town.

“Uh, Pinkie? We’re gonna need more ammo!”

Rarity and Sweetie Belle were trapped inside the Carousel Boutique. The sisters huddled under a table.

“Sweetie Belle, if I don’t live to watch you grow up, I want you to know that I love you.” This drove Sweetie to tears.

“Rarity…you’re the best big sister a girl could ask for!” They hugged each other tightly. Rarity crawled out from under the table and stood up.

“Stay there, darling. Big sister has some ‘customers’ to serve.” Sweetie Belle huddled under the table with fright. What was her sister thinking? Rarity walked over and opened the door. A group of changelings sprang into action, looking for a quick capture. Rarity’s eyes turned blood-red.

“You wouldn’t dare lay a hoof on anything in here!” The group turned and looked at each other, and then continued to advance on Rarity.

“Okay then, you want to keep digging your own graves? Here’s a shovel!”

Several moments later, the changelings ran out of the Carousel Boutique as fast as they could. Rarity stood tall.

“Sweetie, darling, you can come out now…” she said in a sing-song manner. Sweetie crawled out from under the table.

“What did you do to them, Rarity?” Rarity grinned evilly.

“It’s amazing how many different uses one can find for common sewing tools.” Sweetie Belle looked confused.

“Huh?” Rarity chuckled.

“I’m just kidding. I made them play dress-up. They didn’t want to play, so they left.” Sweetie Belle smiled.

“Okay!” Sweetie was surprised when Rarity suddenly picked her up and placed her on her back.

“You’re coming with me, dear. I have a feeling we are not the only ponies dealing with an infestation this morning.” Sweetie didn’t say a word…she just held on to her sister’s neck as Rarity galloped towards the heart of Ponyville. Along the way, they were joined by Fluttershy, who explained to them that she was never touched by the changelings that invaded her home that morning. All it took was for her pet bear to gobble up one of the attacking creatures and the rest scurried off like lightning.

Back at Sweet Apple Acres, Big Mac and Rainbow held their own against the changelings they fought. However, Mac was beginning to notice the toll all the fighting was taking on their land.

“Rainbow, start flying toward town.”

“Are you sure you want me to leave you alone?”

“Eeyup.” Rainbow turned and started flying away. Big Mac’s scheme worked; the changelings all followed Rainbow away from the farm. He followed behind her. Applejack prepared to leave as well.

“Granny Smith, watch Apple Bloom and Scootaloo. I’m going into town.” Granny nodded.

When Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Big Mac reached Ponyville Square, they found it overrun with the changeling army. They quickly found the rest of their friends. In one corner, Pinkie and Royal stood ready to fight, with Pinkie’s party cannon loaded and ready to go. In another, the aforementioned trio of Applejack, Big Mac and Rainbow Dash were ready to rumble. In a third corner, Rarity, her scared kid sister and Fluttershy stood still. Finally, Twilight came to stand by her friends. She was not about to let the same creatures who tried to wreck her brother’s wedding destroy her new hometown. She had heard about the fates of her brother, her sister-in-law, and the two princesses she considered family, and she was not happy about it.

“Ponies! On my command, attack!”

A full-blown melee was about to begin.

Daylight's alright for fighting

Chapter 17: Daylight’s alright for fighting

The citizens of Ponyville stood tall, ready to defend their beloved hometown from an army of changelings. By far, the most enraged pony on the battlefield was Royal. While he was gone, someone had set him up. The presence of changelings in the area made it all too clear to him. He’d figured it out earlier that morning, when he overheard Paulie and Chrysalis’s conversation.

So, this is how it all went down. I leave for a couple days, and they send in the clones to hurt my friends. Well, I’m gonna bring the pain back on those scumbags. It’s showtime.

As soon as Twilight gave the command, he launched himself into a row of changelings like a bowling ball, sending them flying in all directions. He figured if he didn’t make it out of this fight alive, at least he could prove that he hadn’t turned on Ponyville as Paulie had deceived the village into believing. Every blow he dished out was full of pent-up aggression. He had nothing to lose at this point. Twilight and Pinkie had come back to him, but he might have a harder time winning everyone else back. He especially wondered about Rainbow and Scootaloo. He chose to put them out of his mind as he kept bulldozing changelings left and right. This was about him; his redemption to a town that thought he was now an abusive monster.

Rainbow, occupied with her own group of changelings, thought she kept seeing Royal across the battlefield. However, the group kept her too busy to confirm anything. This only ticked her off further, as she began thinking she was seeing a mirage.

I’m supposed to be searching for my little bro…that must be why I keep seeing him!

Meanwhile, the changelings were no match for Big Mac, who effortlessly bucked several groups of the army aside. Rainbow watched him work whenever she had a spare moment.

Now where was he during the royal wedding?

The tide turned in Ponyville’s favor thanks to Big Mac’s flank-kicking heroics. Clearly, the villainous duo of Paulie and Chrysalis had not counted on such a wild card. With the citizens’ combined efforts, the changeling army began to turn tail, and some fled the battlefield. Big Mac snorted, satisfied with the way the battle had progressed. Unfortunately, one rogue changeling avoided everyone and charged at innocent little Sweetie Belle. Rarity, busy helping Fluttershy and Applejack, did not notice this. Sweetie screamed and covered her eyes.

When she opened them, she saw a changeling collapse and there was a familiar shade of blue blocking her. Royal had come to the aid of the little crusader.

“Bad move. Nopony attacks little fillies…not when I’m around!” The stallion turned around, only to see Sweetie looking up at him. Having heard from Scootaloo about his absence, the filly could not contain her emotions. She rushed forward and hugged him, tears spilling down her cheeks.

“Royal! I never thought I was going to see you again!” This gesture caught the attention of Rarity and Fluttershy. They slowly began to realize who had saved Sweetie.

“Is that…” Fluttershy wondered.

“No, it can’t be!” Rarity said. They got a better look and confirmed their suspicions.

“Royal!” The pair ran to him, tears beginning to flow.

“Oh Royal, everything happened so fast! Then you were gone, and, oh my goodness! I’m so relieved that you aren’t gone anymore!” Fluttershy said. Royal smiled. He then noticed a blast heading towards the group from Pinkie’s party cannon.

“Duck!” Fluttershy looked around. Rarity pulled her to the ground with her. After the blast whizzed past them, Royal noticed a stunned changeling on the ground behind him.

Wow, Pinkie has impeccable aim!

Back at the farm, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom were growing restless.

“I hope Rainbow’s okay!” Scootaloo said.

“I know, Scootaloo. I hope Applejack’s okay, too. And Rarity. And Sweetie Belle. And…everypony else!” Apple Bloom said, sighing. She shifted her head, expecting Granny Smith to chime in. However, the matriarch of the Apple Family had fallen asleep at her post.

“How can Granny Smith sleep at a time like this?” Scootaloo shook her head.

“I don’t know, Apple Bloom, but I’m getting worried. What if something happened? What if Rainbow is…is…” Scootaloo broke into tears, prompting Apple Bloom to hug her and wrap a blanket around her.

Rainbow Dash was as fine as ever, smashing changelings with extreme satisfaction. The last changeling she crushed immediately backpedaled into retreat mode. This signaled the rest of the army to follow suit. The citizens of Ponyville looked on as the changelings left them alone. The battle was over.

They had won.

Sweetie Belle rode on Royal’s back as he walked towards the library with Fluttershy, Rarity and Pinkie Pie. They had agreed upon meeting at the library in order to discuss a plan of attack. Royal knew everything the duo of Paulie and Chrysalis wanted to accomplish. He and Rainbow knew their exact location as well.

When they reached the library, Royal was immediately tackled to the floor. Rainbow had found him. As he got up, he felt himself being pulled into a tight hug. Rainbow was crying. The others had huge smiles on their faces. They knew she was happy to have him back.

“Royal, I don’t deserve to be your friend. I rejected you…I turned you away when I should have helped you. I…”

Royal lifted his hoof to her mouth, silencing her.

“I forgive you. All I wanted was to see you again, big sister.” The stallion smiled warmly.

“D’aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawww!” Pinkie squealed aloud. Rainbow and Royal each turned a shade of red.

Twilight came forward, approaching the pair.

“Okay, you two. I need answers. Where is this ‘Swelter Canyon?’”

“Just south of Canterlot. You can’t reach it by train. You’ll have to journey there on your own.” Royal said. Twilight nodded.

“Okay then, it’s settled. First thing tomorrow morning, we leave!” The group nodded in agreement.

After a long meeting discussing the plan of attack, the group went their separate ways. As Royal turned to leave, he felt a light tap on his head. Rainbow had stopped him. She was as serious as ever.

“Kid…I don’t think you should come with us.” Royal was taken aback by her request.

“What? Why? Rainbow, this is just as much my battle as anypony’s!” His acting older sister looked down. She was not good at this emotional stuff.

“Royal…what if we all die? Who would look after Scootaloo? She would be alone again. She’s already lost so much.”

Rainbow looked into his eyes. She was crying again.

“Please…you have to stay behind. You have to be her big brother. She has no one else! They almost killed you before! I don’t want you risking your life again, you hear me?” Royal stared at her. She was desperate to keep him out of trouble. He had stuck his neck out several times to protect Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow just wanted him to stay safe. Enough was enough.

“Little brother…you’ve already done so much to protect us. Please, let us protect you now.” She looked directly in his eyes, tears streaming down her face.

“I understand. I’ll watch over Scootaloo.” Rainbow bolted forward and hugged him.

“I’m sorry I worried you…” he said. This only led Rainbow to squeeze him tighter for a moment.

When Rainbow had calmed down, the pair left the library. Once outside, Rainbow spread her wings to leave for Cloudsdale.

“I love you, little bro…” she said. Royal nodded.

“I love you, too. Good luck, big sis.” They shared one final embrace before Rainbow took off into the evening sky. Royal stood for a moment and watched her fly away.

Be safe, everypony. I’ll be waiting for you.

A little later, Royal finally arrived to pick up Scootaloo from Sweet Apple Acres. To say she was happy to see him would have been the understatement of the year. She was so happy she didn’t care if Apple Bloom saw her cry. Not that Bloom would have cared; she was crying herself. Royal made the visit short and sweet, taking Scootaloo with him. To her, nothing else mattered. She had her big brother back, against all odds. For the first time in several days, she felt safe. Nothing could bother her; not Diamond and Silver’s taunts of “blank flank,” nor any of the other schoolyard bullies’ actions.

She had Royal again. With her hero Rainbow Dash going off to defeat the bad guys, she was content. What could possibly go wrong?

The next morning, Royal and Scootaloo woke up a bit later than usual. The previous day had been a long one and had taken a lot of energy out of them. Scootaloo had gotten her chance to wish her hero good luck in taking down the villainous duo the previous night. Since it was not a school day, Royal had decided he would kick back and take it easy with his little sister, since everything was finally back to some resemblance of normal.

His specific plan was to take Scootaloo out for a picnic. Both of them needed a chance to unwind, and a picnic out in the fields away from everyone else seemed like the perfect chance. When they arrived, both of them immediately went to relax under a giant tree. After lounging for a little while, Royal finally spoke.

“You know something, kid? This is the life. I love being here. I love relaxing and hanging out with you, and everypony else. Once the girls take care of that obnoxious bird and his partner, they’ll be back home and things will finally be back to normal.” Scootaloo turned her head and glanced at him.

“Do you think they’ll be okay?” Royal smiled.

“As long as they’ve got the Elements of Harmony, nothing can stop them! They’ll fry that chicken!” Scootaloo smiled, reassured.

After the pair finished their picnic lunch, they traveled down by the side of a big pond. Scootaloo galloped over to the shore and found a shapely rock. She threw it at the surface of the water and skipped it several times to Royal’s surprise.

“No way! That was amazing, Scoots! Where’d you learn how to skip so well?” The filly smiled wistfully.

“Dad taught me. He was a champion rock skipper.” Scootaloo became silent. Royal approached her and hugged her tightly.

“He was amazing…so was Mom. I…I miss them so much!”

“They would be so proud of the progress you’ve made on your school work, kid. I bet they were just as proud when they were around.”

There was a brief pause.

“Royal?” Scootaloo asked, meekly.

“Yeah?”

“Please don’t ever go away like that again. You’re my big brother. I…I need you. Please, you have to promise me…” she clung tightly to him.

“Shh…it’s okay. I promise. I won’t ever abandon you like that again, little sister.” He gave her one last squeeze and then they separated.

“So…I’ve always wanted to learn how to skip rocks like a pro. Do you think you can teach me?” Scootaloo smiled and wiped her eyes.

“You bet, big bro!”

The scene was celebratory at Swelter Canyon. Chrysalis, Gilda and Paulie were sitting inside the throne room, discussing their imminent victory.

“A toast to us, dear Chrysalis! Any moment now, I expect our army to return from decimating Ponyville with Twilight Sparkle and all of her little friends in tow. Once they are out of the way, there will be none who could stop us from conquering all the corners of Equestria!” Paulie said, cackling. Gilda remained quiet.

Suddenly, a noise interrupted them. Much to their horror, the changeling army had returned to the base in shambles. Chrysalis, loving mother that she was, scampered over to her army of children.

“My babies! What happened?” The mother of the changelings listened as her baby told of the struggles in Ponyville. She nodded as she received details.

“What? A blue stallion did this to you?” Paulie’s eyes lit up, as did Gilda’s. She began chuckling, before launching into a full-out laugh. Paulie became enraged.

“Gilda, why are you laughing at this? What can you possibly find so funny?” Gilda stopped laughing.

“You made a big mistake when you kidnapped those little fillies, Paulie. I figure anything that kid does to you, you deserve it.” Gilda had hidden her anger at Paulie’s methods to capture Royal for his earlier plans. Kidnapping was not the way to go, especially not when it involved defenseless fillies.

“Oh, really? Might I remind you that after that awful little pink pony sent you crawling back to our home turf, I became your one true friend? That’s because no one else likes you. And me, I’m starting to see why. You’re a heinous beast, Gilda. A foul specimen that deserves every tear you’ve cried! I’m glad that pink pony shunned you. I’m glad that your precious Dashie shunned you!” After Paulie’s unnecessary verbal beatdown, Gilda’s face turned to a look of betrayal and sorrow. She was speechless.

“Good…don’t talk. You shouldn’t speak, anyway. Nothing remotely relevant ever came out of that hideous mouth of yours! Now get out! You’re off the mission. Get out of my life, now!” Gilda was filled with shock and disbelief. She left the canyon immediately and flew away as fast as her wings could carry her. Tears started to form in her eyes. Several minutes later, she found a field in a remote location. After making sure no one was around, she let her emotions go.

Night had fallen on Ponyville. Scootaloo was resting on Royal’s back as he carried her home from a fun day together. She had taught him most of the rock-skipping tricks she’d learned from her father, and he was honored to have been the one to learn these abilities. He sighed contently as he walked along.

She really loves her dad…as I loved mine. We really are two peas in a pod. My little sister and me.

Eventually, they had returned to his house; the building from which he’d fled in a huff just a few days prior. Scootaloo was sound asleep by this time. He laid her down in the main bedroom and tucked her in before kissing her on the forehead.

Thank you, kid. You never fell for any of Paulie’s lies, and you never abandoned me…even if the others did. I can’t be your dad, but I will always, always be your big brother, and I will protect you. This I promise.

Scootaloo smiled in her sleep, almost as if she had heard him.

Escape to Swelter Canyon

Paulie and Chrysalis had finally gotten over the stunning defeat of the changeling army at the hooves of Ponyville. Several hours had also passed since Paulie’s equally stunning betrayal and casting out of Gilda from the mission. Chrysalis had since gotten around to nursing each member of her army back to full health.

The new mission? Paulie was to establish a companion army of griffons to fight alongside the changelings, thus increasing the chances of victory. Then, they would send this new combination army out to their main targets across Equestria. At this moment, Paulie was about to leave to start recruiting his army.

“I will be back, Chryssie. Rest easy, for our victory is near!” Paulie said, beaming as he moved toward the entrance. However, he heard another voice.

“Excuse me, did you say victory? How can you say that with a straight face?” Paulie grew angry.

“Who’s there? You dare to mock me?” Paulie’s expression turned to surprise when Rainbow Dash emerged from the darkness.

“You! The rainbow one!” Rainbow suddenly rushed him and decked him with a right hoof, knocking him backwards.

“I am going to kill you, bird!” She moved in for another blow. At this point, her friends emerged from the darkness one-by-one.

“Rainbow! You ruined our fabulous dynamic entry!” Rarity said, pouting.

“Forget about that, sugar cube! We’ve got flanks to kick!” Applejack said.

Fluttershy emerged but said nothing, preferring to hide behind Pinkie Pie.

“Aw, come on, Flutters! This is going to be so much fun!” Twilight finally emerged.

“I don’t think fun is the word I would use, Pinkie. But it must be done. And it will.”

At that point, Rainbow gave Paulie one final slap across his face. She then backed away.

“That’s what you get for hurting my little brother.” Paulie was bruised and battered, but laughing all the same. This puzzled the girls.

“What’s so funny? I must have knocked what little brains he had out of him.” Rainbow said. Paulie sat up, seemingly unaffected by her barrage.

“Do you really think the six of you alone are a match for…us?” Changelings swarmed the Mane Six immediately. Twilight gave the command.

“Okay girls…let’s do this!”

Royal immediately woke up in a cold sweat. He’d awoken from a terrible dream similar to the one he’d had during his second stay in Canterlot.

Why am I having these awful dreams? Everything’s going to be okay. The girls are going to be fine. As long as they’ve got the Elements of Harmony, there’s no way they can…

He suddenly broke out of this thought and began searching his possessions frantically.

I feel like I’m forgetting something…but what could it be? His heart sank when he discovered a familiar box among his belongings.

Royal’s rummaging had woken Scootaloo. The filly got out of bed, painfully-adorable bedmane and all, and made her way to the main room, where she found him standing still, completely silent. She caught a glimpse of the box.

“No way! The Elements of Harmony?” Royal turned around to face her with concern in his eyes. She realized what had to happen, but she didn’t like it one bit.

“No! No no no, no no! Royal…” she said, trailing off. He swept her into an embrace.

“I told you I’d never leave you…I know. But this is an emergency! If I don’t go, all of our friends could die!” Royal let her down to the floor again. Both of them were almost crying.

“I care about you too much to let that happen. You’re gonna grow up in a safe world and get your cutie mark, with or without me.”

“Big…brother…”

“Promise me…you’ll behave and be a good little sister to Rainbow.”

“I…I promise…”

“That’s my little sis. I love you…” Royal gave her one final hug before taking off with the elements in tow.

Twilight and the girls started strong in the battle against the changelings. Pinkie fired round after round with her trusty party cannon. Applejack preferred to use her hooves to do the dirty work. Rarity tapped into her ultra-aggressive side, leading the usually fabulous fashionista to do some awful things. Rainbow, of course, was easily the angriest of the group and she let the army know it, painfully. Paulie and Chrysalis had done some terrible things to her adopted little brother, and she was ready to make them pay.

Royal flew along, mentally kicking himself for having forgotten to make his special delivery. He flashed back to his meeting with the princess. Princess Celestia had gotten an insider tip that trouble was brewing, and she did not want the elements to fall into the wrong hooves, or talons. She had led Royal into a secret area. Upon reciting a spell, the chamber door opened, and she retrieved the box containing the elements.

“Royal Blue, these are the Elements of Harmony. You are to guard them with your life and deliver them to Twilight Sparkle at the Ponyville Library. Do you understand?” Royal nodded.

“Yes, princess. I understand.” Celestia smiled.

“Good. Our business here is finished.”

As he flew along, Royal suddenly noticed a figure on the ground. He had flown over a field. He noted that a short stop for some rest was a good idea. He landed about 50 feet behind the mysterious figure. As he got closer, he now recognized who it was.

Hey…I think I know that face…

He approached the figure with a kind smile. Noticing she was no longer alone, Gilda looked down at the stranger.

“What do you want? Did Paulie send you to…” she stopped speaking when she recognized him.

“Hey, you’re that kid!” Royal nodded.

“I know you, too! Gilda, right?” The griffon turned away as if she was disgusted that he knew her name.

“What difference does it make? Paulie kicked me out. ‘Gilda, you’re a heinous beast! Nobody likes you!’ I’m starting to believe it, too.” The lady griffon started crying, which only prompted Royal to sit beside her.

“I don’t think you’re a heinous beast.” Gilda kept her gaze forward, not making contact with the kind stallion. For this, she actually felt remorse, because he was only trying to make her feel better.

“That’s because we’ve just met. Trust me, kid…if you actually knew me, you’d be running the other way in a hurry. Dash left me, and she was the most loyal friend I had until Paulie. He was right…I’m just an unlikeable, hideous monster!” Royal suddenly stood up. He spread his wings and prepared to take off.

“And I suppose you’re just gonna leave like all the others…” Gilda said, mournfully sighing.

“No…I’m off to where I was going before I stopped here. I’m going to Swelter Canyon to tear Paulie into griffon tenders! You’re welcome to come along, if you want.” Gilda perked up.

This kid is nuts! I’m in!

The aforementioned griffon sat and watched as the Mane Six and the changeling army clashed. Paulie was stewing in anger after Rainbow beat the stuffing out of him. Sure, he wasn’t hurt too badly, but it still ticked him off. Worse still, the matchup seemed to be a stalemate at best. He decided he had to do something about that. As he looked out onto the battle in front of him, his eyes locked on Rainbow Dash. She seemed like an obvious choice, considering the earlier beatdown she had given him. However, he caught a glance of a different pony and decided she would do instead.

Waiting for the most opportune moment, Paulie struck, knocking Pinkie off of her hooves and sending her tumbling from the battle. He approached her as she got up and smacked her with enough force to knock her into one of the cave walls, sending a jolt of pain through her body. She shook her head and looked up at him. Paulie cast his gaze down upon her as well.

“Oh, I am going to have a lot of fun with you!”

Applejack tried to rush over to help Pinkie, but a wall of changelings blocked her. The same proved true for the rest of the girls. Somehow, the changelings were a step quicker to head them off and keep them engaged in battle. All the while, Chrysalis sat in silence, preparing herself for a spell that would wipe out Twilight Sparkle and her friends for good.

With the elements gone, nopony can stop us! I’ll destroy the heroes, and Paulie will take the army to our next destination!

Royal and Gilda flew along, making their way to Swelter Canyon. Gilda was as surprised as ever that someone had shown kindness to her. Most places she went, she was rejected due to fear and intimidation.

“So Gilda…” Royal began. She snapped out of her moment of thought.

“Yeah?”

“What happened when you visited Ponyville? Rainbow always shied away from the subject.” Gilda sighed.

“Well, since Dash was my only friend growing up, I hadn’t seen her in years. I wanted to hang out only with her. And then Pinkie showed up…tried to cut into my time with Dash.”

“I’m sure she didn’t mean to do it on purpose. That’s just Pinkie. She loves her friends, and sometimes doesn’t know her boundaries. But she really is a very sweet and kind pony.” Gilda nodded.

“I know that now…she threw a party for me while I was there. I didn’t appreciate it. I caused a big scene and yelled at all of Dash’s dweeb friends…for the longest time, I thought Pinkie had been responsible for me losing my best friend. But it was my own fault…my ego cost me Dashie.”

“Well, time heals wounds, Gilda. Why don’t you talk to her after we’re done making shish kabobs out of your ex-friend?”

“Sure…I guess I could try. The worst she can do is say no, right?” Gilda finally cracked a faint smile. As they continued flying towards their destination, they told each other various stories about their lives. Gilda finally understood how close she had come to helping Paulie do a horrible, horrible thing. She apologized to him and was quickly forgiven. She had done no wrong in Royal’s eyes. She had stopped Paulie from outright murdering him on the spot. Gilda started to realize why Rainbow cared for him so much.

Back at the canyon, Pinkie’s head bounced off of the wall as she fell to the ground yet again. She didn’t have any idea why Paulie was hurting her. All she knew was that she was hurt and she needed to get away if it was at all possible. Worse still, her friends had started to lose the ongoing battle against the changelings because they now spent all of their combined efforts to try and break free to rescue Pinkie, who had done absolutely nothing to deserve what Paulie was doing to her. The army didn’t seem to be tiring out as easily as they had in Ponyville. This was because the girls were now fighting the entire army, as opposed to the somewhat small invasion group they had fought earlier.

Pinkie looked up at Paulie as he reached down to grab her again.

“Hey…why don’t you ever smile? Are you sad about something that happened? Do you need a hug?” This only earned her more pain, as Paulie indeed hugged her and started to squeeze the life out of her.

“A hug? Yes…a hug sounds very nice right about now.” Pinkie yelped in pain as Paulie began an attempt to crush her.

“You wanted a hug? You’ve got it! I’ll crush you like a grape!”

Rainbow slashed her way through the changelings as best as she could, but she still could not pass through the barricade they had created between her and Paulie. She finally caught a glimpse of Pinkie, clearly suffering as Paulie attempted to crush her essence.

“Pinkie! No!!!” She grew even more frustrated. One of her best friends was potentially on the brink of death and she couldn’t do anything to save her. It looked hopeless for the element bearers, minus the elements. To make matters worse, Paulie started to gloat as he continued crushing Pinkie.

“So this is how the mighty element bearers fall! Without your precious elements, you are all useless, pathetic worms! When I rule Equestria, you will be the first ponies to serve me! Imagine that, the last line of defense, defeated so easily! I am the greatest! My empire will go down in history!” He laughed maniacally, continuing to crush Pinkie while the rest of the girls started to wear down. It was over, in Paulie’s eyes.

Just then, a small, somewhat jagged object rifled through the air. It struck Paulie square in the forehead, causing him to stop laughing immediately. After a few moments of silence, he put his talons to his forehead and started screaming in pain. He’d been busted open by the object, which had seemingly come out of nowhere. This caused him to drop Pinkie, who hit the ground nearly unconscious. This action had distracted the changeling army as well, so Rainbow rushed over to Pinkie.

“Pinkie! Pinkie! Speak to me! Are you okay?” Pinkie looked up at her and smiled weakly.

“Oh, hi Dashie! Wanna cupcake?” Rainbow smiled, relieved that she was still alive.

“Good enough!” She hoisted Pinkie on her back and carried her away from the action to a corner where the rest of the girls were resting.

Paulie finally located the source of his troubles; a jagged rock. He shook his head, while obviously suffering in a bit of pain himself.

“Which one of you vile creatures threw this? You could have killed me!”

“That was the idea. I’m quite disappointed it failed.” A shadow emerged from the darkness. It was Royal. To the surprise of everyone, the kid had come to the battlefield after all.

“Blue Boy!” Paulie said.

“Royal!” The girls said, surprised he’d shown up. He turned and walked straight towards them. When he reached them, Rainbow looked ready to kill him.

“Royal, I specifically told you not to come here! Do you have a death wish?”

“You can kill me later.” He turned his focus to Pinkie, who rested safely in the hooves of Fluttershy and Applejack. Without saying a word, he gazed up and down her body, seeing for himself the damage Paulie had caused. He took off his cape and wrapped it around her. After that, he left their side.

“Sugar cube?” Royal adamantly refused to speak. He dumped the box in front of Twilight.

“Waste them.” With that callous remark, he began a steady walk towards Paulie, who had begun laughing again.

“Blue Boy, I commend your courage, or is it stupidity? It must have taken a lot to come here, knowing you’re about to die!” Royal kept a stone-faced expression and kept walking.

“No words? It’s just as well. You don’t strike me as the witty hero type. You’re just a scared little filly hiding behind the big ponies!” Paulie continued laughing. Royal finally got within a few feet of him. He clenched his teeth.

“You can’t hurt me. I can see everything you do from a mile away, Blue Boy!” Royal nodded, and then he unleashed a massive punch, filled with months of heartache and frustration. The force of the punch was so powerful, it knocked Paulie off of his vertical base, sending him rolling on the ground until he crashed into the wall, making a considerable dent in the process.

“Did you see that coming?”

From the shadows of the cave entrance, Gilda smirked.

Royal vs Paulie; the last laugh

Paulie lay in a heap, partially embedded in one of the walls of the cave adjacent to Swelter Canyon. The changeling army still watched their fearless leader, having forgotten about the Mane Six. Twilight and the others relished every second of this unexpected rest. Royal had given his cape to Pinkie, a gesture that made the others smile and turn away, blushing. It was a nice moment of happiness in the midst of a battle which saw the fate of Ponyville and the surrounding area hang in the balance.

The expression on Royal’s face hadn’t changed. Sure, he’d pulled out a one-liner, but his demeanor was as serious as it could be. Paulie began to stand up.

“Oh, don’t get up. I’m serious. Don’t get up.” Paulie ignored the quip and got up, shaking his head.

“I warned you!” Royal ran toward the stunned griffon and decked him once again. He did not stop there. The girls watched as their young friend hit the arrogant griffon with everything that he had. Royal was not holding back for anything. Scootaloo could have appeared and told him to stop and he probably would not have listened. He was paying Paulie back for everything he had done in the past several months. He kidnapped the Cutie Mark Crusaders and threatened them, he showed no hesitation in trying to kill Scootaloo, and now, he’d resorted to physically abusing one of the sweetest ponies in the entire world.

In short, Paulie needed to die. No half-baked apology was going to cut it.

Twilight turned to her friends.

“Girls, get ready. It’s almost time.”

Queen Chrysalis, who had been busy lounging around and waiting for her army to vanquish “those pesky little ponies” glanced over at her stunned troops. Needless to say, she was not happy.

“Soldiers! Why are you standing around? There’s work to be done! Destroy Twilight Sparkle and her friends!” The command got the army’s attention, and they turned back to the resting Mane Six. Unfortunately, Pinkie was still out of commission. Applejack gently set her down.

Keep resting, Pinkie. We need ya.

The rest of the group resumed the battle with the changelings, but something was missing. That cheery demeanor pushing them onwards was resting with the injured, innocent pink pony.

The group looked sluggish, and starting losing again as a result. Despite the anger in each of them, there was a lack of energy. Rainbow got decked by two changelings at once and began to slump towards the ground, defeated. However, she felt herself stop. She looked up. Gilda had caught her.

“G…Gilda…” Rainbow stared in awe.

“Hey, Dash. Got room for one more?” Rainbow’s eyes lit up.

“You bet!” Gilda grinned as she turned her attention to the army. She was ready for action, and a chance to screw over her now ex-boyfriend.

“All right. Time to bring it, Gilda Griffon style!”

Paulie had finally come back to his senses and engaged Royal in combat. Unfortunately for him, this meant little more than simply blocking some of the blows being thrown his way by the angry stallion. He could muster no offense of his own at the moment. Royal seemed like an unstoppable machine. Royal finally unloaded one ultimate blow, comprised of all of the pent-up anger and sorrow he’d felt, which sent Paulie crashing into another wall of the cave. He looked ready to collapse, letting out a huge breath as he turned around to face the battle. He noticed Pinkie still resting in the corner.

I’ll go watch over her until she feels better. As he made his way over to Pinkie, he saw that Gilda had joined the fight against the changelings. This put a big smile on his face.

Darn…now I wish I hadn’t knocked Big Bird silly. I’d like to see the look on his face now. Good for you, Gilda.

Royal finally made his way over to Pinkie and collapsed next to her. He’d poured most of his energy into pounding Paulie into the ground. He looked over at her, remembering he had given her his cape. Now that he’d leveled his arrogant foe, his #1 priority was protecting Pinkie and preparing to enter the battle against the changelings, if at all necessary.

Meanwhile, back in Ponyville, Scootaloo sat on Royal’s sofa, anxious about how the battle was going. She knew she would not find any news on the subject of this battle for a while. She hoped everyone was okay. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.

“Come in,” the filly said. Apple Bloom was on the other side.

“Hey Apple Bloom, what brings you here?” Scootaloo asked her friend.

“Well, I just got to thinkin’ how you’re alone over here, and I was wonderin’ if you’d want to spend the night? Granny Smith said it’s okay! We can do some crusadin’ today, too!” Scootaloo cracked a smile.

“Sure. I’d love to.” Apple Bloom could tell that her friend wasn’t feeling her best. There was a sense of emotionlessness in Scootaloo’s voice, rather than the usual enthusiasm she had. It was one of the many ways she had been told she was just like Rainbow Dash.

“Okay then, let’s go!” Bloom said. Scootaloo nodded and grabbed her scooter. She needed something to take her mind off of her worries.

As he watched the battle unfold before him, Royal could not help but think of everyone back home; both in Ponyville and his native Fillydelphia. He hoped they were doing okay and that he could help bring this premature takeover plan to a screeching halt. He had done his part, taking out the brawn of the operation. Now he watched over a still-resting Pinkie Pie as she got her strength back little-by-little. As soon as she was healed, Royal figured Twilight would bestow the Elements of Harmony upon her friends and that it would be curtains for the duo of Paulie and Chrysalis.

“All right, girls! You’ve got ‘em on the ropes! Now let’s finish this and go home!” Royal acted as an entire cheer section for his friends as they fought on. However, he suddenly felt a violent shock go through his body. It was the same pain he’d felt when he was Paulie’s prisoner in the CMC kidnapping scheme some time earlier. The shock was powerful enough to cause him to rock backwards. Paulie then decked him from behind with a massive punch, causing him to crash into the nearest wall and slump to the ground.

“Did you honestly think your weak little attack could topple me, Blue Boy? Now it’s my turn.” Paulie grabbed Royal and held him up, only to punch him and throw him back upon the ground.

Applejack saw this change in momentum.

Oh no! Royal’s in trouble! But I thought he’d beaten Paulie! Time to give him a helping hoof!

AJ barreled her way through several changelings. Queen Chrysalis, who had done nothing but watch the entire scenario unfold before her, decided to spring into action at that very moment. She landed in front of AJ and surrounded her with more changeling soldiers.

“Out of the way, queenie! I don’t have time for this!” Chrysalis grinned.

“You’re not going anywhere! You and your friends ruined my wedding. It’s time for me to take my revenge!” Chrysalis created a barrier that split the room in half, separating the changeling battle from Royal and Paulie.

“There! Now I’ve got all of you where I want you!” AJ was forced to resume fighting the changelings, only able to think about Royal’s predicament.

Royal took another vicious hit from the enraged Paulie. This sent him sprawling to the ground once more. Royal noticed that he was now bleeding. This did not escape his opponent.

“I’ve only hit you a few times, and you’re already bleeding. You’re softer than I thought. Killing you should be a piece of cake!” He decked Royal again, which only served to draw more blood. Paulie now had the young stallion backpedaling.

“You were a fool to come back! I guess you’re just a glutton for punishment, aren’t you?”

“You might kill me, Paulie…but your little plan is never going to work!” Royal grinned. Paulie started laughing.

“Oh really? Tell me, pathetic blue punching bag, just how exactly is my plan going to fail?” Royal still smiled, despite his increasing pain.

“Your plan was screwed the moment I got here.” Paulie’s eyes grew wide.

“Then I know what I have to do!” He grabbed Royal, who wasn’t the fleetest of hoof at that moment, punched him several times, and threw him to the ground violently. Royal was now spitting blood.

“You caught me off guard earlier. I can’t believe you were stupid enough to put everything you had into a wasted effort! I shall not waste mine. Die, Blue Boy!” He began firing his strange energy beams again and sending shock waves coursing through Royal’s body. Royal howled in pain. These were twice as painful as when Paulie tortured the young stallion while he was his prisoner.

The screams of pain caught the attention of everyone on the other side of the barrier.

“Those shock waves! Paulie’s gonna kill him!” Gilda said in horror. Rainbow watched, not believing what she was seeing.

No! Little brother! You can’t…die!

Rarity had tears in her eyes, as did Twilight and Fluttershy. Applejack was angry. She kept busting changelings left and right during the whole scene.

Paulie gradually intensified the shock waves, causing Royal to writhe in pain. He had ravaged his voice from all of the yelling he’d done to showcase the pain he was in. It appeared it was all over for the kid from Fillydelphia. He was about to die protecting those who cared about. If it was any consolation, it was the hero’s way to go out.

I guess this is it for me…if anypony can hear me right now…take good care of Scootaloo…tell her she’ll always be my little sister…

Suddenly a blast emitted from the corner. Somehow, against all of the laws of physics, the blast tore a hole in Chrysalis’s barrier. It traveled further and struck Paulie in his back, causing him to stumble forward and cease his assault on Royal, who lay in a heap on the ground. Naturally, the griffon was confused and angry. Who could have possibly done this to him? Everyone in the area was either near death or fighting against the changelings.

“Whoever did that is next in line to die after Blue Boy!” Everyone except Royal turned to see Pinkie Pie, hobbled as she
was, smirking as she leaned against her most trusted weapon; her party cannon.

“Did someone call for a party?”

Paulie’s jaw dropped.

“Her??? She shot me? But she’s supposed to be the nice one! She’s vulnerable and weak! How could she have shot me?” Paulie, given the power to pass through the barrier, did so and approached Pinkie. She had the cannon pointed right at him.

“I’m not as weak as you think, Mr. Griffon! All I want is to see my friends smile. But you took that away from them! You also hurt my #1 protector! All bets are off!” To this, Paulie laughed and reached for her.

“We’ll see how confident you are when I crush what’s left of your essence!” He tried to grab her again, but he was met with Pinkie’s own barrier; the shield which emitted from Royal’s cape. Paulie, having only encountered this shield once before, decided to try every trick in the book to get around it and get at Pinkie. He tried scratching a hole in it, but he nearly ripped the nails from his talons. He tried pounding on it like one would pound on anything to try and break it, but the first attempt sent pain shooting through his right talon.

Royal, who had recovered enough to turn his head to the side, watched Paulie and chuckled to himself. He had recently modified his cape to increase its strength. He’d done it before his trip to Canterlot, which explained his ability to use it without draining any of his own energy when he rescued Vinyl in that bar. He had spent several nights at the library studying new ways to modify his cape with Twilight’s help. Now, with someone like Pinkie Pie wearing it, it would never run out of energy. Paulie could keep at it for an eternity and he would never win.

That’s why I gave it to her. Now join the rest of the girls and get this thing over with.

Paulie stormed back through the barrier and grabbed Royal, violently choking him.

“What is with that cape? Tell me!” Royal, knowing he was likely about to die, knew he had to choose his next sentence wisely.

“I…foolproofed…it…” he quipped. Paulie threw him to the ground again. He had gone insane with rage.

“You know…if you keep…me in here…Pinkie’s just gonna…keep shooting…you…” Paulie, who had begun to prepare for more “shock therapy,” stopped. He realized Royal was correct.

“You’re right…I know exactly where to take you!” Paulie grabbed Royal and spread his wings, leaving the cave and flying up the side of Swelter Canyon.

Gilda, who had seen her former boyfriend leave, slipped away from the battle and approached Pinkie.

“Oh, hi Gilda!” Despite the encounter they’d had a year ago, Pinkie still greeted her as if she was a friend.

“No time to explain, Pink. If you can, get back in the battle. I have to go!” Gilda left before Pinkie could speak with her some more.

“Okay Pinkie Pie, you have to do this! For your #1 protector!” She aimed her party cannon right at Chrysalis.

Royal sat in Paulie’s grasp, hanging hundreds of feet above the lava that ran through Swelter Canyon. Paulie looked down at him, grinning.

“So tell me again, you pathetic worm…how is it exactly that my plan is destined to fail?” Royal took a deep breath and sighed heavily. He knew it would eventually come to this. He had to tell his potential killer everything.

“Well? I’m waiting! Speak up, Blue Boy! How is my plan going to fail?” Paulie, knowing he was in complete control of his young rival’s life, started laughing maniacally. He knew nothing could touch his mission to take over Equestria, and he was ready to have Princess Celestia, Princess Luna and Princess Cadance bow to him. And all he had to do was eliminate one blue pest. It was too easy.

Or was it?

Paulie's folly

Chrysalis felt the force of a powerful blast of confetti. Pinkie’s aim was spot-on, as usual. Pinkie swung her cannon as needed as she fired round after round of party favors into the crowd. Sure, they didn’t actually hurt, but they were prone to stun if you weren’t expecting them. Twilight used her magic to carry the box toward her.

“It’s time, ponies. It’s time.” She opened the box and assigned each element to its designated bearer. Twilight cast a shield around her friends, so the changelings could not interrupt this very important process. She deactivated it once each mare had experienced her element power-up. When Queen Chrysalis saw her foes wearing the elements, she was understandably perturbed.

“What?? The Elements of Harmony? Where did they come from? We searched through every corner of the castle in Canterlot! If we couldn’t find them, how did you find them?” Twilight grinned.
“Let’s just say it was a very ‘Royal’ affair.” In that moment, Chrysalis realized that she was screwed.

Back atop the canyon, Paulie held Royal, waiting for his answer. Finally, Royal began speaking.

“I’ll tell you exactly why your plan will fail.” Paulie grinned again.

“Oh, I cannot wait to hear this!”

“So, you ransacked Canterlot Castle, right?” Paulie nodded.

“Yes, we most certainly did. Those royals don’t go free unless I say so! The only thing I couldn’t understand is why we couldn’t recover the Elements of Harmony! Celestia must have hidden them in such a place unknown to anyone but her…but that’s okay! As long as those ponies don’t have them, Chrysalis and I have won!”

“Uh, yeah…about that…”

No sooner had Royal utterered those words, then a rainbow burst through the top of the cave where the battle still took place. Paulie had his back turned, but Royal could see it.

“So, any last words before I throw your pathetic carcass into the abyss?”

“Yeah. Look behind you.” Royal said, smiling. Paulie turned himself around and nearly turned white at what he saw. The rainbow burst through another section of the cave and then it vanished. Paulie, foreigner as he was to the land of Equestria, still understood what that rainbow could do.

“T-that w-was t-the Rainbow…of…Light! But how?” Royal cleared his throat in an over-the-top way.

“You want answers, bird? I’ll give you answers. Before you invaded the castle, I was there. Celestia knew something was up because she’d been getting reports of strange happenings in Ponyville, like the time you tried to ambush me. So, she invited me to the castle under the guise of ‘wanting to talk.’ While I was there, she trusted me with the Elements of Harmony. I went back home and despite your best efforts, reunited with my friends and came here to deliver the elements.”

With each sentence Royal spoke, Paulie slipped further and further off the rails of sanity.

“So you see, if you would have killed me when you had me captured, my friends never would have recovered the Elements of Harmony and you would be well on your way to becoming the King of Equestria right now. But you didn’t. That is why your plan is going to fail.” Royal finished, with a great big smirk on his face. Paulie was past the verge of being simply angry now.

“Kill you…kill…you…kill you!” Paulie yelled, barely coherently. He lifted Royal high above his own head and brought him down, twisting the young pegasus’s wings with all of his strength, causing them to break, violently. Royal screamed in pain. This was even worse than the shock waves he’d been forced to endure earlier.

Back inside the cave, Chrysalis and her army had vanished due to the rainbow. Twilight and the others were busy wrapping everything up. Pinkie, who had summoned the best of her ability to join in the final stages of the battle, still had to be carried on Rainbow’s back. She was a little woozy.

“Well girls, another job well done. Let’s track down Royal and get back to Ponyville with the good news!” Twilight said. As if on cue, Royal’s screams of pain entered the cave. Fluttershy grew very scared.

“That sounds like Royal! Oh my…” the timid mare said, not wanting to imagine the pain he was in.

The group exited the cave in a hurry. It was raining. With her extraordinary vision, Rainbow found Paulie and Royal hovering high above the canyon.

“Up there!” She signaled to the rest of the girls.

“You shouldn’t have spoken to me so rudely, Blue Boy! Now rot in your fiery grave!” The griffon threw Royal directly downward toward the lava. Rainbow saw him fall.

“No!” She quickly hefted Pinkie onto Applejack’s back and took off, trying to catch her little brother. However, in her hastiness, she didn’t account for the fact that she and the girls had fought a very tiring battle, and she lost most of her energy before she reached the top of the canyon. She crashed into the side and rolled back down. She landed, with a forlorn look on her face.

“No…I…couldn’t save him…”

Applejack and the rest of the group comforted each other. They had lost a brave friend. Meanwhile, Royal stared up at Paulie as everything seemed to slow down. He could see images of his friends and the wonderful times he’d had flashing before his eyes.

I guess this is really it. I have no regrets. I lived a good life. I played my part in this battle. Chrysalis is gone, and Paulie can’t possibly rule the world by himself. He’s an idiot.

I changed my mind…I have one regret. I won’t be able to watch Scootaloo grow up. Goodbye, kiddo…

Royal passed out from the pain of his broken wings, hoping the lava wouldn’t wake him.

Paulie, who had long since escaped the realm of sanity, started cackling as he realized what he’d done.

“Yes! Yes! Finally, I have ridden myself of that blasted stallion! Who needs Chrysalis? I sure don’t need her! I don’t need anyone! I’ll gather my own army and take over this rotten land myself! And there won’t be a damn thing anyone will be able to do to stop me!”

Except for a massive lightning bolt that just so happened to come crashing down upon him, killing him instantly with impossible voltage. Paulie’s body plummeted unceremoniously into the lava below. Rainbow watched him fall, as the others didn’t have the stomach to do so.

Good riddance.

The battle was finally over.

Equestria was safe.

As they turned to leave, Pinkie noticed someone among them was missing.

“Hey! Where’d Gilda go?” Rainbow sighed.

“Probably back home…she did her part. Perhaps one day we can truly be friends again.” There was a brief pause. Finally, Twilight broke the silence.

“We should find a place to rest. Tomorrow, we need to visit Canterlot and make sure everypony’s okay.” Twilight led the group away from the scene, bearing a heavy heart over what had happened to Royal. The victory was indeed bittersweet.

The image kept playing through his mind. His wings were broken, and he was a beaten stallion plummeting to his doom. Yet, he never hit the lava. A mysterious savior swooped in to save him at the last possible second. However, since he had passed out, he never knew this had happened. Thus, when Royal Blue opened his eyes, he was as surprised as anyone that he still lived. He tried to move his wings, but he had no luck.

Still broken…I guess that means this isn’t a dream. I’m still alive! Ha! Bite me, Paulie!

Still, Royal wondered how he possibly could have survived that ordeal.

I guess I’m back at the hospital in Ponyville…Nurse Redheart will probably come into my room any moment now.

A nurse came into the room, but it was not Nurse Redheart. In fact, it wasn’t a pony at all. Royal’s nurse was a griffon. This confused him.

“Nurse…can I ask you a question?” he wondered.

“Sure.” The nurse said, smiling.

“Where am I? How did I get here? Last I remember, I was falling to my hot, boiling death,” he said, weakly. The door opened. Gilda entered the room and approached him.

“Hey there, Royal. I see you finally woke up. Good, you’re not as soft as I thought.” Though she’d thrown a couple snarky remarks his way, her face showed she was genuinely relieved.

Later that day, the Mane Six entered Canterlot. Everything seemed normal, and now they just had to check up on the royal family. Upon entering the castle, there was no evidence of foul play, much to Twilight’s relief.

“Hmm…everything looks okay. That castle guard told me my brother was resting with Cadance. But I need to speak with Princess Celestia and Princess Luna!” Twilight entered the next room with her friends following close behind, only to find her mentor sitting on her throne, as usual. Celestia beamed when she saw her student. She stood up from her throne and the two of them shared a hug.

“I’m so glad you’re okay! Royal told me everything!” Celestia smiled.

“Everything is back to normal, thanks to all of you. When you told me about those strange griffon attacks, I knew something was going on. I trusted Royal with the Elements of Harmony and he did not disappoint. Is he here? I’d like to offer my congratulations.” The group hung their heads.

“Princess, I’ve got some bad news for you.” Rainbow said. She struggled to keep her emotions in check.

“Royal’s…dead.”

Meanwhile, the very-much alive Royal was still in a conversation with Gilda, his rescuer.

“Gilda…how were you able to break away from the battle to save me?” Gilda, usually eager to take all the credit in the world, instead deflected it elsewhere.

“You’d really have to thank Pinkie. She’s a lot tougher than any of us thought. She bounced back into battle like a true champion. That gave me my chance.” Royal smiled. After all the time he’d spent protecting her, in the end, she indirectly returned the favor.

Royal had already had an exam and now he and Gilda simply waited on the diagnosis. Finally, the doctor came back into the room.

“So Doc, how long am I going to be here?” The doctor glanced at his results.

“You took quite a beating. You’ll be here for at least a couple weeks, if not more. If it was just the wings, we’d let you go in a few days. But you had shock waves course throughout your body for a prolonged period of time. You need to rest and get everything to go back to normal.” Royal nodded.

“Okay…”

He could live with an extended hospital stay. His only hope was that his friends were doing okay. They had taken just as much of a beating as he had while battling the changelings. He hoped Scootaloo was okay.

Please, Rainbow…just once, tell a little white lie. Don’t crush the kid’s world like that…I’m coming home.

Back in Canterlot, the girls left the castle. They’d all had a good cry with the princess over Royal’s fate.

“That…was a rough visit. Now we head home to tell everyone the news…the good, and the bad.” Twilight said. The girls headed toward the train station.

Octavia sat inside the house she and Vinyl shared. Vinyl had gone out to check on the castle and Tavi was expecting her to return at any moment. She sighed and turned away from the window.

“I sure hope Royal made it in time to help.” Suddenly Vinyl burst in the doorway with all the subtlety of her bass cannon.

“Hey Tavi! Guess what? The guards are back in charge at the castle! I also saw Rainbow Dash and her friends walking around! You know what that means, right? The kid did it!” Vinyl grabbed Tavi and swung her around as she laughed.

“Settle down, Vinyl. Are you sure you saw them?” Vinyl stopped and both of them sat on the sofa.

“Yeah I did, Tavi! But…they all looked so sad.” Vinyl said as her mood took a 180 degree turn.

“Tavi, you don’t think…”

“Did you ask them, Vinyl?” Octavia asked. Vinyl shook her head.

“Well then, it’s wrong to assume such a terrible thing. We’ll know in due time. Keep your chin up.” Octavia smiled and cupped Vinyl’s chin in her hooves, which helped the DJ smile as well.

“By the way, don’t you have a gig tonight?” Vinyl nodded.

“Heck yeah, I do! And tonight’s theme is sweet, sweet victory!”

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle sat and played with Apple Bloom at her house within Sweet Apple Acres. The trio played together under the watchful eye of Granny Smith, who watched and waited for Applejack to return from the battle. All of Ponyville worried for their beloved soldiers. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom for their big sisters, Scootaloo for her surrogate sister and brother, the Cakes for Pinkie, Fluttershy’s pets for her, Spike for Twilight, and everyone for the Mane Six and Royal in general to different degrees. He had won the population back to his side as the changelings proved they had duped the townsfolk. Thankfully, Ponyville’s beloved fighters were returning home on the next train, minus one.

One pony left behind in Ponyville worried about Royal as much as Scootaloo did. Yet, there was pain left in her heart by the things Changeling Royal had done. Derpy needed to see the real Royal again, so he could prove that he wasn’t the bad guy that teased her (nonverbally) about her eyes and mocked her silly nature as simple stupidity.

I’m waiting for you, Captain Royal…

A hero's return

The next two weeks seemed to fly by for the injured Royal. Gilda came to visit him at the hospital every other day. There was one thought that weighed on his mind, however. Gilda was still on friendly terms with Rainbow, and now since the battle, with Pinkie, too. Yet, she had balked at his request of sending her to Ponyville to deliver the good news. On one of her visits, he learned why. Gilda had been afraid to show her face in Ponyville ever since she blew her stack at the party Pinkie threw for her. Since Pinkie was apparently a very, very popular pony, she had lots of friends, and thus, she could not go anywhere in Ponyville without somepony yelling at her for her actions that day.

Worse still were those who witnessed her bully Fluttershy to the point of sending the cute and kind mare crying and running away from the town square. They still saw the offense as unforgivable and some of them had pelted Gilda with different objects whenever they saw her. It was tough going for a griffon who had since learned a few lessons about anger and was only trying to make amends. Gilda had done some growing up; unfortunately it was exactly around that time that she had run into Paulie. He reverted her back to her old ways of being a bully, but she eventually saw through him, and was back on her path to redemption.

Gilda was visiting Royal in the hospital again on this day, the day he was set to be released. She had a question for him; one she was surprised she had not thought to ask him.

“Royal, Paulie captured you and tried to kill you, and I stood by him that whole time. Why do you continue to be so nice to me? We should be enemies.” Royal smiled.

“Because you were nice to me. You saved me from death at Paulie’s talons that one time. Plus, you’re a friend of Rainbow’s. Any friend of hers is a friend of mine.” Gilda was overwhelmed by his matter-of-factness.

“T-thanks, Royal…”

“Gilda, you should come with me when I fly back to Ponyville today.”

“Are you sure? I’m still picking things out of my feathers from the last time I tried to visit.” Royal kept smiling.

“If anyone says anything, all I have to do is tell them you fought alongside the girls. Heck, Rainbow can vouch for you.” Gilda nodded.

“Okay, if you say so. Just come find me whenever you’re ready to leave.” Gilda left the room, suddenly panicking.

“What the heck is that stupid kid thinking? Me, go back to Ponyville? They hate me! I can’t ever show my face again!”

Back in Ponyville, things had returned to normal over the past couple of weeks. The only problem was that Scootaloo hadn’t left Royal’s house very often. Rainbow dropped by to check on her whenever she could, but Scoots spent her days alone. She had taken Royal’s supposed death very hard. It had gotten so bad she’d even refused to go crusading with her best friends. They could not figure out a way to help her. She sat on Royal’s sofa, where the pair had slept several times and she curled up against her big brother. Sitting on the table in front of her were two pictures; the photo of her and her parents, and a newer one, a photo of her, Royal and Rainbow, taken on a day of fun where they had gone to Cloudsdale and Royal and Rainbow got embarrassed because a lot of ponies greeted them as if they were a married couple and Scootaloo was their daughter.

“You said you’d never leave me, big brother…why did you lie to me?” The filly started sobbing, and no one was there to comfort her.

Scootaloo looked up when she heard a knock at the door. It was probably Rainbow Dash coming to check on her again.

“Come in,” she choked, trying to cease her crying so Rainbow didn’t see it. She hated looking weak in front of her hero. Much to Scootaloo’s surprise, it was not Rainbow, but Derpy who had come to see her.

“Oh, um, hello, Ms. Derpy!”

“Hi there, Scootabaker!” Derpy said, smiling in her traditional silly way.

“Uh, it’s Scootaloo. What are you doing here?” Derpy set a tray of muffins on the table.

“I made some muffins! You can have one, if you want!” The filly stared at the tray. Muffins triggered another memory of Royal for Scootaloo. It was the food she had eaten during her first night staying in the house. She began sobbing again.

“Oh no! Did I make the wrong flavor?” Derpy quickly raced over to the crying pony and enveloped her in a hug. It seemed like hours had passed by the time Scootaloo stopped crying again. Derpy finally spoke.

“Did something happen to the captain? I wanted to talk to him, because he hasn’t been around in a while.” Scootaloo looked up, tears staining her eyes.

“Oh Ms. Derpy…Royal’s…dead.” Derpy’s face fell.

No…no! It can’t be! Captain…

All around Ponyville, Royal’s friends had been forced to come to terms with the truth of his demise. As the strong one of the main group, Applejack served as a pillar to cry on, both for her sister and for her friends. The two (besides Scootaloo) who were hit hardest were Rainbow and Pinkie. To one, Royal had become like a little brother. To the other, a kind and supportive friend, not to mention her #1 protector. Pinkie still wore his cape, which he had given her in the ultimate act of protection. He had saved her life during the final battle. She thought she had returned the favor when she blasted Paulie with her party cannon.

Royal thought of all of his friends, too. He flew alongside Gilda, on the insistence that he would defend her if anything went wrong. Though, she continued to question him.

“Why are you making me come along again? I’m telling you, they don’t like me!” Royal shook his head.

“Gilda, you fought on the side of good. You kept Paulie from killing me and he didn’t like that. That’s the reason he tossed you aside, not any of the stuff you said. He cast you away because you saw through him.” Gilda refrained from speaking, choosing simply to listen to him.

“Rainbow said she’s known you for years. Do you honestly think she’s just going to cast you out?”

“She did once before…” Royal nearly bit his tongue; she was right.

“That was a year ago. Times have changed. When she told me that story, she seemed very sad. She wants you back, Gilda…I can sense it!” Gilda kept a straightforward expression as they flew on.

I hope you’re right…

Later that night, the pair arrived in Ponyville. It had been a long day of travel and both of them were exhausted. Gilda knew she would be spending the night in town, and that worried her. Would she be able to get service at the town hotel? If not, it was a long flight back to Griffon Village. The first thing Royal happened to see was a makeshift memorial to himself in the town square. Nopony else was out, as it had become a bit late. The number of flowers and other mementos left at the site overwhelmed him.

“Wow…I was so wrong…they really do care!” Gilda stood back and let him have his moment. His reaction suddenly shifted to horror.

“Oh, no! My friends think I’m dead!”

He flew away quickly, knowing the first place he had to go.

Scootaloo had fallen asleep on the sofa. Once again, she had not stepped hoof outside of the house. She had no reason to do so. It had been like this for two weeks. Who knew how long it would last?

A sudden knock on the door startled her.

“C-come in!” she said, yawning. Rainbow entered the house. She looked like she had been crying again.

“Rainbow? What’s wrong?” Scootaloo asked, now more alert.

“I just wanted to check on you. Do you realize you haven’t done much more than go to school for the past two weeks?”

Scootaloo hung her head.

“Yeah? What about it?” Rainbow looked right at her.

“All of your friends are worried about you! I was at Sweet Apple Acres earlier today and Apple Bloom broke down because she’s so concerned!” Scootaloo looked up.

“Did she lose her parents and the closest thing she’s had to a big brother lately?”

“Uh, yeah! She did!” Scootaloo looked shocked.

“You’re too young to remember it, but the Apple Family’s mom and dad passed away in a terrible accident…at least they had Granny Smith to care for them. You didn’t have anypony around besides your parents…that’s why I stepped in. That’s why Royal stepped in.” Scootaloo started to tear up again.

“He wanted nothing more than to protect you and give you a carefree world to grow up in. That’s why he fought Paulie to the bitter end. And this is how you choose to live it? Kid, I know you miss him, but he wouldn’t want you to sit around and cry about him all day.”

“He wouldn’t?” Scootaloo sniffled.

“No, of course not. He’d want you to smile at everypony you meet on the streets. He’d want you to treat everypony the way you would want them to treat you back.” Rainbow suddenly found herself overcome with emotion. Scootaloo ran to hug her, and they both collapsed in a massive pile of tears, unable to bear the strain of losing somepony so important to both of them.

Rainbow had left the door open. Out of the darkness, a figure appeared.

“You’re right, big sis! That’s exactly how I’d want my little sister to behave.” Rainbow’s ears perked up.

“I must really miss him…I can still hear his voice in my head. I'd swear he's here in the room with us. But that’s impossible…Royal’s dead!” Scootaloo looked up at the figure.

“He is? That’s a shame, because he misses his sisters very much.” Just as he finished speaking, Scootaloo recognized him.

“B…big brother…” she said, prompting Rainbow to suddenly propel herself back onto four hooves.

“Say what?” Her eyes adjusted, and she recognized him, too.

“Hey there…” he said.

Without another word, Scootaloo and Rainbow ambushed him and tacklehugged him into oblivion. Both of them were crying, which led him to shed some tears as well.

“I’m sorry I worried you.” Rainbow and Scootaloo both squeezed him tighter.

“Don’t be sorry! We just wanted you to come back, more than anything in the wide world of Equestria!” Scootaloo said.

Royal smiled.

“Well, I’m back, little sis…and I’m never leaving you again. This time, it’s a promise!” The trio hugged for what seemed like hours, until someone else showed up at the door.

“Hey, what the heck, Royal? You ditched me back there!” Royal grinned sheepishly.

“Oops! Sorry about that!” Rainbow sat up.

“Gilda?” The griffon smiled nervously.

“Yep, that’s me…I’ve come back…to apologize.” Rainbow looked at her friend.

“For what?” Gilda closed her eyes.

“For everything. For being such a jerk all these years…the Element of Loyalty deserves a better friend than me…”

Rainbow smiled warmly.

“Gilda…you’ve always been my friend. I’m the Element of Loyalty for a reason, and loyalty believes in second chances. Let’s start all over.” Gilda didn’t need to hear another word. Rainbow went in to hug her. Gilda initially tried to resist, but gave in and hugged her childhood pal. Royal wiped some more tears from his eyes. Scootaloo smiled as well. The night had changed completely for the young filly.

Eventually, the group fell asleep inside Royal’s house, with the door closing thanks to Royal. Several hours later, on the other side of town, a pink pony woke up. She had not had the same bounce in her step that she used to. The past two weeks had taken a toll on Pinkie Pie. She was able to put on a smile in public, but when locked in the privacy of her own room, her pain from missing Royal came out in droves. On this fine morning, Pinkie traveled to the center of town to visit the memorial to her #1 protector. Not surprisingly, she had been the one to start the whole thing; and she spent time at the site on a daily basis. On this morning, she decided that she would lay his cape at the memorial.

“Royal…I miss you so much. I wish you were still here so we could plan the biggest, craziest, partiest party ever. I know one day that I’ll be the happy, bouncy Pinkie Pie that everypony loves again, but I will never, ever forget you. Thank you for protecting me…” Pinkie hung her head and began sobbing.

Unknown to her, a certain blue stallion was on a morning stroll. He had happened to come to stand right next to her. Royal had heard everything.

“Thank you for being such a wonderful friend. You always seem to find a new way to make me smile."

Pinkie looked up. Who was this guy? He looked like Royal, but she was not about to get burned like she was when one of the changelings impersonated Royal and caused all that havoc and heartache.

“Who are you? You look like my dear friend Royal.” The blue stallion turned around so his cutie mark was in plain sight.

“Who else do you know who has a pair of drumsticks for a cutie mark?” Pinkie looked. It was true; he did have that exact cutie mark!

“R…Royal…is that really you?” Royal nodded.

“It’s really me, Pinkie.” Without warning, the pink pony started to tear up. Royal had only one request.

“Pinkie…I never thought I’d see you again. If it’s not too much to ask, could you please smile? For me?” Pinkie obliged, giving Royal a smile that could have lit up Luna’s evening sky if it had been done a few hours earlier. She followed this up by giving him one of her trademark hugs; this nearly crushed him, but he knew she was incredibly happy to see him again, so he was content to let her hug him so hard.

Later that day, word had spread quickly of Royal’s return. He made the rounds to all of his friends; he got ambushed by Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle when he visited Sweet Apple Acres and the Carousel Boutique, respectively; he’d even gotten a nod of approval from Big Macintosh, who finally knew the truth about him. He brought Fluttershy a new bird to replace the one lost to changeling Royal’s attack. He got Twilight’s attention when he went to check out a library book.

There was one more pony he had to see.

In the shelter of her own home, nopony could hurt the silly and lovable Derpy. As sad as she was over the things changeling Royal had communicated to her, she was even more crushed since finding out about the death of the real Royal. As such, she prepared to leave her house with a heavy heart. She had not yet been to the memorial site. As she opened the door, she was greeted by Royal, who was relieved to catch her.

“Captain Royal!” The silly cheerfulness returned to her face, but it quickly disappeared. Since Royal was not wearing his cape, she was reminded of those hurtful gestures changeling Royal had made at her expense. Royal had just one thing to say.

“Derpy, no matter what anypony else says, you are perfect just the way you are. I wouldn’t have you any other way.” He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek, causing her to blush furiously.

“I just thought you needed to know that. Have a wonderful day, you wonderful mare.” Royal smiled as he turned to leave. Before he could, Derpy grabbed him in a hug from behind. She was crying happy tears.

“Thank you, Captain Royal! I think you’re wonderful, too!”

When he was done making his rounds, he caught Gilda about to leave town. Just before she took off, she heard him speak.

“Hey there, friend! Leaving already?” Gilda nodded.

“I made amends with Dash last night. I’ve really got no reason to stick around.” The griffon cracked a smile.

“Thanks for everything, kid. You helped me find a part of me I thought I’d lost forever. Have a good life.” Gilda prepared to take off again, but she was interrupted once more. Pinkie galloped towards the pair with everything she had.

“Gillllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllldaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!” Gilda sighed and returned to the ground. She wasn’t expecting to catch Pinkie as the spirited pony leaped into her for a hug. After a good long moment, Pinkie released her grip, allowing Gilda to catch her breath.

“Gilda, Dashie just told me about how you saved Royal’s life! Thank you thank you thank you!” Royal, in his earlier encounter, had forgotten to tell Pinkie exactly why he was alive. Pinkie concluded her speech by passing out a pair of invitations. Gilda took a long hard look.

Pinkie Pie’s Total Party of Victory!!!!!!!!!

Join me at Sugar Cube Corner as we party like never before to welcome back my #1 protector, Royal Blue! Make sure your stomach is empty!

Yours Truly,

Pinkie Pie!!!!!!

“Are you sure it’s a good idea to invite me to this party? You remember what happened last time, right?” Gilda asked. Pinkie Pie just smiled.

“Oh, Gilda! I totally promise everything is going to be all right!” she said, laughing all the way. Gilda just smiled.

You sure are crazy, Pinkie…but now I see why they all love you so much. It’s crazy how things can change. I’m finally going to another Pinkie party. And this time, I’m going to do things right.

Royal felt a bit of weight on his back. Scootaloo had come out of nowhere and hopped onto him as he walked with Gilda and Pinkie. As he walked towards SCC, his friends joined him one by one. Surprisingly, not one of them lashed out against Gilda. In fact, none of them seemed to have a problem with Rainbow’s griffon pal coming to the party. It was as Royal said; time had indeed healed a massive, gaping wound.

Finally, the large group reached Pinkie’s place. Pinkie opened the door.

“Come on in, everypony! Let’s paaaaaaaaartay!”

Royal nodded.

“It’s so wonderful to be back! Let’s all have a good time, friends!”

“Yeah!” The whole group cheered. They rushed inside, minus Royal and Scootaloo, who stayed outside for an extra moment. Both of them looked up at the sky.

“Grandpa, I know you’re looking down on me right now. I hope you’re proud of the stallion I’ve become.” He smiled with confidence, knowing the loss of his grandfather didn’t emotionally cripple him anymore as it had when he had first arrived in Ponyville. Scootaloo also had something to say.

“Mom and Dad, I miss you so much, but I know I’ll never be alone. I have a big sister and a big brother now! I know you would be proud of them. I love you, and I hope I still make you proud.” The filly reached around and hugged Royal’s neck.

“Let’s go party, big brother!”

“You’ve got it, little sis!”

The pair trotted into Sugar Cube Corner and prepared to have one heck of a celebration.

The End.

Author's Note

And there you have it...my labor of love is finished. Well, maybe. I might write an epilogue at some point. I'd like to thank everyone who stuck with me through thick and thin. You've proven to me that awesome people still exist on the internet. Thank you all so much for being my friends and supporting me. I love you all.

The Ballad of Royal Blue has likely ended. I'm sure ol' Royal will find his way into more of my stories down the line (except a Crossover With Chaos...can't find a good place to include him, like Mario in Wreck-It-Ralph). Thank you, and goodnight.

PS: I know the fanfic itself has nothing to do with her, but I would like to dedicate the final section of this chapter to the enduring memory of sweet little Kiki Havivy. Rest in Peace, little one. Where you are, there's no more suffering...you'll never feel the sting of disease ever again. You will never be forgotten.

Humble Beginnings

Chapter One: Humble beginnings

The last traces of morning ticked off of Celestia’s clock, and her sun reached the highest point of the day. It was high noon in Ponyville, and things were ordinary. The young fillies were all in school, and the older residents were doing what they usually do. Applejack and Big Mac were working the farm, Twilight was studying and minding the library, you get the picture. One could imagine that Princess Celestia herself might take a minute out of her busy routine and gaze upon her subjects with a relaxed smile.

On this fine day, Fluttershy was tending to the needs of all of her little animal friends. She hummed a little tune as she worked. However, she stopped on a dime when she heard the sound of choking. Her pet bunny, Angel, had managed to swallow part of his carrot without properly chewing it first. She quickly managed to dislodge the carrot chunk from his throat, leading to a sigh of relief from both of them.

"Angel, you need to be more careful. I've told you this before." Fluttershy said warmly, but sternly at the same time. Angel frowned, but nodded in agreement. He wasn’t about to argue after she graciously saved his life.

Later that day, Fluttershy went for a walk. She meant to stop by Rarity's house today. The two of them had promised to spend some time together, as they had both been too busy to talk lately…at least Rarity was. She stopped walking when she noticed a house. She had heard rumors buzzing about a new house being built around the area. This could only mean one thing...someone new was moving into Ponyville.

Oh, that's nice. It looks like we'll soon have a new pony among us. I should tell Pinkie Pie. She really gets excited when someone new comes to town.

Fluttershy was partially wrong; Ponyville's newest resident was already there. He just happened to be inside the house unpacking his things. The stallion didn't have a whole lot of possessions, just the essentials and some keepsakes. Among the obvious things needed to survive, he had a record player for entertainment. This pony was a big fan of music. He looked over toward the mirror. He saw his blue body, complete with a pair of dragon-like wings. His mane was brown and slightly spiked. He also wore a red cape, which covered up his cutie mark. At first, he was against having it covered, but he grew to love the cape and wore it all the time.

"Now that is one good-looking stallion. Stay classy, Blue."

The last thing he had to unpack was the most important to him. It was a framed picture of his grandfather, who had died just a couple of months before. He took the picture and carefully placed it on the table in the center of his main living room. He smiled warmly at the picture, and began to tear up.

"I miss you, gramps." The Pegasus said. He was startled by a sudden knock on the door.

"Come in!" he said. Quickly drying his eyes, he turned around to meet the eyes of the Mayor of Ponyville.

"Oh. Hello there. I'm Royal Blue." He extended his hoof.

"Greetings, Mr. Royal. I am Mayor Mare, the Mayor of Ponyville. I came by to welcome you to our humble little village." She shook hooves with him.

"Thank you very much. I'm happy to be here."

"If you like, I could show you a few important places in Ponyville." Royal thought about it for a moment. He'd just finished packing literally minutes before she arrived. As far as he was concerned, there was nothing else he had to do.

"Sure. Let's go, Miss Mayor." He joined her in exiting his new home.

"And so polite, too." Royal chuckled.

"Well, you can thank my grandpa for that. He was the best coach." The middle aged mare nodded, and then she caught what he had said.

Was? Oh, dear.

"Um, let's start the tour, shall we?" she said, desperately trying to change the subject.

The kindly old mare proceeded to show him around the small community. He was introduced to such Ponyville landmarks as Sweet Apple Acres, Sugar Cube Corner, and the Carousel Boutique. At each stop, Mayor Mare offered to introduce him to the ponies in charge, but he politely declined. He would come back and meet them on his own time. After all, he was here to stay. Finally, they came to the library, home of Ponyville’s resident bookworm and her #1 assistant.

"And this is our library. Dear, I'm afraid this is where I have to leave you. I have some important things to do. We're still recovering from Discord around here."

"No problem, Miss Mare. Thanks for showing me what you could." With this, the mayor left. Royal stood in front of the library door.

Discord...I wanted a piece of him, but some pony beat me to it. Oh yeah, the library. Should I go in?

This decision was made for him. The door opened, and out stepped Spike. The baby dragon was rambling about...something when he walked right into Royal's leg.

"That's odd. I don't remember there being a blue tree here." He looked up, and Royal looked down. It was an awkward moment, to say the least.

"Can I help you?" Royal asked him. Spike took a step backwards so he could actually see the face of the unfamiliar pony.

"Oh, sorry about that. I was just about to run an errand for Twilight. Wait, I've never seen you before. Who are you?"

"My name is Royal Blue. I just moved here."

"Oh. Nice to meet you! My name's Spike." Twilight opened the door.

"Spike, we don't have time for idle...oh, hello. Do you think you could help me? Come in, come in!" Royal followed the pair into the library. Twilight resumed her frantic search.

"Oh, why can't I find that book on exotic recipes? I need it for Pinkie's party today!" A brightly colored book caught Royal's eye. It was sitting on the second shelf. He pulled it out and glanced at the cover. He pulled it out and gave it to Spike. The pair inspected it.

"9001 Exotic Recipes for Exotic Equines. Is this it?" Royal asked. Twilight heard him and rushed over.

"Yes! Yes! How did you find it?" The purple unicorn said; her eyes full of joy.

"The colors kind of stood out among all the other books. I mean, what an odd color scheme." With this knowledge, Twilight gathered herself.

"Thanks for finding it. I apologize for that little outburst. I'm just a little stressed out right now. I was supposed to meet my friends an hour ago so we could work on some great new recipes for tonight's party. See, we're welcoming a new pony to Ponyville and..." It was at that moment that Twilight noticed Spike's gestures.

"Wait a second...you are who I'm talking about, aren't you?" He nodded. She slapped her forehead.

"Ugh! Pinkie Pie's surprise is ruined! Now I get to hear her 3 hour lecture on why breaking Pinkie Promises is bad!" Her stress levels had reached new heights. Royal tapped her on the shoulder. She opened her eyes.

"No you won’t. I'm a very good actor. Besides, I’ll probably just forget what you said anyway. Problem solved." This seemed to calm her down.

"I'm sorry. I'm so stressed, I didn't even introduce myself. I'm Twilight Sparkle." She was back to her usual, friendly state.

"My name's Royal Blue. It's nice to meet you, Twilight."

"Yes, likewise. Oh! Sorry, but I have to go. Thanks for helping me find the book!" She took it and dashed out of the library, leaving a cloud of dust in her wake.

"I guess I should go too. I owe it to Twilight to try and forget what she just told me. I have a special talent for that." Spike laughed.

"Okay. See you later at that thing you're trying to forget so I won't mention it again!" Royal started to leave, but then he turned back around to face the purple dragon.

“Why would any pony need a book with over 9000 recipes?” Spike shook his head.

“I don’t know, but it sure is fun to say that number! I like yelling it loud when Twilight’s not around.” Now it was Royal’s turn to chuckle.

"See ya, Spike." Royal left the library and headed home. On his way, he walked by Sweet Apple Acres.

"I should get home and get some sleep. Traveling sure takes it out of you."

Several hours later, the royal blue pegasus awoke from his slumber. He felt like a new stallion capable of even keeping up with the Wonderbolts. The only problem was that he had no plans for the night. He had met a couple of new friends, but it wasn't like he had made any plans to hang out with them. Clearly, he had conveniently forgotten about the surprise party planned for him.

"I'm hungry. I guess I'll just make myself something. Oh, wait, I need to pick up a few things first." Just before he was ready to leave, he heard a knock at the door.

"Uh, come in!" He said.

Strange...I wasn't expecting any company tonight.

The door opened swiftly. He was greeted by three young fillies.

"Hi there! We're the Cutie Mark Crusaders!" The three said in unison. They all wore capes with special emblems. Who were these kids?

"Hello. I'm Royal Blue.” He greeted the girls. Were they Filly Scouts? He and his grandpa had given plenty of money to the Fillydelphian branch of the organization. Grandpa Blue loved the cookies they sold.

"I'm Scootaloo." The orange-coated filly with the spiky pink mane said.

"I'm Sweetie Bell." The white-coated filly with the pink and purple mane said.

"I'm Applebloom." The yellow-coated filly with the red mane said. Royal couldn't help but notice Applebloom's accent. It was the cutest thing he'd ever heard in his life.

"It's nice to meet you. What brings you here at this hour?" There had to be a reason why three little fillies came to the door of a total stranger in the evening.

"We've come to bring you to a p-" Sweetie Bell began, but Scootaloo stuck her hoof in her friend's mouth.

"There's something amazing that you've just gotta see! Come on, follow us!" Scootaloo said. So, the four of them left Royal's house.

Eventually, they came to a red barn at Sweet Apple Acres.

"Uh, Scootaloo, is this the amazing thing you wanted to show me?"

"No, of course not!" The Crusaders entered the barn, with Royal not too far behind. It was pitch black inside the barn.

"This is the amazing thing I wanted to show you!" Scootaloo waited in anticipation, but nothing happened. She tapped her hoof on the ground in a Sonic the Hedgehog-like manner.

"I said, THIS is the amazing thing I wanted to show you!" This time, the lights came on.

"SURPRISE!" Royal turned around. He saw several ponies, but he only recognized one pony, and one dragon. However, he was about to meet just about every other pony in Ponyville, and even a few from Cloudsdale. He figured he would start with familiarity, and talk to Spike and Twilight. He walked over to where they were standing.

"Oh, hey Royal. Glad you could make it." Spike said.

"Me? I didn't even know there was anything going on tonight. I just followed those three here." Royal pointed to the CMC. Twilight breathed a sigh of relief.

"Please, enjoy yourself tonight. And welcome to Ponyville, Royal."

"Wow, I just can't believe some pony would throw little 'old me a party out of the blue like this. Who could be so nice and happy?" Royal wondered. He didn't have to wait too long to get his answer.

"Surprise!" He jumped a little bit. Turning around, he noticed a pink pony with a massive grin.

"Royal, meet Pinkie Pie." Twilight said. He extended his hoof.

"Nice to meet you, Pinkie P-" She barreled into him. That was unexpected. It took him a second to realize that she was actually hugging him. After a couple of seconds, she released him.

"Friends don't shake hooves, silly! Friends have gotta hug!"

"You don't say..." Royal said, still trying to catch his breath. No one had ever hugged him upon first meeting him, either.

"Well, you must be hungry after such a long journey. Here, have some treats! Applejack is ready to help any pony make a choice on what to eat!" Pinkie led him to the table, which had some truly tasty concoctions. While some of it had come directly from the back pages of Twilight's book, there were also several more traditional choices, such as Applejack's patented apple fritters, apple cupcakes, and apple pie.

"I...I don't know what to try first. It all looks so incredible!" Applejack happened to be standing next to him.

"Take your time, sir. We'll be here all night, most likely. This is a Pinkie Pie party, after all." He decided on an apple fritter and an apple cupcake.

"Well now, those are great choices! I made them myself. They came from right here at Sweet Apple Acres!" Royal turned around to greet an orange pony wearing a cowboy hat.

"Oh, so you must be Applejack then. I'm Royal Blue." He introduced himself. She shook his hoof aggressively, shaking him as well.

"Nice to meet ya, Royal. Hope you like it here in Ponyville. I sure do." She let go, allowing Royal to regain steadiness. He dug into the food he had taken from the table spread. Within seconds, he had finished it off. He stood there, trying to register his feelings.

This is good. Really good.

After a minute, he still had his back turned to Applejack. This concerned her.

"Somethin' wrong, Royal?" Applejack asked. He turned around with a huge grin on his face.

"Who made these incredible treats? I want to shake that pony's hoof!"

"Ya just did, sugar cube." Royal kept his grin. She had told him she was the one responsible.

"It was a long day, what with getting moved in and everything." She laughed.

"I understand. Y'all enjoy yourself now." Applejack excused herself as she noticed some more partygoers having trouble making dining decisions.

I guess I should go find some more ponies to talk to.

He didn't have to wander too far before the CMC found him.

"Hi Royal! We were just looking for ya." Sweetie Bell said.

"Oh yeah?"

"You still haven't met the most awesome pony here!" Scootaloo said. She led him along until they reached the other side of the barn. The pony in question was chatting it up with some of her friends. Royal waited while Scootaloo went to her side.

"Hey, Rainbow Dash!" Rainbow looked over.

"Oh, Scootaloo! Hey kid, what's going on?"

"Nothing much. Still trying everything I can think of to get my cutie mark!" Scootaloo went on chatting with her idol.

Applebloom approached Royal after a couple of minutes.

"Sorry 'bout that. Rainbow Dash is Scootaloo's hero. When Scoot gets a chance to talk to her, nothing gets in the way. I'll introduce ya." Royal nodded and the two of them walked closer to Dash. Scootaloo noticed them and grinned sheepishly.

"Uh, hi. Scootaloo said you were really awesome and I had to meet you. I'm Royal Blue." Dash grinned.

"Well, I see my reputation spreads far and wide. The name's Rainbow Dash. I'm the tower of power, too sweet to be sour, I'm funky like a monkey, the sky's the limit, and space is the place!" Royal raised his eyebrow.

"I thought those were the credentials of the Macho Equine."

"Well, yeah. I'm a big fan."

"Me too! It's too bad about what happened to him."

"Yeah." Dash said, as they both went silent. "But let's not dwell on it! This is a party!"

“Indeed, let’s get back to celebrating.” Royal said. Scootaloo approached him.

"I'm sorry I forgot about you."

"Aw, don't sweat it, Scootaloo. I used to act just like you around my greatest hero."

"Oh? Who was your hero, Royal?" Dash asked. Royal paused. He didn't want to start blubbering in front of his newfound friends, especially at his own welcoming party.

"My grandfather. He raised me into the stallion I am today." It was at that moment that Dash noticed his cape.

"So...what's with the cape?"

"Oh, this. It belonged to my dad. Before that, it belonged to my grandfather. He used to tell me it was a magic cape. I didn't believe him until one day when I was outside playing. A thunderstorm came along while I was lounging under a tree. That tree ended up getting struck by lightning. I opened my eyes and saw this red aura around me. I should have died that day. Does that answer your question, Rainbow?" She nodded. Scootaloo was looking around him.

"Now what's up, Scootaloo?"

"Where's your cutie mark?" Royal smiled. He used one of his wings to hike up his cape. His cutie mark was a pair of drumsticks.

"Cool!" Sweetie Bell said.

"Why do you keep it covered up?" Applebloom asked.

"That’s just the downside of wearing a cape all the time. I haven’t gone a day without wearing it since it saved my life.”

“Well, it was nice talking to you. I’m gonna go chat it up some more.” Dash said as she dashed off. Twilight walked over to the group. She had been looking for the Pegasus.

“Royal! There you are!”

“Hey Twilight.”

“There’s someone I want you to meet. Come with me.” He followed her as she walked away, leaving the crusaders alone.

“Well, crusaders, I say we’ve done a pretty good job so far. What’s next?” Scootaloo said.

“He’s gotta meet my big sister Applejack!” Applebloom said. Applejack happened to be walking by when she said that.

“Actually, we’ve already met, kiddo.” AJ continued walking. The crusaders continued thinking.

“I know! He’s got to meet my sister Rarity!” Sweetie Bell said.

“There we go! Crusaders, away!” Scootaloo said.

Meanwhile, Twilight and Royal had reached their destination.

“Royal, I would like you to meet two very special friends. They came all the way from Canterlot for this event.” Twilight didn’t need to say any more. Royal knew who now stood in front of him. He bowed in reverence.

“Princess Celestia and Princess Luna! It’s an honor!”

“It’s nice to meet you, Royal. Welcome to Ponyville.” Celestia said. She nudged her sister.

“Oh, yes. Delighted to meet you, Mr. Blue.” Luna said. It wasn’t her fault she’d forgotten to act. This was her first party in a thousand years, after all, because of the seemingly-ancient Nightmare Moon business. Celestia looked toward her sister again.

Good. Now whatever you do, don’t bring up…

“Royal, you do realize I was the evil Nightmare Moon, right?” Celestia slapped her own forehead. Luna waited for his answer.

“Yeah, but that’s ancient history. You’re one of the good guys now. You don’t need to waste time dwelling on things that happened a million years ago.” Twilight and Celestia smiled. Luna felt herself break into a grin.

“Thank you, Royal Blue. You have no idea what that means to me.”

"I think I do, Princess." He said. Royal went on chatting with Twilight and the royal sisters. It turned out the royal sisters had been invited by Pinkie Pie while they made their rounds in Ponyville earlier that day. Celestia and Luna had been making visits to various locations in their kingdom affected by the short reign of Discord. The other question Royal had was why Pinkie had thrown him such an extravagant shindig. Twilight told him that Pinkie had overheard him talking with Mayor Mare about his past, and since she loves making ponies smile, she quickly put the whole thing together.

Eventually, the CMC found Royal again. He turned around to greet them.

“Hey girls.”

“You’ve still got some ponies to meet! Come on!” Sweetie Bell said. Royal looked back at the young unicorn and the actual royals with whom he had been conversing, while the crusaders surrounded him.

“Excuse me, ladies. It was very nice to talk, but my entourage has arrived.” This drew a laugh from the whole group. With that, Royal left with the young fillies.

“So, who am I meeting now?”

“My sister, Rarity!” Sweetie Bell said. Royal looked forward to his next encounter. It had been a good night, so far.

A Swingin' Party

Rarity was engaged in conversation with Fluttershy when the group arrived. Sweetie Bell went up to her sister and got her attention.

"Sweetie Bell, darling, what is it?"

"You need to meet the new pony!" Rarity looked over and saw him.

Goodness, what a dashing young stallion! She followed her sister over to where he and the crusaders were standing.
Fluttershy followed them as well.

"Hello there, dear. It is rather splendid to meet you. My name is Rarity."

"Nice to meet you, Rarity. I'm Royal Blue." At the mention of his name, she took a step backwards.

"What's wrong? Do I have some food in my mane? I did kinda go crazy on apple pie."

"I do not wish to be associated with any royalty any time soon." Rarity took off running in the opposite direction. Fluttershy went after her. Royal just stood there, dumbfounded.

"Me, royalty? Do I look regal to you, Apple Bloom?" The young filly shook her head. She didn’t even know what the word meant.

"No. It's just...my sister had a bad time at the Grand Galloping Gala with a royal stallion. It was so bad that she never wants to see another royal pony again." Sweetie Bell said. Royal looked over at Rarity, who was talking with Fluttershy again.

Who could be stupid enough to hurt someone like her? She's so elegant. He mustered up his courage and approached them.

"Miss Rarity," She looked at him with apologetic eyes.

"Oh darling, I want to apologize for earlier."

"Don't worry about it. If it makes you feel any better, I'm as regal as a rat. The only thing royal about me is my first name. Let's be friends, all right?" She nodded, sniffling. Even Scootaloo was smiling at this beautiful little moment.

"All right. Thank you, Royal." He stepped off to the side to talk to Fluttershy.

"Hi there."

"I'm Fluttershy. It's nice to meet you. Twilight told me a little bit about you. She said you found a book for her."

"Yeah, I did. No big deal." The two of them continued in conversation, eventually being joined by Rarity and the CMC.

After he concluded his conversation with Fluttershy, Royal decided it was time for yet another helping of food.

Even with exercise, I think I’d get fat if I got to eat like this every day.

When he got to the table, he saw something he hadn’t noticed earlier. There was a tray of muffins sitting on the end of the spread.

“When the heck did those get here? Oh well. I think I’ll try one.” He bit into it, and immediately he knew that he had made the right decision. At that moment, he spotted Rainbow Dash passing by. She walked over to him.

“Oh, I see you found the muffins.” He swallowed it down.

“They’re really good. Who made these?”

“Those were made by Derpy. She just got here now. We told her the party started at 6:30, she shows up at 7:30. Go figure. Let me give you a warning. Derpy is kind of crazy.” Royal just laughed.

"She sounds like quite a character. I want to meet..." he turned around to grab another muffin. At that moment, he came face to face with the aforementioned pegasus pony.

"Meet her." He finished.

"Meet who?" Derpy asked, confused.

"You, I guess. Are you Derpy?" She nodded.

"At your service, captain! Do you like muffins?"

"Yeah, I thought they were pretty good." Derpy beamed.

"All right! I'm so glad you like muffins because I like muffins and I think muffins are the best thing ever! Muffins!" Derpy became unintelligible as she took off flying around the room.

"Wow, look at her go!" Royal and Rainbow watched her soar in the rafters of the barn. Unfortunately, her clumsiness caught up with her and caused her to lose control of herself. She was heading right for the table spread.

“Uh oh!” Royal yelled.

“I’ve got her!” Rainbow flew up to meet her and steered her toward a distant wall where Royal waited to catch her. However, Derpy could not slow down and ran into him at full speed, leading to a huge crash into the wall.

Royal's new friends rushed over to see what had happened. They were greeted by Derpy, who was mortified at what she'd accidentally done. Twilight saw Royal crumpled up in a heap.

"Oh no! Is he okay?” Her question was answered swiftly, as he opened his eyes and sat up, rubbing his forehead.

“Mission accomplished.” He said. Twilight and her friends collectively sighed in relief. Applejack and Fluttershy helped him to his feet.

“Easy there.” Applejack said. Rarity looked on as she watched them.

Oh dear! Poor Derpy could have suffered a concussion. How noble of you, Royal.

Royal shook his head. He could see clearly again.

“That’s better. Is Derpy okay?” Applejack grinned.

“She’s fine. You’re the one who took all the damage.”

“That’s the way it should be. I’ve always had a pretty hard head.” The group shared a laugh.

“You guys can go on now. I’ve got to shake off this headache.” Applejack spoke up.

“All right, you heard him, every pony! Give him some space!” Heeding her words, the crowd went back to partying, as Vinyl Scratch went back to doing what she does best. Fluttershy brought some ice over to him.

“Here. This should help. Just hold it against your head.” Royal took it and followed her directions. While he was icing his head, Derpy came over to him. She looked like she was about to cry. Royal broke into a warm smile.

“You don’t have to say anything, Derpy. It was an accident. Go have some fun.” She nodded; her goofy, yet endearing smile returned to her face. Royal continued to ice his head.

Derpy may be a little crazy, but she sure is nice. And fun. Now if only my head would stop hurting.

A few minutes later, some more familiar faces came over to check on him. Namely Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Apple Bloom.

“Are you hurt?” Applebloom asked.

“Well, I’ve got this bag of ice on the back of my neck. You tell me, kiddo.”

“That was really nice, what you did for Derpy.” Sweetie Belle said.

“Well, I can’t take all the credit. Dash acted first. She steered Derpy away from crashing into the table. I caught her, more or less.”

“How are you going to get home?” Scootaloo asked.

“I’ll manage. I’ll just sit here for now.” To his surprise, the crusaders sat around him so the four of them formed a circle.

“We’ll keep ya company.” Applebloom said.

“Maybe you could give us some ideas on how to get our cutie marks!” Sweetie Belle said. This gave him an idea.

“Would you three like to hear the story of how I got mine?” The youngsters nodded.

“Yeah, we’d love to hear it!” Applebloom said. Royal began to tell his story.

“It happened when I was just a little filly. I wasn’t much older than any of you.” The girls settled in, giving him their full attention.

“As you’ll recall from earlier, I was raised by my grandfather. My parents died in a terrible accident on a dark and stormy night. I was told that the storm was the work of Nightmare Moon. I grew up hating her.”

“But we saw you happily chatting it up with Princess Luna earlier.” Scootaloo said.

“Exactly. It doesn’t make sense, does it? When I heard she was defeated, I was ecstatic. But then Princess Celestia sent out a report detailing her sister's return. It made me realize that behind Nightmare Moon was a confused and lonely princess. Now I just want everypony to forgive her, like I have." As he continued talking, Rarity, Applejack and Rainbow Dash came and joined their sisters and #1 fan, respectively.

“I thought it was the end of the world after I lost my parents, but my grandfather took me in and raised me with as much love as I’m sure he raised my dad. Anyway, now I’m getting to the part you really wanted to hear about.” The fillies beamed. By this time, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy and Twilight had joined the group.

“I was quite the crusader back when I was little. I did all kinds of crazy things, only to wind up disappointed. But then one day, my grandpa showed me the most wonderful thing.”

“What was it?” Applebloom asked.

“My dad’s drum set. He’d kept it all this time…for me.” Royal was losing control of his emotions. Fluttershy approached him. She put her hoof on his shoulder. He uttered a few minor sobs, and then he was able to continue.

“Thanks, Fluttershy.” She smiled.

“Oh, it’s no problem at all.” She went back to her spot.

“It was on that day that my grandfather taught me to play the drums. A few months later, there was a talent show at my school. My friends and I were in a band, and we played in it. Toward the end of our song, I felt a rush of emotion within me unlike anything I’d ever felt before. We were really rocking it.” He paused, once again trying not to lose it.

“And then what happened?” Sweetie Belle asked.

“We didn’t win. I was disappointed as I left with Grandpa. But when we got home that night, I went to go get ready for bed, and there it was.” He raised his cape, showing off his cutie mark. “And that’s the story.”

“Wow! That was a great story!” Pinkie Pie said.

“So, what made you decide to come to Ponyville?” Twilight asked. Royal felt a twinge in his gut again.

“Gramps…he’s been gone for about two months now. I sold the house in which I grew up to some of my relatives, and left. I couldn’t…I couldn’t live in that house…not without him…” At that point, he completely lost it. Fluttershy once again flew to his side. This time, she enveloped him in a hug; her motherly instincts had called her to do so. Twilight, feeling terrible for unintentionally setting him off, joined her friend. The rest of them followed suit, being careful not to aggravate his sore neck. None of them left his side for a good five minutes.

Royal’s sobs had finally stopped. He was still surrounded by the Mane Six and the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

“Thanks, all of you. I’m okay now.” All nine ponies broke away from him.

“Gramps would be really proud to know I’ve found some new friends here.”

“Well of course, silly! I threw this party so you could get to know a lot of new friends! It's hard fitting in when you move to a new place.” Pinkie said. Royal didn’t say another word. Instead, he barreled into her (not that hard, mind you. He didn’t want to hurt her) and hugged her the same way she had done to him when they met.

“You’re the best! All of you! Thank you for making this a glorious night!”

“You’re very welcome, sugar cube.” Applejack said.

“That’s quite all right, darling.” Rarity replied.

“We’re all glad you’re here, Royal.” Twilight said.

“We hope you’ll stay forever!” Pinkie Pie said.

“Welcome to Ponyville, Royal.” Fluttershy said.

“Yeah, what they said.” Rainbow Dash said. Royal stood up, noticing that he felt a little better physically.

“I’m going to be sore tomorrow, but there’s still a party going on tonight. So, let’s dance!”

Royal and his new friends danced the night away. Every pony at the party wanted their chance to dance with him, and most of them got that chance. Derpy ran up to him and happily hugged him when she saw he was in good enough shape to dance.

After the dance, Royal stumbled home. He was exhausted, and he knew he would be in pain due to events at the party. He didn’t even make it to his bed. Instead, he sprawled out on the floor.

It’s true what they say…Pinkie Pie really does throw the best parties.

Author's Note

I hadn't realized it before, but I actually wrote Royal's Character Establishing Moment in this chapter: forgiveness. He overcomes a personal demon very early on; managing to forgive Princess Luna for her exploits as Nightmare Moon that killed his parents (likely a story made up to establish a scapegoat for the horrible tragedy, like gun violence and video games).

A rendezvous with the princess, and a return to agony

“So, how did you happen to catch Auntie Celestia’s attention, Royal?” Royal sighed as he prepared to answer Cadance’s question.

“To tell you the truth, I have no idea. I just did what I thought was right. It was nothing special.”

“What do you mean by that, exactly?”

“I’ve been through a lot over the past few nights. It’s something I need to talk to Princess Celestia about.” The pair stopped. They had arrived at the main door. Cadance gestured toward it.

“Here we are. Now go on in and meet her!” The princess said with a smile. Royal grinned back and proceeded to open the door.

Twilight and the others had gathered once more inside her house. All of them with varying expressions on their faces, looking for answers to the ruthless behavior of their friend Royal Blue; at least they thought he was their friend. Right now, things did not look good. Applejack and Rarity had left their sisters in the care of others. Apple Bloom stayed home with Big Mac and Granny Smith, and Sweetie Belle stayed with the Apples, too. Scootaloo was at the meeting on Rainbow’s insistence that she not be left alone. Twilight led off the meeting.

“Ponies, I’ve gathered us here this morning to address the puzzling actions of a stallion who has been a friend to all of us.” Pinkie looked down with a forlorn expression. She’d felt it first-hand, as Royal had actually struck her. Yet, there was something she saw as he left that puzzled her further; but hay if she could remember it.

“All sorts of rumors have been flying around about Royal, and I’m sad to say that a few of them are true.” Twilight continued, sighing sadly, and gazing at Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy.

“Girls, tell us what happened.” Pinkie went first.

“I was opening up Sugar Cube Corner for the morning. Royal came in and I wanted to hug him because I was so glad he was okay!” Pinkie paused, and her hair straightened out.

“He kicked me, and sent me flying into the wall. Mr. Cake came to protect me. They fought, and Royal won. I’ve been taking care of Mr. Cake since then.” Twilight stared at her friend, impressed that she had made it through without crying, considering how close she had been with Royal. However, she did not expect the same from poor Fluttershy. The yellow mare was already close to tears and she hadn’t even gone into her story.

Royal stepped into the throne room. It appeared massive, mostly due to his nervousness. He heard a voice.

“Come in, my dear. I’ve been expecting you.” Royal slowly crept into the room. Once he saw Celestia’s warm smile, he loosened up and grew more casual, strolling over toward the throne. He stood in front of her, bowing in reverence.

“So you’re Royal Blue. It’s nice to meet you. I called you here today for a very special reason.”

“Go on…” Royal said, listening intently.

“Twilight Sparkle wrote me a letter describing your situation.”

“It was nothing, really. I just did what I thought was right. The kid needed someone to care for her.” Royal said, smiling when he mentioned Scootaloo. Celestia smiled as well, then she grew stern.

“There’s something going on, isn’t there? Griffons attacking you…and actually trying to kill you. What did you do?” Royal gulped.

“Well, it’s like this, Princess Celestia…”

Back at the treebrary, Fluttershy was busy crying her eyes out. She had been permitted to tell her story last, because Twilight could tell it would be the most heartwrenching. Even Twilight, the mare who never held a grudge after her friends turned on her during the whole Cadance/Chrysalis situation, was angry toward Royal. Rainbow was comforting Fluttershy again, and she slowly realized that she had no choice but to accept that the young pony she cared for as her younger brother had turned on her and all of her friends.

Royal…I can’t believe you, kid. I can’t believe that you would throw all of this away…and for what?

“…and before I knew it, I was back on my hooves, throwing myself into the air to protect her. For a while, I really thought my troubles were over.” Royal finished telling his story to Celestia. She nodded and smiled.

“It’s wonderful, what you have done for Scootaloo, and protecting another of my faithful subjects.” Her face suddenly grew stern.

“I called you here today for a special reason. I have received word from outside sources that there’s something strange going on. I felt the same way when we were approaching Cadance and Shining Armor’s wedding.” Royal nodded.

“Princess, I have another story for you.” Royal went on to tell her about his night mission to rescue the kidnapped Cutie Mark Crusaders from the clutches of Paulie the griffon, only to end up in captivity himself, nearly dying in the process.

“And I tell you, princess, if it wasn’t for Rainbow Dash, I would not be here right now.” He paused, thinking a bit more about her.

“She’s been like a big sister to me…and she’s helped me every step of the way with Scootaloo. I owe everything to that mare.” Royal paused again, sighing wistfully.

“But this isn’t the time for that! The fact stands that there is trouble brewing! I will help as much as I can.” Upon hearing those words, Princess Celestia got an idea.

“Royal dear, I think I know the perfect way for you to help!” Royal faced ahead, prepared for whatever she was about to show him.

Back at the treebrary, the girls were still at a loss over all the events from the previous day. Twilight had taken some notes, and she prepared to read them to the group.

“Based on what we have heard, I have devised a strategy for us. Royal Blue must not be allowed to roam free around the greater part of Equestria. He has caused far too much trouble now. He is a legitimate threat to us all!” Twilight saw Rainbow look down in sorrow. She felt great empathy for her friend.

“Oh Rainbow…” The pegasus kept staring at the floor, not raising her eyes to make contact.

“It’s okay, Twi. I’m okay…but that kid is in a lot of trouble! I took him under my wing as my little brother! What does he do? He…he…does all the stuff we just talked about! I’m gonna kill that kid!” Scootaloo stepped away from the group. Her head was spinning. Had Royal really done all of those terrible things? She knew that none of these ponies would ever lie about something so serious, especially not her cool big sister figure.

No! It can’t be true! Royal’s too nice, too caring. He would never do something like that! But, what if he did?

Twilight resumed her speech.

“Rainbow, you and Scootaloo will watch for him at his house. I will watch from the loft of this library. Pinkie Pie will watch for him at Sugar Cube Corner. You can probably guess the pattern from there. Whoever catches him, trap him and restrain him. We will convene at the proper location and find out why he would have done such nasty things. You’ll have to put your emotions aside,” Twilight felt herself choke up a bit, “otherwise you’ll never be able to deal with him. Do you understand the plan?” The other ponies nodded.

“Good. It’s never easy to fight a friend, but sometimes it’s all you can do.” Twilight maintained a stern look as she turned and stared up at her loft. This was going to be a difficult struggle. She knew what Royal was supposed to have been doing.

Royal, you told me you got a letter from the princess, but it looks like you never made it to Canterlot.

Royal left Canterlot Castle, bid farewell to Shining Armor, who guarded the castle ever-vigilantly, and started his walk towards the train station. He knew he had a long trek back to Ponyville, and he intended to sleep at least for part of the way. He thought about the trip up to Canterlot; he had run into Vinyl and Octavia, and they had helped the ride go by rapidly. Royal knew he would likely not have that kind of luxury on the way back. After all, you don’t just run into two famous pony personalities every day.

Eventually, he made it to the station, purchased his ticket and boarded the train. He was on his way back to Ponyville. Before he drifted off to sleep, his thoughts turned to his friends back in the peaceful little town.

I can’t wait to see ‘em all again. Especially Rainbow and Scootaloo. I’ve missed my big sis and little sis! Royal fell asleep smiling, knowing that when he woke up, he would be that much closer to returning to them.

Eventually, Royal reached his stop in Ponyville. He got off the train and walked toward the center square. As he kept walking, he passed Sugar Cube Corner. This triggered a previous thought in his head.

Oh yeah…I said I would visit Pinkie Pie to let her know I was okay!

Royal made a complete turn from his usual path and marched up to the door of Pinkie’s treat shop. He knocked on the door. On the other end, Pinkie, being her cheerful self, bounced toward the entry of the shop. She opened the door to see Royal’s smiling face.

“Hi, Pinkie! How are-“ he said, cut off by Pinkie charging toward him.
Aww, she missed me that much, huh? Royal smiled tenderly, extending his forelegs to receive her oncoming embrace…only to be surprised when she swung her foreleg forward and decked him in the face. The unexpected blow sent him careening backwards, and he stumbled out the door and fell down the front steps of SSC. Naturally, it took Royal a moment to process what had just happened. Pinkie Pie, one of his closest friends, had just physically assaulted him. Royal shook it off and stood back up.

I think I deserved that. She probably thought I was dead after Rainbow brought me home. I’d better go apologize to her.

Royal re-entered the open door, only to find Pinkie missing.

“Pinkie? Where are you?” The lights had now been switched off, which left him in darkness. However, he noticed that the light in the next room was on. Slowly, he entered, only for Pinkie to pounce on him. She threw lefts and rights at him, which left him even more confused as he blocked her punches. Pinkie Pie was not the violent type. It hit him that something fishy was going on. Gradually, Pinkie grew tired and started to cry. Royal decided to tell her he was sorry.

“Pinkie…I’m so, so sorry that I kept you waiting. As you can see, I’m alive and well, and I don’t plan on dying anytime soon.”

The pegasus walked over to comfort her, but she backed away from him. That set off some alarms in his head. He tried again, only to get the same result.

“Pinkie, what’s going on?” he asked. She continued to cry.

“Get out.” she said, coldly.

“What?” Royal asked. Pinkie turned to him, teary-eyed and enraged.

“Please, just leave. Get away from me!” Royal stopped, and turned around to leave. For a moment, he turned back to her.

“Why, Pinkie? Please, just tell me.” Pinkie nodded.

“Because you hurt Mr. Cake. He’s like a father to me, and you hurt him.” Pinkie paused, allowing Royal to process her words.

“That is why you need to leave right now, Royal. Don’t make me have to hurt you…” Pinkie spoke very softly. Royal backed off and exited SCC immediately. There was something very wrong.

I hurt Mr. Cake? That’s impossible! I was in Canterlot for the last two days! I need to find Rainbow and get her to talk some sense into Pinkie!

Rarity saw Royal run by her boutique and drew the curtains shut. Royal skidded to a stop when he saw this. That was the second weird thing he had encountered that day.

First Pinkie, and now Rarity? I don’t get it! What is going on?

He didn’t bother sticking around to find out. He just spread his wings and started flying as fast as he could toward his home.
Something’s going on here, and I don’t like it! Maybe Rainbow’s got the answers.

At Royal’s house, Scootaloo heard a noise outside the door.

“Hey! Rainbow! I think somepony’s here!” she whispered.

“Open the door, squirt. Let’s see who it is.” Scootaloo opened the door, hiding behind it in the process. Royal entered his house, ready to take a load off.

“I have got the world’s worst headache!” he said, holding his hoof against his forehead. He stumbled toward the couch.

“Rainbow? Are you still here? I need to talk to you.” Suddenly, he was violently tackled to the floor.

“Oh yeah, little bro? You wanted to see me?” Rainbow said. However, Royal noticed her tone was not playful as usual. It was angry and dark. Now he really felt guilty; the mare that saved his life was now enraged at him for some reason. Rainbow helped him to stand again.

“I missed you, big sis.” he said. Rainbow smiled for a moment, but then her expression changed and she decked him in the face, sending him flying back into the wall. Scootaloo hid under the sofa, scared out of her wits.

“Oh, you missed me? You were never even gone!” She punctuated her sentence by slapping Royal across his face. He looked up at her with pleading eyes.

“Rainbow…what did I do?” Her response was to grab him and hold him by his throat.

“Oh, where do I begin? You hit Pinkie, you almost killed Mr. Cake, you destroyed some of Rarity’s best designs, you desecrated the library, you stole from the Apple family, and you killed one of Fluttershy’s birds! I’m supposed to bring you before the girls! Royal, I don’t know what happened to you, kid, but…you betrayed my trust. It will be a long time before I can trust another stallion again.” Rainbow let him go, allowing him to catch his breath. He couldn’t believe this was happening.

“Rainbow, I didn’t do those things! I had an audience with Princess Celestia! You’ve got to believe me!” Rainbow shook her head; she had an expression of sadness on her face.

“Sorry, kid. I’m not gonna let myself get fooled like that again.” Royal’s heart completely sank. He now wore a blank expression on his own face. He walked past Rainbow and Scootaloo without saying a word. He spread his wings, preparing to fly away.

“Royal, where do you think you’re going?” Rainbow asked.

“I don’t know…anywhere but here. I’m not gonna stick around and get blamed for something I didn’t do! I really thought things would be different here in Ponyville…but I was wrong. I’m always wrong.” he said, without turning around to face them.

“Don’t bother coming after me. I’m never coming back. Sell the house and all my possessions, and do whatever you want with the money. And find Scootaloo a good home…because this obviously ain’t it. Goodbye, former family.” Royal took off, leaving behind the two ponies he treasured the most. He didn’t know where he was going to go, but it had to be far away. Everything had gone to Tartarus in a hoofbasket while he was gone visiting Canterlot. Whatever had happened, it had turned the closest friends he’d ever had completely against him. Royal hadn’t tried to see Twilight or most of the others. If Pinkie and Rainbow reacted like that, there was no point in trying to appeal to anypony else.

They were the best friends I ever had…but something went wrong. Something always goes wrong! I’m a curse! I guess I’m just not allowed to have anything! I’m a fool for thinking this would be any different!

The forlorn pegasus soared across the skies, not knowing where he was going, how near or how far…as the tears fell from his eyes.