//------------------------------// // Ch.10 - Dragonshy - Part 6 // Story: Ponyville's Tiny Librarian // by CommanderX5 //------------------------------// Ponyville’s Tiny Librarian - Chapter 10 Dragonshy - part 6 With the risk of rockslides over their remaining path, Twilight had advised the fliers of the group to help the others avoid any loose rocks falling down from above. It wasn’t even ten minutes later that the reason for her advice became apparent. “Avalanche!” Rainbow Dash shouted, immediately grabbing Fluttershy before taking into the air to escape the oncoming rock. Gilda grabbed the closest pony to her, Pinkie, giving her a squeeze before spreading her wings and following Dash up. Overwatch had already jumped into Steel Blade’s hooves at the alarm. Cadence wrapped her magic around Big Macintosh and his tiny passenger. She lifted them into the air, moving them away form the incoming danger. Gilda failed to evade, letting out a surprised squawk when a boulder caught her between her wings, sending her and the pony grasped in her talons tumbling back to the mountain. Cadence reacted quickly, igniting her horn and halting several cottage-sized boulders before they crushed the griffon and the party mare, but the effort caused the alicorn to wince at the sudden increased pressure on her horn. Gilda laboriously stood up again with a long groan, noticing the shadow under her before flinching when she noticed the boulders floating over her head. She opened her wings sharply to evade, but withdrew them just as quickly with another cry. “Not now, you stupid wing! I don’t have time for this!” She stiffened up for another reason entirely when Pinkie slid under her and popped the griffon up on her back before speeding off, dodging and weaving around the smaller rocks that Cadence had missed. “Don’t worry your pretty little head, my buddy-ol-pal! Auntie Pinkie won’t let any mean rock flatten us!” Cadence’s horn fizzled out, the sheer effort required to arrest those boulders proving too much, but she sighed in relief when Pinkie managed to get the two of them out from under the largest rocks. A thunderous boom reverberated from above, and she looked up. Her pupils shrank at the sight of a large, scaly tail slamming repeatedly against the cliff. The next moment, a scaly head peeked over and sent a plume of smoke in their direction. More rocks began to crumble, sending sharp projectiles down with the black cloud. Cadence coughed and waved her hoof frantically, trying to get rid of the smoke as the aura around her horn faded, releasing Big Mac and Twilight from her hold. The little mare grit her teeth and summoned up a quick gust to blow away the smoke, but the rocks within the cloud were undeterred. She quickly found herself the target of a hoof-sized piece of hard rock and lost her hold on Big Mac, who stumbled as he landed heavily nearby, going muzzle-first into the ground. Overwatch gasped in horror, doubling down on her efforts to destroy the falling projectiles. Precision beams shot from her horn, obliterating some of the smaller rocks into manageable pieces. Big Macintosh looked up through the hole in the smoke cloud; a giant boulder had just come loose, and it was plummeting straight toward a dizzy Twilight. He grit his teeth and sprinted to her aid, planting his hooves into the ground around the tiny unicorn and strengthening his stance. The little mare shook away the dizziness just as the boulder landed. The first thing she saw looking up were Big Macintosh’s legs straining under the load, but still holding. “Big… Mac...” Twilight whispered as the earth pony hefted the humongous boulder to the side, causing the earth to shake, before he fell to a knee at the exertion. “Go!” Overwatch screamed, and Big Mac looked up at an even larger boulder tumbling down, too close to dodge. One of Overwatch’s green bolts pierced into it, breaking off a chunk, but it was still way too big for a pony to handle. Big Mac wrapped a hoof around Twilight, ready to throw the tiny mare out of harm’s way, only to be shoved from behind by another pony. A loud crashing noise echoed from behind alongside a shrill shriek. Twilight crawled from under the stallion’s foreleg before she and her large friend were wrapped in a blue aura and levitated away. She noticed bits of blue aura in the dust as another boulder came down, and another, and another, followed up by a bulk of the merciless avalanche as minor tremors turned into an continuous earthquake. The little mare gasped, feeling her tiny heart shattering as hundreds of rocks in a multitude of sizes smashed the entire area in front of her, creating a massive pile-up on the side of the mountain as the last of the rockslide died down. Fluttershy looked upon Overwatch in confusion as the changeling-in-disguise was now restlessly trying to levitate or destroy the rocks, wasting a huge amount of her gathered love reserves and magic in the process. No changeling would risk his or her life to save a source of love, no matter how big it is… unless she really cares… she thought to herself, before doing her best to help remove the crushing weight, using her own reserves to increase her physical strength. She surprised even Rainbow Dash with her lifting prowess as she managed to pull a rock that her athletic friend was struggling to move. Twilight was sweating as she did her best to help Big Macintosh move another boulder from the pile, tears pouring from her eyes as her horn flashed with magic. All of her friends did their best to help remove the huge weight, not being much of use though. “This is… no use,” Twilight said, trying not to cry as the earth trembled the moment she placed another one-ton boulder behind her, barely making any difference. She slammed her forehoof against the stone and breathed heavily while her horn charged a powerful spell. “Do not die!” she shouted with closed eyes as her own body flashed, her size increasing slowly. Her foalsitter was being crushed by a weight she couldn’t possibly imagine, and not even the largest pile of rocks was going to stop her from saving the pony she cared so much about. “Don’t leave my brother… Don’t leave me! If you do, we’ll never forgive ourselves,” Twilight begged as she was at least eight times heavier than before, when suddenly the boulders floated up, enveloped in the aura of Cadence’s magic. Twilight lost her focus on the spell while she could only stare at the weights being pushed aside, one stone at a time, revealing a badly hurt and slightly flattened alicorn. Wasting no time, she teleported towards the edge of the pony-shaped crater, looking down at the alicorn stuck in it with pity. Even with her slightly increased size, her tiny eyes noticed a slowly vanishing thin blue aura around the alicorn’s body, yet no larger aura was present on her long horn to maintain any sort of spell. With the help of her own magic, she levitated Cadence from the hole and... accidentally slammed her against the ground. She bit her lip as a yelp of pain reached her ears. “Sorry!” Twilight took a few slow breaths to calm her nerves as she focused on restraining her magical power due to her increased size. She slowly approached her former foalsitter and looked her in the eyes, “Cadence, are you alright? We need to get you to the hospital!” she shouted as the alicorn smiled at her. “T-there is no need… I’m f-fine.” “Fine?” Gilda, with with her beak agape as she approached the bruised alicorn. “You were just trapped under a weight which would squash several griffons at once, and you say you’re fine?!” The alicorn gave Gilda a reassuring nod, struggling to hide her pain behind a weak smile. “I… have endured worse than that.” Twilight lowered her head sadly at this remark, wondering what in Celestia’s name would have been worse than an avalanche. Cadence’s grit her teeth and closed her eyes as terrifying memories of the tortures that she had faced during Sombra’s reign flashed in her mind, finding the hundred tons pile of rock on top of her to be more of an annoyance compared to the pain and terror she had once endured. “Wow, and here I thought Twilight was tough, but you’re on a completely new level.” Cadence struggled to stand on her trembling legs, quickly receiving help from Twilight’s levitation before reasserting herself. She wiped dust from her battered body and looked down, noticing tears in Twilight’s worried eyes. Seeing this, she raised her foreleg and waited a moment for it to stop trembling before she carefully wiped the tears from her friend’s cheeks. She gave her a warm but pained smile and pointed our, “Twilight, I’m an alicorn, remember? You’re not the only pony who can endure being crushed.” The cat-sized mare nodded, returning the smile. “I’m just glad that you’re okay, I was so worried.” “So was I,” Cadence said, “that you and your friends might die today.” “You saved us… Thank you!” Twilight shouted as she wrapped herself around Cadence's foreleg, tears falling from her eyes sinking into the soft fur of the alicorn. The taller mare nuzzled Twilight’s head in return before embracing her with her wing. “Cadence, are you really sure that you want to do this? You don’t look so good,” Twilight asked as she lay on Big Mac’s head, her legs dangling off its sides. The alicorn trembled in front of the cave entrance. Smoke was passing right above her head and several bruises from the previous events were still apparent on her body. She gulped and shot Twilight an awkward smile. “Of… of course, just… give me a moment,” she spoke hesitantly and raised her foreleg. If she wore golden regalia as her aunts did, it would have been most likely be crushed into dust by now. Twilight could easily notice hesitation as the alicorn’s hoof trembled as it slowly returned to the ground. “Cadence, if you feel tired, let us handle the problem,” Twilight said, as she examined the body movements of the battered alicorn. It was obvious that Cadence wanted to protest, yet decided not to, and she could tell that some sort of inner war waged in the alicorn’s mind. Her former foalsitter was terrified for one reason or another, yet she also struggled to overcome it. Overwatch and Fluttershy glanced at Cadence, looking at her in pity. Her best mask and the desperate attempts to hide her fear were failing to fool them. “Twilight, we need a plan B,” the female guard spoke up, getting Twilight’s attention. “Cadence is in no state of mind to–” “N-no, I am f-fine, I c-can do it,” the alicorn proclaimed, but everypony could hear the fear and hesitation in her voice. Twilight looked back at Overwatch and nodded before focusing upon Fluttershy. “Fluttershy, you've convinced the manticore to release me. Do you think you will be able to convince the dragon to leave?” Twilight asked. Her ears straightened as she was giving the pegasus a hopeful glance, but her friend just trembled in fear. “I… maybe… not…” She gulped, lowering her head while hiding it under her wings. “I don’t know. Dragons are big and terrifying; they may not listen and might try to eat me instead.” “Time’s up, Fluttershy.” Rainbow Dash flew closer to her friend, hovering in front of her with  crossed forelegs. She gave Fluttershy a suspicious glare and said, “I've known you for a long time; you were always very shy and timid, yet today you volunteered to join us on this dangerous adventure.” Fluttershy withdrew her wings and nodded hesitantly. “In the cave filled with Diamond Dogs, you stood up to them and actually took the lead.” She stomped. “Do I even need to mention that, for this entire time, you didn’t show  the slightest fear of heights while we climbed up the mountain?” “Fear of heights?” Gilda said in confusion. “How can a pegasus be afraid of heights?” Rainbow Dash sighed. “It is a long story… Let's just say it involves a veeeery long fall to the ground back when Fluttershy didn’t know how to fly yet.” “Ouch,” Gilda remarked before she went silent, images of her own rather harsh flying lessons flashed in her mind. “Wait a moment,” Steel Blade interrupted, “I just figured out something.” The moment all eyes were on him, he explained, “Rainbow Dash is a pegasus, Cadence is an alicorn, Gilda is a griffon and I’m a pegasus. That’s four pairs of wings… Now that I think about it, we could have flown everypony up here, avoiding the dangerous cave and the area with the humongous rocks falling on our heads.” To Fluttershy’s relief, everypony forgot about her as they all facehoofed. "Why didn't I think of that earlier?" Twilight asked. "Good question, and here I thought you were supposed to be the egghead of the group." Rainbow Dash chuckled “I suppose I got used doing everything the hard way; we will need to start considering easier solutions from now on,” Twilight said as she shot the athletic pegasus a sheepish grin. “It seems the mean dragon didn’t like the sweets I tried to offer him,” Pinkie remarked, before collapsing as numerous burns covered her fur. “If anypony needs me, I’ll be taking a nap. Wake me up once you defeat the boss!” she said before passing out. Fluttershy flew over to the unconscious mare, checking on her health. “Well, maybe he will listen to reason,” Twilight stated, as she pointed towards the cave before walking forward, Big Mac following right behind her. “Hopefully he will listen, I do prefer slaying him only as a last resort.” As her surroundings became darker and the shape of a colossal beast came into view, she gulped. Another note to myself: Before every adventure or dangerous mission, consider the most obvious and easiest options twice. Walking on three legs, she tapped her chin. Now that I think about it, maybe I should return to my normal size here and now... I will just need to be extra careful not to let my magic hurt anypony… or the dragon… Her inner thoughts were interrupted when the beast opened its large eyes and focused on the ponies in front of him. Twilight murmured, “Oh, right.” Cadence and Fluttershy sat next to each other as they watched the big muscular stallion and the cat-sized unicorn enter the cave, while Rainbow Dash sat next to them and asked, “What’s wrong, Fluttershy? You were so brave today, so why did you join us if you were so afraid of dragons?” Fluttershy lowered her head. “I… I couldn’t let Twilight go in alone,” she said sadly, as she rubbed the stone platform with her hoof. “She’s so small and yet so brave, she gets herself in constant danger, and I already left her to face Nightmare Moon alone in the town hall, where she could have died!” Cadence placed her hoof on Fluttershy’s shoulder, feeling a similar sentiment. The depressed pegasus continued, “I thought that… I wanted to protect her, no matter how afraid I was. I bested my fear of heights, I went knowing full well that I would be facing a terrifying dragon… but I just couldn’t let her go alone.” Fluttershy looked at Overwatch. “Yet in the end, I’m sitting here while Twilight is facing the dragon, not even resorting to her full size. I'm so pathetic!” She sobbed as Cadence placed her foreleg around the pegasus's neck and pressed gently against her chest. “Fluttershy," Cadence started, "you fought your fears to the very end. The fact that you reached the top on your own free will proves it!" "You’re not pathetic,” Rainbow Dash added, as the alicorn continued. “And if you are pathetic, so am I. I’m terrified of dragons, just like you, but I went all the way here with the hope that I could best those fears and ensure Twilight’s safety. And yet here I am, leaving her alone to face the beast.” Overwatch wanted to say something, but couldn’t come up with any words. Suddenly, a loud roar could be heard from the cave. “Run, run, run!” Twilight urged Bic Mac, as the sturdy stallion galloped with all the speed he could muster. Being a big strong pony didn’t help much in terms of speed, as the dragon was advancing right behind him, preparing to send his deadly flames at them. “Ya first!” “B-but—” Twilight responded as she lit her horn, ready to set up a barrier around the stallion. “Ah said, ya first!” Big Mac said again as he grabbed and threw Twilight outside of the cave before the flames could envelop them both. He quickly caught up to her, but with several scorch marks on his fur. “Who dares to interrupt my sleep?” the dragon said threateningly. “Oh, you insolent pests! I thought I buried you all under the stone.” He spread his wings and roared. “No matter; I shall feast on your flesh as a snack before I raid the nearby town and take its treasures.” Cadence and Fluttershy hid behind a rock, using it as a cover, while Rainbow Dash flew at the dragon and attempted to kick him in the face, only to be forced away by a wave of smoke. Big Mac ignored his burns as he bucked the dragon in the leg with much of his strength, damaging several scales in the process. The dragon repaid the favour, as the stallion was slammed into the stone wall of the cave by the dragon’s tail. “Big Mac!” Twilight shouted with wide eyes, as she lit her horn and her body flashed, her size increasing until she stopped her spell upon reaching fifteen kilograms weight. She followed up with a quick teleportation before the massive tail could slam into her as well. Meanwhile, Overwatch tried to attack the dragon’s eyes, but her attacks were blocked by his humongous claw. Steel Blade was about to attack with his sword, but stopped his charge when he saw a small purple flash appear on the dragon’s nose. For most of her life, almost everyone Twilight had met was like a giant to her, be it Princess Celestia when she was a miniscule filly standing before of a mighty alicorn, or when she was a grown, yet tiny mare facing a hungry manticore. The face of the colossal dragon, however, was the biggest one she had ever seen. Even if she was now the size of a puppy, she felt so meager when compared to the mighty beast; the smallest she had ever felt. After gulping, she galloped until she reached the dragon’s eye and jumped, before grabbing onto an eyelash. “What’s your problem? Why are you here in the first place?” Noticing that she was ignored, Twilight enhanced her voice with magic and spoke again. “Leave or we will be required to use force!” “The word of the Dragon Lord is our command. Puny ponies using force won’t stop us from fulfilling his will.” The dragon’s eye closed as his humongous claw, far bigger than an average pony, advanced towards it. Twilight released his eyelash and galloped towards his snout. “You didn’t give me a choice!” She stopped on the edge of his muzzle and set her horn ablaze with magic, her body flickering as she started increasing her size. Thirty... forty... fifty… sixty. Yet, before she could reach her full size, a strike of the dragon’s claw threw her towards the ground with great force, also stopping the spell at around eighty kilograms. Twilight bounced on the stone platform and shook her head, leaving behind a few small craters from the impact. She raised her head and gasped upon seeing the dragon’s foot descending against her body, pinning her to the ground. Her scream of agony barely was heard under his massive weight while the armored dragon’s scales pressed mercilessly against her soft fur. A familiar sensation of squeezing and snapping bones overcame her, reminding her of the time Celestia had stepped on her during a game of tag. Steel Blade and Rainbow Dash tried to catch Twilight, to no avail, ending up a few meters before the dragon’s leg, their mouths open and ears drooping in shock.Stunned, both pegasi failed to notice a wide trail of flames that overtook them, sending Dash and Steel Blade crashing into the ground in front of the mighty beast. Big Mac ran as quickly as he could before positioning himself between the dragon and Rainbow Dash. His attention focused on the unconscious Twilight, lying in a large crater, the moment the dragon repositioned his humongous feet, no longer squashing her. Gilda hid behind a rock, cursing her damaged wing for not cooperating, since her claws were harmless to the scaled beast without reaching its eyes, the only point she could actually damage. She found it hard to admit, but unlike ponies, griffons weren’t fast on the ground. Any attempt she made to assist her friends would merely result in her being burned into a crisp. As the dragon lowered his jaws to take a tasty bite of a big Apple, Overwatch hit him in the eye, blinding him temporarily. Pinkie shook her head as she slowly sat up and opened her eyes, blinking a few times before her vision cleared. “Is the boss battle over yet?” she asked curiously, before her vision sharpened, now seeing Overwatch shooting beams of magic at the enraged dragon, with her other friends laying beaten or burned before it. Pinkie smiled sadly as she stomped her hoof on the ground in her anger. “I knew I should have taken some revive potions and elixirs instead of cakes and cupcakes! If only I had more points in diplomacy, I could convince the dragon to leave… That, or convince him to come to a ‘I will not raid Ponyville party.’” With her injuries and feelings of weakness overwhelming her, Pinkie collapsed and lost consciousness again, lying to the left of the entrance while outside of the dragon’s view. Cadence and Fluttershy's hearts started to beat rapidly; both mares were completely terrified. Fluttershy narrowed her eyes and raised her forelegs, fighting against her fears. I have to do something, I cannot allow my friends to suffer like this. Her ears drooped upon hearing a loud roar as she bowed her head. But what can I do? Even my stare cannot force a grownup dragon to submission, not when he is enraged and aggressive. If only there was a way to calm him down. Unable to ignore it any longer, Fluttershy looked to the side as she was being assaulted with a range of emotions. Fear, hatred, anger, despair, sorrow, vengeance. When she first met Cadence, the only emotion she constantly felt was kindness, compassion and small hints of sorrow, but now all the restrained emotions that the alicorn had contained for over a millennium surfaced like a wave after breaking a dam. The alicorn suddenly felt as if she was a crystal pony, helpless before a dragon who was about to eat her parents all over again. Mom… Dad… no, she thought, as her forelegs trembled, her eyes closed and teeth gritted, one tear sliding down her cheek. Memories of the many ponies she had protected or failed to save flashed before her eyes as the events of  past millennium rushed through her mind. She opened her eyes and slammed her hoof into the stone she was hiding behind, leaving a crack mark on the surface. With her attention focused on the wounded ponies ahead of her, she thought, Auntie Celestia and Luna took me in, making me part of their family, and I failed to save Luna from her loneliness. During my long life I left so many friends behind without sharing my secret with them. Too many. Cadence focused on the dragon’s leg that was raising again, perhaps preparing to stomp on the nearly normal-sized Twilight, who was still stuck inside the crater. Shining Armor, Twilight, Celestia, Luna, you’re like family to me, and dragons once again want to take you away. With overwhelming rage building up as it overpowered her fears, she spread her wings and charged her horn. ”I will not lose my family; NEVER AGAIN!” Cadence roared as she burst into the air with Fluttershy following her. The dragon swung his tail, once again sending Big Mac crashing against a rock. The stallion yelped in pain as his back was now struck. Cracks spread from the point of his impact. “We need to get everypony to safety!” Overwatch shouted, as she ran towards her partner who was slowly regaining his consciousness. She grabbed Dash, Steel Blade, Big Macintosh and Twilight with her levitation. Her eyes watered. “Watch out!” Steel Blade shouted as he noticed a wall of flame right behind him, before it enveloped both guards, the flames themselves too widespread to evade. Overwatch, now with several burned marks on her body, crawled towards Steel Blade, when suddenly the powerful wind created by the Dragon’s wings pushed them away. As they were about to crash into the ground, Fluttershy caught them both in mid-air with an impressive display of speed. Overwatch shook her head and blinked several times before looking the disguised changeling in the eyes. “Once it is over, we will need to talk… This time, peacefully,” Fluttershy said before placing both guards behind a sheltering stone. Overwatch nodded as Fluttershy started examining Steel Blade’s wounds. “Your friend is hurt, you should help him.” “But what about the dragon?” A very loud thump and another earthquake answered their question. “My flames and body have warmed. Now it is time for my belly to be fed,” the Dragon stated as he was about to walk towards the hiding ponies, his giant feet descending down toward an unconscious unicorn, when suddenly a huge beam of energy struck his armored belly. The dragon was pushed backward, his nearly two hundred ton body slamming against the stone platform with a loud thump. It felt as if the mountain itself trembled from the impact. A large cloud of dust spread out around the beast’s legs, who was now stuck in two meters deep craters. “Who dares?!” the dragon roared furiously, as he looked at the alicorn who levitated the unconscious body of a unicorn before hiding her behind a nearby rock. “You dare to challenge me?! I’ll crush you like all the others!” He inhaled a great deal of air and held his breath for a few seconds before releasing a blast of flames. He waited for the smoke to disperse, only to see a blue aura of magic surrounding an unfazed alicorn. He inhaled again, preparing to release a second burst of flame, when suddenly his mouth closed on its own. While dragons were fireproof, having his own flames abruptly stopped in his throat wasn’t exactly a pleasant experience. In a flash of magic, Cadence appeared on his nose. He could see the clench of the alicorn’s jaw and a trail of smoke coming from her mane, doubting that the latter was caused by his flames. Suddenly, a blue aura surrounded one of his scales  and plucked it out with great force, causing him to yelp in pain. “Does it hurt?” Cadence absently asked, as she inspected the scale as if it were a trophy. “It’s so easy to hurt ponies with your flames and claws. Let's see how you like being on the receiving end.” Sweat started to fall down Cadence’s forehead as the aura around her horn enlarged itself. The levitated scale, the size of a pony’s head, slowly cracked before shattering. The pupils of the dragon’s eyes shrank at such display of power, his anger replaced with fear. “You… you think you can scare me, little pony? I will show you your place.” He slammed both his hands together with Cadence between them, or rather tried, as they stopped a meter before the alicorn. Suddenly, the dragon’s fingers straightened and moved away from his head before being levitated directly against his snout. He could feel his own sharp claws piercing his scales. “Stop hurting yourself!” Cadence shouted as she levitated the claws against dragon’s forehead. “Stop hurting yourself!” she repeated before leaving a small bleeding mark on his hand. “L-leave me alone!” the dragon pled with a hint of fear, while the alicorn hovered in mid-air with her forelegs crossed. “Leave you alone… Oh, I would... if not for the fact that I begged a dragon to leave my parents alone, but he didn’t. He slammed me into a house while eating them! You expect mercy when your kin showed none?!” He felt his own hand punching him in the stomach before a beam of magic followed, cracking a few scales on his belly, a feat difficult for even the most powerful unicorns. Feeling his back slammed against the stone wall of the mountain, right next to the entrance to his cave, he sent flames against his foe. The alicorn teleported out of the way before sealing his mouth, once again trapping the fire in his throat. Once magic no longer kept his mouth closed, he took a few slow breaths and said, “I never killed or ate a pony before, nor did I eat your family, so why do you hurt me for the faults of my kin?” The alicorn landed on his snout and stomped as she shouted in rage, her mane bursting into flames. “Yes you did, you tried to kill my family. You stomped Twilight and hurt her friends!” With a battle cry, she shot a wide beam, cracking a few more scales on the dragon’s forehead, who stared back at her, terrified. “I won’t let any beast hurt my family! I’ll kill anyone that dares to try!” she threatened, while charging another beam. Suddenly a pegasus got in the way, her forelegs spread protectively as she hovered in front of the dragon’s eyes. “Stop it, Cadence, you aren’t yourself!” “Get out of the way, Fluttershy!” the alicorn responded, while the flames on her mane grew slightly. Fluttershy flew closer, her forelegs together and a pleading look present on her face. “I can’t let you do it. I can’t let you do something you may regret for the rest of your life.” “Regret? What do you know about regret? You have no idea what kind of hell I went through!” Cadence shouted as her breathing became more heavy, her words causing Fluttershy to whimper in fear for a moment. The pegasus gathered all her courage and flew even closer, now placing both her forelegs on alicorn’s shoulder while the dragon didn’t dare to move, knowing full well that any attack will just enrage his foe, “You bear a lot of weights on your heart, many secrets you don’t want to share, and I’m willing to listen. But you can’t let your past control you. You want to protect those dear to you, but killing goes against your nature.” The alicorn captured Fluttershy with her levitation, as the pegasus yelped in surprise. “You know nothing about me! I’m tired of being the helpless little pony who cannot do anything when those she cares about are in danger. Oh, Cadence is so kind, she cannot hurt a fly, always collected, always keeping her anger in check, well, not today.” She pushed Fluttershy to the side and charged her horn, causing the dragon to cover his face with his trembling claws. “No more kind Alicorn of Love! No more powerless crystal pony! I lost so much, but no longer!” “Is this really what you want?” Fluttershy asked, while wondering what a crystal pony is. Cadence looked at the cowering dragon, her magic charged and ready. She grit her teeth and aimed, but didn’t shoot. The flames around her mane shrunk while her breath became slow and heavy. “It isn’t you, Cadence. It is your anger and grief you’ve hidden for so long. You cannot let it control you!” Seconds seemed like minutes as the alicorn stared at the dragon, still ready to attack. Fluttershy is right, I cannot let my emotions control me, Cadence thought, as she closed her eyes and calmed her breaths. After a moment, she opened her eyes and looked at the terrified beast. Did I… cause this? She looked at her own trembling forelegs. I was so close to having a dragon’s blood on my hooves...  what have I done?! She lowered her head shamefully and murmured to herself. “What have I done?” “You protected your friends and stopped yourself from taking a life,” Fluttershy said as she raised Cadence’s head gently and gave her a warm smile. “You have a good heart, but you can’t contain so much of a burden. I have my secrets as well, but sometimes it’s good to talk with a friend and unload your worries and regrets.” Cadence rubbed her neck. “You’re right, Fluttershy… but still.” She looked at the dragon in pity and pointed at him, a gesture that only made the mighty beast whimper in panic. “What we will do with him?” “Leave this to me,” Fluttershy said with renewed confidence as she turned and flew towards the dragon. “Shhh… there’s nothing to be afraid of. Nopony is going to hurt you any longer.” The dragon slowly lowered his hands and looked at the pegasus before pointing his claw at the floating alicorn. “But she… hurt me.” Fluttershy placed both her forelegs on her hips and said firmly, “Because you tried to hurt those she cares about.” She pointed at the small town in the horizon. “You wanted to raid Ponyville and eat ponies for snacks. You should be ashamed of yourself.” The dragon looked to the side as Fluttershy gestured for the alicorn to approach. “Cadence, Mr Dragon, I believe there is something you both should say to each other.” The dragon looked at the alicorn from the corner of his eye and shivered, expecting to be smote at any moment. Cadence lowered her head in shame once again and held her forehooves together, now deep in contemplation. She was about to give in to her guilt and apologize, making the first step toward solving it peacefully, but something in her was against it. She looked at the dragon and said, “I wanted to protect those dear to me… but I couldn’t restrain my anger. I was ready to kill you, but not only for what you did to Twilight and her friends… but also for what dragons in the past did to my family. For that, I’m sorry.” The alicorn sighed and looked at Fluttershy, her saddened stare vanishing, replaced with narrowed eyes. "While I regret what I almost did, I won’t apologize for hurting a dragon who was about to raid a town after hurting those dear to me. This is something you cannot ask of me.” Fluttershy was about to protest, but hesitated. She couldn’t deny the truth behind Cadence’s words. The dragon was shocked as he considered what she had said. With a long sigh, he spoke, “I understand. If my family was in danger, I wouldn’t hesitate to burn and tear apart those who dared to hurt them.” He looked at the ground that was covered in craters and marks of once-melted stone. “I viewed ponies as bugs, inferior, and I was wrong. I’m sorry.” Fluttershy looked the dragon in the eye and asked, “You really mean it?” “I do. You earned my respect, and I am sorry for hurting you,” the dragon said as he lowered his head in reverence. Cadence raised her head. Respect? She considered the dragon’s words. While she feared these savage monsters for their aggressive nature and lack of mercy, she also learned that they possessed their own sense of pride and honor. While for dragons, all other beings were mere bugs compared to them, earning their respect was enough to be treated as equal among the mighty beasts. “Apology accepted, just… don’t hurt ponies any longer,” Cadence responded. “I won’t hurt your kin, even if it means drawing wrath of the Dragon Lord himself, I swear.”