//------------------------------//
// Beware Ponies Bearing Gifts 
// Story: Eris' game 
// by Java Joe 
//------------------------------//

Twilight burst into the barn and shouted, "I know what we need to do!"

"Go to sleep egghead, it's still dark outside! " Rainbow Dash yelled from the hayloft as she snuggled back up against Applejack. While the others had given them some privacy so they had the whole hayloft to themselves they couldn't take advantage of it what with Rainbow Dash being a bit of a screamer and Applejack being a bit of a kicker. At best they could mess around a bit, kiss and cuddle but nothing more right now and it was making Rainbow Dash a little cranky. Her wings ached for release but that was quite impossible right now so she ignored it as best she could.

"I know how to defeat Discord and rescue Rick at the same time! The answer had been staring me in the face all this time and I just never put it all together!" She was so excited that she was practically dancing in place and her hooves making clicking sounds on the floor of the barn. This had the unexpected bonus of keeping the other ponies from going back to sleep so they had no other recourse than to listen to the slightly manic unicorn who was grinning madly from ear to ear.

"Okay. Back on Earth, Rick told me about a Goddess of discord called Eris. She spread discord and strife all over the place, usually starting small but eventually it turned into wars. Rick told me one of the stories and how she caused discord among three goddesses by offering a gift to the fairest in the form of a golden apple. They all fought over it, one of them won and something happened at a wedding when a king stole another king's wife. This led to a huge war, a large army was raised and the battle lasted for years. The offenders finally won by pretending to leave, but offering a gift to the defenders in the form of a giant horse. But the horse was hollow and when night fell, they broke out of the horse, took the city and won the war."

"I don't get it. How does any of this help?" Pinkie Pie asked.

"Everything that we've done, everything that has gone on has been because of that story. History is repeating itself or Discord in becoming Eris is somehow bound to this story. Or maybe without even realising it, Eris is following the story but doesn't know why she's doing it. Think about it. Eris shows up, causes strife and friction between the three powers in the kingdom. Celestia, Luna and ourselves. She disappears with my husband and we've been trying to raise an army to deal with her. If we go this route how many countless ponies will die in a pointless war while we all fight amongst ourselves? No, we need to stop playing Eris' game and start playing our own."

"And how do you propose we do that? " Rarity asked, one of her hooves draped protectively around the injured Spike as he dozed in her embrace.

"The first thing we're going to need is a tribute and we're sitting on it."

The rest of the fillies looked around the barn but couldn't see what Twilight was referring to until a light seemed to go off in Applejack's eyes. She rushed to the edge of the hayloft and addressed the other ponies, an annoyed Rainbow Dash following in her wake. "I get it! Blast! I should have figgured this out sooner, " when the rest of the fillies didn't seem to get it she said in an exasperated way, "apples! The whole story started with an apple and ended with a pony. Well where are we right now?"

Slowly the rest of the ponies seemed to catch on that since they were at Sweet Apple Acres that apples somehow fit with the plan but didn't know how to fit the two things together.

"We got all kinds of apples here even the golden kind. So if'n we was to bring a whole cartload o' apples to Eris then come nightfall sneak out into the camp we could take back the elements and then beat Eris at her own game." Applejack looked at Twilight for confirmation and the lavender unicorn just smiled and nodded her head. 

"When did you get to be so smart?" Rainbow Dash asked her fiance.

"I've always been smart but the smartest thing I ever did was ask you to marry me, " she nuzzled her fiance back and they shared a short kiss. Rainbow's wings fluttered gently, and it was only through great concentration that she was able to keep them from snapping to attention. Applejack looked at her and whispered, "maybe we'll need to go outside into the fields and... fly a bit?" while giving one of Rainbow Dash's wings a gentle stroke.

"When this is done, I'll fly you to the moon and back," Rainbow Dash responded huskily.

"Okay, that's all well and good but how do we get all those apples to the camp? They weigh a lot and I doubt Big Mac will be able to pull us all and the apples especially in his condition, " Rarity asked.

They glanced at Big Mac who was snoozing next to a very protective Fluttershy. Since he had finally declared his love for her, she wasn't letting him out of her sight until he was completely healed. He had tried to tell her that he might be a little scratched and banged up a bit but he was more than capable of taking care of himself. Fluttershy would have none of it and insisted on taking care of him whether he liked it or not.

"He won't do it alone. I'm sure Shining Armor would be willing to help. And besides..., " Twilight trailed off thinking back to what Rick had told her of the Trojan war. "If possible, we could always use magic to bring the cart and leave it there during the night so they come and pick us up in the morning.

"You mean we'll have to spend the entire day sitting under a cartload of apples?" Rarity asked appalled at the idea. "Why my mane alone will be ruined, not to mention the dreadful conditions with so many fillies packed in tightly with each other. We'll be lucky if we don't suffocate."

"I don't think we have a choice in the matter, " Rainbow Dash said. "We need a way in and if the two geniuses here, " referring to Twilight and Applejack, " are right, this makes the most sense. My only questions are how do we get in & out and how do we keep from getting crushed under the apples?"

"That's actually the easy part. If we take a large cart, and I mean a really large cart then build a false bottom that's large enough for us to sit in. We could cover that with the apples and then cut a hole in the bottom of the cart at night to escape."

"Then once we get out, then what? Sneak around until we find the elements and use them to defeat Eris?"

"Something like that. I haven't actually thought this all the way through. All of this, just now came to me in a dream. Rick was there, we were back in Rome and he was telling me the story of Eris. But I was a pony at the time and he was still human..." Twilight got a faraway look in her eyes as she wondered about her husband and whether or not he was okay. 

The others exchanged glances knowing full well where Twilight's mind was now. It was pointless to get her to continue while she was mooning over her husband so they either went back to sleep, lay down next to their loved ones or in the case of the two fillies who were to get married today they decided to "take a walk" under the stars and have some alone time. Nopony stopped them, after all they knew that they were all living on borrowed time anyway and the next day could be their last.

Eris' power slowly made its way across the land. Subtly infecting and corrupting those it came across. There was no real defence against it, it was simply a matter of time and even the most strong hearted and noble of all Equestrians would eventually fall to its power.

Within Eris' fort however, things were a little more... chaotic but not in the way she wanted. Eris had successfully turned Rick not only back to flesh but human once again and was now in the process of trying everything in her power to corrupt him. The bad news was he was in the middle of the worst caffeine withdrawal he had ever faced. Technically he had never actually gone all the way through one but just faced the beginnings of one. It was during his first, and only, trip to Japan to engage in 3 month’s worth of "unpaid" farm work with his girlfriend at the time. It was a long flight and he had stupidly refused any coffee during the flight in a misguided attempt to make sure he was tired when he reached Japan so he could sleep. And it worked, unfortunately due to the time difference, the stress and everything else he had gone more than 36 hours without a cup and it was only 30 minutes after drinking a coke from a local vending machine that he started to feel better. Now however, he didn't have that luxury. 

The good news was he was still pure at least in the sense of not being corrupted by Eris and right now the pain lancing through his head was possibly the only thing keeping him sane. It was also a good thing that Eris was unaware of this.

She sat there watching the human as he lay there, whimpering pathetically and attempting to turn his face away from her. Actually he was trying to turn his face away from the light which seemed to stab directly through his eyeballs directly into his brain but Eris didn't know that. 

"Is this what the humans had been reduced to? 1000 years ago they had such fire, such passion and now this pathetic excuse for a man just lies there and mewls like a baby." She tried again, vainly hoping that he'd react to her chaotic assault but nothing. He remained the same.

Deep in Eris' mind, Trixie rejoiced at seeing this. In part because the monkey that had married her Twilight was hurting but because she knew something that Discord could never have figured out. While he might have been in pain, she knew the depths of strength that this human had and this weakness of his was only temporary. When he was better, she knew he'd give Eris a run for her money. But until then, not much could be done.

Eventually Eris got bored and just left the human alone. She'd try again tomorrow. But she wanted some kind of satisfaction and Sunrunner just wasn't doing it for her anymore. The pony was so pathetic that she no longer got any enjoyment from humiliating him. He'd just take it with good grace, beg to touch her hooves and then whimper when it was denied. Maybe it was best to put him out of his misery but on the other hoof, he might be necessary later on. Best to keep him around, maybe as cannon fodder or use him as bait later.

No, Eris wanted something bigger. Something stronger. Something powerful and she knew exactly what that was. Very few actually suspect that a crowd is more than just a loose organisation of individuals. No, put enough ponies together in the same place and they become united and will start to think like 1 being. It's actually easier to get a crowd worked up than it is to get an individual worked up and where else was the best place to start but Ponyville? It had the added bonus of being really close and where those blasted Elements of Harmony lived. If some of those blasted fillies could be turned and actually turn on the others then her victory would truly be complete. Up until now she had only been able to control a small number of ponies, a few at a time. Larger groups required her to jump from one pony to the next before moving to another target. The problem is, she didn't know if she was currently strong enough to control so many ponies at once for an extended period of time. If the human were turned he might be able to grant her the power needed. Best to wait until tomorrow and see if he turns then.

Eris trotted off to her bed chamber secure in the fact that nopony here was able to resist her.

The next morning found Twilight going over plans to convert one of the large wagons on the Apple farm into their Trojan Apple Cart. There was enough room on the bottom of the wagon for all 6 fillies to fit although it would be a bit of a tight squeeze. She along with Big Mac, Apple Bloom, Shining Armor and Pinkie Pie worked on building the space under the apples where they'd hide as well as a bellows system to make sure the air was refreshed. The rest of the fillies with the exception of Cadance went about bucking as many apples as they could get. The bottom layers didn't matter too much, but the top layers had to be of the golden variety. They worked hard during the day and partially into the night before they were ready. When done, they had a glorious looking cart full of golden apples ready for the great Eris. 

Twilight then explained the plan to the rest of the ponies. "We're going to move out tonight. In order to save on weight we won't get into the wagon until we're almost at Eris' fort. Big Mac and Shining Armor will be hitched to the front but my magic will be taking most of the load, " she glanced at Fluttershy. "Don't worry, Big Mac is only going to be there for decoration. When we get to the fort and we're all inside the wagon, Spike is going to announce us. He's going to tell Eris that we're giving her these golden apples in tribute to the most fair of all Equestrians. Spike will unhook them from the cart, they'll leave and Eris will bring us inside the fort. Later, when she's asleep we sneak out, grab the Elements of Harmony and banish her."

"Sounds good sugarcube, but how do we know she's gonna do it? For all you know she's gonna to set fire to the cart and us inside it."

"But that's the thing, right now she can't. I can't explain it, but she's somehow caught in playing this role until the end. I think that's why she captured Rick. She's no longer Discord, she's now Eris and Eris is lacking in imagination. Unlike before, her chaos magic isn't able to warp reality but it is enough to play with pony's emotions and thoughts. Everything she's done up until now has been obvious which means she needs something else to give her ideas." 

"Ah'll right, if you insist but I still don't like it."

The stallions were harnessed to the wagon, Twilight Sparkle lightened the load so that they wouldn't feel the strain and the ponies set out for the edge of the Everfree forest. 

Once again, Eris went to bed fuming that she was still unable to turn the human. There had to be something wrong with him, he was so obviously weak as he hadn't even eaten anything since she brought him here and yet he continued to resist her. It was maddening. She tried to amuse herself with flogging Sunrunner but the pony almost seemed eager to receive the lash. In disgust she kicked him out of her bed chamber. That pathetic pony might wait patiently outside her door but at least she didn't have to listen to him whine. She wanted something exciting to happen and hopefully tomorrow the human would be turned.

Rick lay in the main hall, in chains trying his damndest to get comfortable on this pile of straw. He gazed longingly at the pile of sheets and blankets that Eris had promised him if he simply acquiesced. But the same pain that felt like his head was being split open from the inside and lashed his brain was the only thing that kept Eris from taking control. And for that reason and that reason alone he was grateful for his caffeine addiction. Soon the pain would be lessened, he would crack and when he did he would effectively doom Equestria to madness. It had only been two days since he was changed back from a statue to pony and from pony to human. He didn't know how long he had stayed as a statue as time had no meaning to a stone. His thoughts turned to Twilight and how much he missed her and what he would have given up to simply see her again one last time before Eris destroyed Equestria.

The wagon with the apples made its way to the Everfree forest and the shadowy fort of Eris loomed above them. No lights shone from its windows and no guards patrolled the perimeter. After all, when you've got the elemental force of strife living there it's not like you're going to get many visitors. The fillies piled into the wagon one at a time through the false bottom and Spike took his place on the top of the pile while Big Mac appeared to pull the wagon the rest of the way. 

The fillies didn't have much room to move around but at least they weren't stuck together even if Rainbow Dash and Applejack were but that was because they wanted to be. The cart slowly made its way over to the fort and Twilight kept thinking, "we're coming for you Rick. Don't give up hope yet, " over and over again.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, they arrived at the gate. Spike tried to knock on the massive wooden door but it he barely made a noise on it. He unhooked both stallions from the wagon and with a couple kicks from his mighty hooves on the door Big Mac managed to announce their presence quite well.

There was silence from inside as the mighty echoes boomed through the empty hallways of the fort. For several minutes nothing seemed to happen until a small voice from a window a little ways up asked what they wanted.

Spike cleared his throat and as he had practiced gave his speech.

"Greetings! We bring this tribute of Golden Apples to the most fair Eris and ask that she take mercy on us as we recognise her as being the fairest and wisest of us all and now we must depart." Upon saying that, Spike, Shining Armor and Big Mac made their way back towards Sweet Apple Acres as fast as they could go. Sunrunner called after them to come back but it was useless as the two were too far gone.

Sunrunner ran back upstairs to see what his mistress wanted to do with the apples.

"What do you mean by apples you lowly little worm?"

"Apples mistress. There's a whole cart full of Golden apples for the most fair and wise Eris. That's what the ponies told me." Of course it was too dark for Sunrunner to have made out Big Mac or Spike so it made sense to think they were ponies.

"Apples? What kind of madness is apples?" Eris thought for a moment then said, "very well, tell them to bring them in."

"I can't do that mistress, you see they've already left, " Sunrunner said, trying desperately not to anger his mistress any more.

"Then bring them in yourself slave."

"I would if I could mistress, " he whined, " but it's much too big for me. There were at least two large ponies bringing that cart. Possibly more but I couldn't tell because it was so dark."

Eris sighed, kicked Sunrunner for good measure as she passed him by and made her way downstairs.

While all this was happening, Twilight was going over last minute preparations with the fillies. "One thing, just in case. If you hear voices outside of your family, friends or loved ones do not respond, react or say anything. That will be Eris trying to fool us. If you hear her saying anything such as she knows we're in here or that she's posting a guard or she's going to set fire to the cart don't react. She's only bluffing. We'll wait at least an hour, in silence once we've been brought in then we exit and look for the Elements of Harmony, " she whispered. "Once we get them, we confront Eris..." she trailed off at that point as she heard the front door open.

They felt the wagon moving and soon heard the door close behind them. A pony, possibly Eris, was heard trotting around the wagon looking at it but not speaking. A moment later a sound like an apple being bit into was heard and Eris trotting away. The fillies relaxed and Twilight started to count to herself, when she reached 3600 an hour would have gone by and they could exit this space.

Time seemed to stretch on and on and the darkness in the wagon seemed almost oppressive at times. After an undetermined period of time they heard a voice outside, "Twi? Are you in there? It's me Rick, I managed to escape and I've got the Elements of Harmony. C'mon out and let's take Eris down then go home." 

Twilight bit her lip to keep from crying out. That voice sounded just like him but she kept herself under control and never once made a sound.

Then another voice was heard, "Rarity? It's Spike. I found some really nice gems and I wanted you to have them. Can you come out and take a look at them?"

Rarity almost gasped, the voice was perfect! Like Twilight she struggled with herself for a moment but knew that her dear Spikey Wikey had gone off with Big Mac and were safely away from here now. It wasn't Spike, she would sit here and wait until he was gone.

"Hey Rainbow Dash!" Gilda called. "Why are you hanging with these dweebs? C'mon with me, we'll have some fun and leave these lameos behind!"

Rainbow Dash just hugged Applejack a little harder. Gilda was a good friend but calling her fiance and friends dweebs was just not cool.

"Fluttershy?" said Big Mac, "I found Angel Bunny, he's hurt and needs help. Please come out."

Fluttershy knew Big Mac was far away with Spike and she resisted the urge to go outside.

"Hey big sister! Me and the Cutie Mark Crusaders just got our cutie marks in ventriloquism. It's been us all this time, nopony else. Want to see our cutie marks?"

Applejack just shook her head. She knew that Apple Bloom was safe back at the farm. A reassuring hug from Rainbow Dash was enough to keep her spirits high.

There was a bit of a delay for the next voice as if it didn't know what to say for the last pony. "Hey Pinkie Pie! I got some real good muffins here, wanna share?" said what sounded like Derpy. Had the ponies in the wagon been able to see, they would have noticed an insane grin on Pinkie Pie's face. Also they wondered why of all the ponies to mimic that Eris chose Derpy?

But grinning or not, Pinkie Pie knew she couldn't make a sound.

"Okay, I tried to be nice about this but I know you're in there. Come on out or I'll burn the wagon down, " the voice now revealed to be Eris said. "I'm serious. I'm starting the fire. It's going to get hot in there really soon so you might as well come out before you burn to death. Oh look, the wheels are burning now and the bottom seems to be getting rather hot. Any moment now you're going to feel the heat rising, the smoke coming up through the cracks and you'll have only seconds to get out before it all goes up in flames!" 

The fillies spent a few agonising moments listening to this and trying not to think that the wagon was actually on fire. And a few minutes later they simply heard Eris trotting off having been convinced at least for the moment that there was in fact nopony in the wagon.

Twilight continued her counting throughout all this but did breathe a sigh of relief once the voice stopped and she heard Eris walk away.

Once she reached 3600, an hour had passed and this was now the moment of truth. They opened the latch on the bottom of the wagon and gently peered around to make sure there was nopony there guarding the wagon. But the courtyard was empty so they silently came out one by one. They stretched, shook themselves out and generally breathed deeply of the cool night air. 

One by one the fillies slowly made their way into the fort. None of them knew which way to go and the darkness inside was so deep that it made exploring difficult. 

"Maybe we should split up to cover more ground?" Rarity asked.

"Nooo, it's too scary!" Fluttershy exclaimed.

"No, Rarity is right we need to split up but we'll all stay on the same floor if we start taking different floors we'll never manage to get everypony back together again in time and somepony might get lost. We should go two by two so nopony is alone."

Applejack and Rainbow Dash made up a team, but that was to be expected. Rarity decided to go with Fluttershy and that left Pinkie Pie with Twilight. Each group would start on the main floor and look around from there. Once they had exhausted that floor they'd move up.

The fillies split up. Applejack managed to get a torch working and carried it along for illumination while the two unicorns simply cast a light spell to mark their way. 

It wasn't long before Rarity and Fluttershy became aware of a low, rumbling sound coming from one of the rooms in front of them. Fluttershy went pale with fear thinking it was some horrible monster but cooler heads prevailed and Rarity half pushed, half pulled Fluttershy towards the sound.

They quietly opened the door and the sound was definitely coming from here. It sounded horrible, but strangely rhythmic. Almost like... breathing? What kind of creature could make such a horrible sound? For sure it was some great unwashed beast who was here but possibly this beast was guarding the Elements of Harmony. On silent hooves they crept along the room until they found the source of both the rank smell and the noise. There, chained to the wall and lying on a pallet of not very clean straw was a very human and rather naked Rick.

Rarity crept forward, keeping a wary eye on the sleeping figure while cringing every time he made that terrible noise. "Such a dichotomy," she thought. "Handsome, elegant, great fingers and making the ugliest noise possible. Well, sometimes you do need to take the good with the bad." She did pause to admire his physique, never having seen him so completely on display. And while he wasn't as big as some of the stallions she had seen, she did think that Twilight had nothing to complain about.

Fluttershy was shaking like a leaf, starting at every shadow and stayed glued to Rarity but when she saw the state Rick was in all that disappeared and the caring healer in her took over. The manacles used to chain his arms and legs had rubbed the skin raw showing an obvious struggle. His skin had a waxy pallor to it and even asleep, he seemed tense as if he was fighting against something. She flew forward and gently ran one of her hooves over his face. 

Rick snapped awake with such suddenness at her touch that Fluttershy squeaked in terror and hid behind Rarity. Looking about him frantically he noticed the two ponies staring at him. 

"Rarity? Fluttershy?" he focused through the pain in his head that wasn't helped by the whiplash in his brain he felt from waking up too suddenly. "Sorry for the smell but Eris is not overly concerned with my hygiene."

"That's quite understandable darling. We're here to rescue you and take down that terrible Eris pony. Now hold still." Rarity concentrated and the manacles holding his arms and legs fell off. With a satisfied groan, Rick sat up and stretched his extremities while gently rubbing his aching wrists.

"Thank you. I'm assuming Twi and the rest of the fillies are here as well?"

"Yes darling, your wife and the girls are here and she'll be happy to see you as well. And since you're now able, could you help us find the Elements of Harmony?"

"Not a problem, they're over there." Rick pointed to a nearby chest. He whipped one of the sheets off the pile and wrapped it around himself in an improvised toga. Ponies might not care about his nudity but he still felt a little self-conscious about it.

Fluttershy opened it up and there were the 6 Elements of Harmony, casually thrown together in a heap.

"Eris tried to use their magic to break me thinking that maybe she could use one or more of them to increase her power. Luckily for me it didn't work, " Rick groaned slightly bringing his palms to his head as the drums inside continued their assault.

"Are you alright?" Fluttershy asked, torn between her fear of this place and wanting to help.

"Yeah Flutters, I'll be fine in about a day or so. I'm just nearing the end of my caffeine withdrawal cycle. I've got a pounding headache which thankfully is less strong than it was yesterday. But I'll be okay." Rick gave her a weak smile. She was such a sweet pony and he didn't want her to worry any more on his account.

"That's good, " she said shyly and with a blush added, "and don't worry about my sheet, you can give it back to me when you're done with it." 

"This is yours?" he asked plucking at his toga. 

Fluttershy nodded.

"I'll take great care of it, wash it when I'm done and bring it back to you in perfect condition, " he said with a smile.

"Well, enough of this chit chat, " Rarity said. "We need to get back to the rest of the fillies and finish the job we started." She turned, gave the remaining Elements of Harmony to Rick and they all made their way out of the room to find the others. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were the first, they greeted Rick warmly although Rainbow Dash did call him "Stinky" and asked that he stay downwind of them. They received their elements and the 5 of them went in search of Pinkie Pie and Twilight. It didn't take long but they finally ran into Pinkie Pie and Twilight.

Twilight stared at Rick, unbelieving of what she was seeing, took a couple tentative steps towards him and then with a great smile on her face raced towards him as fast as her hooves could carry her. He knelt down, arms outstretched and she threw herself into his embrace knocking him down in the process. Neither one cared, he hugged her tight, she kissed him repeatedly before they settled on a long, passionate embrace. Somepony clearing their throat reminded them of what was at stake and they did have the good sense to look a little embarrassed at their actions.

"Now that we have this out of the way, how about we go kick Eris' butt?" Rainbow Dash asked. Everypony agreed, the remaining elements were handed out and they all made their way upstairs.

"So how's your head?" Twilight whispered seeing the tightness around Rick's eyes. 

He sighed deeply and said, "better than it was, " he whispered back. "I'd kill for an ice-pack right now or a coke to help smooth this out." He thought for a moment, "any trouble yourself?"

Twilight shook her head. "No, taking smaller doses of the tea really helped. I just wished I had that last time around when I went through this."

"Yeah that's right, I keep forgetting the three month difference when you came back, " he ruffled her mane playfully. She smiled and rubbed up against him.

They came to the top of the stairs, Eris's room was down the hallway but there was a problem. Sunrunner was currently lying outside the door. They'd have to get by him before taking on Eris and they had to take him down quickly and quietly.

"So, how do we get rid of the sissy?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"I don't want to risk using any magic. That might alert Eris to our being here, " Twilight said.

"Okay, so it's physical then. How about I fly at him really fast then try to knock him out with a punch?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"You'd have to hit him just right. It's a lot harder to knock somepony out than you would think. But what do we do after? You knock him out and a few minutes later he's back up and coming for you?" Rick asked.

"Well whut about that there sheet y'all are wearin'? Seems to me like it's perfect for hogtyin' that rascal."

Rick thought for a moment and he was torn between his desire to be covered and the need to kick Eris' butt. Also it was Fluttershy's sheet and he didn't want to damage it. He was about to say something when Fluttershy said, "it's okay. I've got others back home."

Sighing, he removed the sheet and was moderately embarrassed how the fillies took an interest in his body. He knew that most of them didn't care for him in a sexual way except for Twilight although in Rarity's case it might have been more of a fetish than anything else.

Tearing off a few strips as quietly as he could, he rolled them up, tied the ends together to make a rope and handed it off to Applejack. It was understood that she would be the one to tie up Sunrunner. The rest of their plan was to go like this. Rainbow Dash and Rick would rush the sleeping pony. Dash would attempt to knock him out while Rick would try to keep him pinned for Applejack to do her thing. As ad hoc plans went, it was actually a good plan. It was a successful plan and they managed to get Sunrunner out of the way as easily as they could. 

"Good job Stinky, " Rainbow Dash said with a bit of her usual snark and a smile.

"Thanks, but keep it up and I'll hug you, " Rick said dangerously which caused Rainbow Dash to move back and hover just a bit of out grabbing range where she then stuck out her tongue at Rick. He made a feint as if to grab her. Surprised, she dodged out of the way. Rick just smiled, they hoofbumped and everything was back to normal.

Looking through the keyhole, Twilight saw the sleeping form of Eris laid out on the bed. She appeared to be sleeping and so far hadn't reacted to the recent events outside her door. She turned to the other Elements and nodded silently to them. This was it. The future of Equestria lay in what happened next. 

Slowly the door was pushed open and the fillies made their way quietly into the room. Rick hung back and kept an eye on the knocked out form of Sunrunner just in case he awoke. The six fillies got together and unleashed the magic of the Elements of Harmony. Eris woke up suddenly at the influx of magical energy and quickly tried to come up with a counter spell but it was too little too late. The rainbow struck Eris, covering the entire fort and disappeared in a bright flash of sparkly light.

Several things then happened in quick succession.

There was a ghostly cry of loss as Discord's spirit seemingly vanished back to the nothingness from where it came.

Trixie cried out in triumph as her mind was finally restored to her original body.

Sunrunner woke up and wondered why he was tied up and dressed in a frilly maid's outfit.

Rick suddenly found himself back in his pony body.

And the fort started to rumble ominously as Eris' magic was no longer keeping it stable.

All ponies ran as fast as they could towards the exit and managed to make it out before a final rumble and the stones of the fort fell down to the ground.

After a few moments Applejack called out, "everypony okay?"

There were assorted responses to this but all of them positive. Rick and Twilight hugged each other as did Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Both couples simply happy to be alive and with those they loved. Rarity sighed looking at the happy couples, thinking of her dear Spikey Wikey and how she would give anything for him to be here with her now. Fluttershy also longed for Big Mac but was comforted in knowing she'd see him soon once they got back to the farm. Pinkie Pie sighed that there would never again be any chocolate rain but she decided that a nice, juicy apple from the Trojan cart would do just as well right now but felt sad when she noticed the cart had been crushed by some of the falling stones. Kicking a stray rock out of the way she plumped down on the ground and just sulked.

Nearby, Trixie felt unloved and unwanted. She had hoped when all of this was over she could start things up again with her Twilight... no, it wasn't her Twilight anymore and to be honest it never was. All that had happened to her recently was enough to see that she had been using other ponies for the longest time much in the same way that Discord had used her. It pained her to do this, but she had to do something she had never done before in her life. She gathered up her courage and marched straight up to where Twilight and Rick sat lost in each other's eyes.

"Twlight Sparkle? Rick?", Trixie said to the two ponies who were honestly surprised by her presence. "I know neither of you will probably believe me when I say this, and after all I've done I know I probably don't deserve your forgiveness but I wanted to say I'm sorry for everything I've done. All of these recent events are because I was too selfish to consider the wishes and feelings of other ponies." She was a little surprised that genuine tears were in her eyes as she said this. Brushing them away she continued, " I wish you two the best and hope that you're happy together." She turned around to go, hoping that one of them would call her back and say all was forgiven. When no words were forthcoming, she hung her head down and slowly walked away.

Sunrunner, almost forgotten in all of this ran up to and confronted her before she left.

"Eris?"

"Actually my name is Trixie. Eris was Discord's slightly clever name for me."

"Trixie then. I know we've both been through a lot and both of us were treated unfairly by Discord but maybe we've been granted a new beginning? I need to get back to Mareseilles and the hospital and if you're interested you could maybe come back with me? I'd appreciate the company and perhaps if you want you could help out at the hospital? We're always looking for volunteers." He left it wide open but the meaning behind his words was clear. 

Trixie smiled, genuinely pleased by this offer. "I think I'd like that." He nuzzled her gently and she returned it. They trotted off towards Mareseilles and hopefully better times.

Rick and Twilight watched them go. "I notice you didn't call her back, " Twilight said.

"I'm still not convinced she's genuinely sorry. Babe, she hurt you, me, Rainbow Dash and AJ and that was just the last time we all got together. Who else has she hurt in all the time she's been around? No, she might feel sorry now but I'm not convinced she's changed any. Maybe Sunrunner over there is what she needs right now as well as trying to make up for what she did but until that day comes and I see it with my own eyes I'll wait until she proves me wrong." He drew her close, kissed her gently and said, "let's go home. I really want to take a shower and sleep in a real bed."

The assorted ponies got up and slowly made their way back to Ponyville. Actually it was only Rick and Twilight that made their way back. The rest all headed out to Sweet Apple Acres as it was either home or where their loved ones were. 

When they got to the library, there were hugs all around and Applejack reminded them that the wedding would be in a couple of days. They had to get ready for it and get certain things set, but after all they had been through it wasn't going to be anything fancy. Just something small for the family and it was understood that all ponies here were considered family. 

The library hadn't changed much since Twilight had seen it last. At least nopony had tried to burn any books. The mess however could wait until tomorrow as Twilight made her way upstairs and Rick headed for the bathroom. A few moments under the hot water and he started to feel better, he didn't notice when Twilight walked in and opened the shower curtain.

"Hey you. I'd invite you in but there's only really room here for me, " Rick said with a roguish grin which considering he was a pony was an impressive feat in itself.

"Trust me, if you had room I wouldn't wait for an invitation. But right now I'm just here to scrub your back. You still have trouble reaching everywhere as a pony so I figure it's the least I can do."

"Well then please my dear, scrub away."

Twilight's horn glowed, picked up the scrub brush and she proceeded to lather, scrub and rinse off her husband. He seemed to enjoy it, she really enjoyed lathering up his body and paid special attention to certain areas and used her hooves just to make sure everything was clean.

Rinsed, toweled off and dry they made their way upstairs to the bedroom where they finally got to lay down on the large bed that Twilight had magicked up for them but as tired as they were, found it hard to get to sleep. It felt like such a long time since they had seen each other and that attention Twilight gave him in the shower was not helping matters. 

He leaned in a and kissed her gently, she returned it with added passion. He held her close, she caressed him gently, he caressed her back and paid equal attention to other parts of her as well. Both were already turned on and it had been a long time since they had actually gotten intimate with each other.

"Oh yes! " Twilight sighed as her husband started kissing her neck and giving her those little love bites she adored. "You don't know how long I've been waiting for you to come back to me."

"Last time was in Rome, not counting the time Eris cast that spell on us. But it feels like a lifetime ago, " Rick whispered in between nips. Both of them were ready but Rick had a moment's hesitation.

"Uhmm, Twi?"

"Yes Rick, " she said breathlessly.

"I've never really done this as a pony. I'm just wondering about the... " he made a vague gesture with his hooves, " mechanics of it all. I mean I know the basics, but what's more comfortable for you?"

Twilight smiled gently and without malice. "Anyway you want, but if you're nervous for your first time I can always take the reins."

"Well, who am I to argue with such a pretty pony such as yourself?"

They then proceeded to make love, effectively for the first time as ponies. Rick had to admit that his endurance as a stallion was greater than his endurance as a human and the sensations were rather different. It somehow felt... right. Not that it felt wrong when they were both human or when he was human and Twilight was still a pony. No, this just felt more real than those other times. Maybe it was the novelty of it but he did have to admit that Twilight never looked as beautiful or as happy as she did now and maybe that was the reason he felt this way.

Afterwards, they just lay there, pleasantly out of breath and just a little sweaty. They kissed, caressed each other, giggled for no reason and just played gently through the afterglow. It truly had been a magical experience. 

Rick felt his eyes growing heavier and heavier and soon it was a struggle to keep them open. Twilight saw this, gave him a soft kiss and wished him goodnight before snuggling up next to him and closing her eyes herself.