Chapter 1: Reflections

“You,” Diamond Tiara laughed mirthlessly “You look miserable.”

But the filly didn’t fight back. She stood there, staring at her demon face-to-face. Tears welled up in her eyes as she absorbed ever word. Diamond Tiara sneered again at the filly, staring at her enemy, finally getting what she deserved, imprisoned behind a magic barrier. She deserved it… she deserved all of it.

Screams and shouts echoed endlessly throughout the walls of her own home. She wanted to bring peace to the bickering ponies downstairs, but all that she could do was listen. She shuddered as the words resurged again and again in a loop like a record player dashing endlessly on the last notes of the song.

“I can’t bear this wretched foal anymore…” She heard her mother say “It’s either me or her. Now, what is it going to be?”

The rest was history.

Suddenly, she heard a knock.

“Come in,”

Randolph poked his head through the door. Diamond could hear the gentle trot of the stallion. Cushioning the fall, Randolph tossed a suitcase on her bed. She watched warily as the old little stallion slowly trotted to her side. His eyes met hers as they stared at the filly behind the glass.

“You look beautiful, Mistress Tiara.” He smiled warmly.

“I wish I could see what you see,” Diamond Tiara glared at the filly. “I don’t see how that filly can be beautiful.”

“Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, Mistress Tiara.” Randolph waved his hoof towards the glass “You see a filly, I see a beautiful crown jewel.”

“That is enough, Randolph,” Diamond Tiara snapped at her butler “Now is not the time.”

The butler blanched, backing away from Diamond. His rump backed into the bed. Quickly, he took it as his cue to resume packing.

Again, Diamond Tiara marveled at how graceful the butler was while packing her bags. Various items, clothing, and toothbrushes flew in the suitcase with reverent speed.

Diamond Tiara turned away from the glass and approached the butler.

Randolph eyes wandered away from a stack of clothing. “So… I heard you donated money to the Elementary…” the same kind and gentle smile from before melted into his expression “I think that was very honorable.”

Diamond shuddered. It started as a normal day, trying to bring her family honor as she ran for class president. She lost that election because Silver Spoon didn’t vote for her.

She was abandoned by her only friend, and was left to tell her family the news. What was she supposed to tell her parents? That she’d failed? That she lost everything? That she brought shame to the Rich family? That she was nothing?

Unfortunately, the time came that she had to tell her parents the truth.

In the end, her mother was certainly not happy, and her father wouldn’t even speak to her. To make her day worse, the Cutie Mark Crybabies eavesdropped into her personal life. Diamond Tiara sighed, thankful that they only scratched the surface.

At least the day got better and she had her time in the sun. She remembered the warm feeling that came over her as she listened to what the crusaders had to say. It was an odd feeling, one that felt so familiar… yet distant. She finally belonged somewhere, surrounded by friends.

Then… Cheerilee gave her a hug. She didn’t expect it, but the teacher that glared at her for most of class finally opened up. She could hear the words from her teacher “Diamond, I’m proud of you!”

“You’re smiling.” A voice interrupted her train of thought.

She opened her eyes.

“I never seen you smile like that before…” Randolph added, eyes focused on her “What were you thinking about?”

“Oh… nothing.” She tousled the carpet fibers.

Randolph shrugged and firmly pressed the shell one more time for good measure. He lifted the bag off her bed “Shall we depart, Mistress Tiara?”

She felt the warm feeling pass away as she lifted the saddlebags onto her back.

“Pardon, Mistress Tiara,” Randolph politely interrupted, pointing a hoof at a piece of jewelry lying on the nightstand “May I ask, what about your crown?”

“Leave it… its just dead weight.” She struggled to keep her gaze fixed on Randolph.

“I know it may seem like that, but I must insist that you wear it.” Randolph reasoned “It’ll show your family honor.”

She shrugged, trotting over to her nightstand. Placing the gaudy jewelry on her skull, she proceeded towards the bedroom door “Anything else, Randolph?”

“Nothing more,” He held the door open for the little filly.

As she exited, a wave of shouts penetrated her being, no longer held back by the barrier of the door.

“Oh no, she is more than lost… she is irredeemable!” She heard her mother shout “She cost us a fortune spending a month’s earnings on ungrateful swine at the elementary! - I am ashamed to call her my daughter! Our lives would be infinitely better if she wasn’t born!”

“YOU!” A low shout competed in stalemate against the other “You have no right to say that! She is our daughter!”

The words became louder as Diamond descended the spiral staircase.

“Excuse me?!” her shout conquered the other “I helped you when you were in business trouble… and I can take that away, just as easy… Is that what you want?!”

Silence hung in the air, dissonant to the previous shouts that occupied the room.

“Do… I… Make… Myself… Clear?” Her mother emphasized every syllable

An answer came, as the voice became oddly calm, as if it was submitting “Crystal,”

“Good.”

Silence penetrated the room once more as Diamond Tiara and Randolph trotted across the icy hardwood floor. Diamond kept her eyes fixed on the door. She didn’t need to give a second glance to her mother’s glare. Instead, Diamond Tiara stood stoutly. If she dared to break her focus, her mother would say, “Remember, Chin up, Tut-tut. Don’t cry… only foals cry. You have to be strong like a Diamond, it is in your name.”

As they finished their eternal trek across the foyer, Randolph hastily swung the door open. A gust of icy wind greeted them as Diamond exited her home. Randolph followed closely behind, shutting the door behind him.

Once he closed it, Randolph started “Terribly sorry Mistress Tiara, but your parent’s decision is final, you are cut off from the Rich household forthwith…”

“Terribly sorry, truly I am,” Randolph bowed.

He fished through the front pocket of the suitcase and pulled out an envelope, a couple bits, and a train ticket.

Diamond Tiara read over it, finding the train ticket to be one-way to Mane-hattan. The name “Coco Pommel” was scribbled in cursive on the envelope.

“Go to her, I trust that Madam Pommel will help you.” He instructed, choking on his own words “Those bits should be enough for a meal or two from the train’s services.”

“You… You aren’t going with me?” Her voice quivered in terror.

“I-I wish it could be some other way, but M-Madam Rich insisted that I organize her jewelry again…” Randolph stuttered through the sentence like a worn horse-drawn carriage bumping across the rocks.

Her eyes filled with tears. She wanted to collapse and die on the doorstep. But, if she did, she would frighten the poor stallion further. He had a hard enough time keeping his proper tone while controlling his emotions.

Without a word, Diamond Tiara leaned in and embraced the butler.

Randolph blanched. He smiled and accepted the kind gesture from the magenta filly.

Diamond Tiara sobbed “Thank you, you’ve been the only pony who has been kind to me, even when I’ve been unkind to you.”

“It is my duty to serve the Rich household.”

She reached atop her head and took off her crown. She held it out to Randolph “I want you to have this.”

“Mistress Tiara, this is your crown.” Randolph wrapped his hooves around the tiara, pushing it back to the filly. “As Mr. Rich said, “A tiara to top the finest masterpiece”.”

“I don’t think I deserve it… that is why I want you to have it.” She held it out further. “Please, I beg of you, take it and accept this as my apology.”

Randolph gingerly set the tiny crown on the porch. He patted her on the back “Diamond Dazzle Tiara, you are already forgiven.” He lifted her head with his forehoof, “Let your kind and generous gesture for the school be a testament of that.”

She hugged him tighter “Thank you Randolph, for everything,”

Randolph patted her on the back. “It’ll be okay, Miss Tiara,” The filly and the butler stood there on the porch, in each other’s embrace.

Diamond Tiara backed away, letting go of her caretaker’s embrace. She started down the street, looking back periodically as Randolph waved back from his perch on the porch. “Goodbye, Mistress Tiara.”

Diamond waved back and trotted down the road. She shivered as the cold wind blew. The sky made its final streaks in alpenglow sun. Diamond Tiara was reminded by the wind that winter was coming… and there was no stopping Cloudsdale from bringing the first wave of snow… no matter how hard anypony tried.

As she progressed through the cold night, she could hear a faint whisper, being carried on through the wind- “Good luck, Diamond Tiara. May Celestia have a watchful eye over you.”

The train’s meal wasn’t so bad… frankly, it was oddly traditional. Nothing could beat a warm bowl of soup on a cold autumn night, as the frost settles in the windows.

While she was enjoying her meal, she looked to the things that Randolph packed in the saddlebags. Of course there was the basic comb and toothbrush, along with a couple hoof-towels and a small tube of toothpaste.

Diamond Tiara watched as the world passed by around her, Celestia lowering the sun so the world could sleep. While many could rest, the little filly stayed up, hoping with all of her might that Coco would accept her.

But what if she didn’t?

She quickly banished the thought. She couldn’t let those thoughts occupy her mind- she had to keep looking to the future, being given only one last chance to prove herself. If only Randolph had a home of his own, that way, he could take her under his wing while her parents were sorting out this mess.

She looked back to the items Randolph packed. It was meager, but enough to get her through one full day. She smiled, noting that the Doolittle stallion packed three items she particularly loved.

The first one was a picture. A family picture.

As she gazed into it, she rubbed her hoof over the glossy surface. She whispered, ever so quietly “Don’t you ever forget about me, guys.”

The more she stared at the picture, the more she understood her parents. Her father, who had a meeting a couple minutes later could only spare a minute or two. Her mother, who was also busy organizing the company, was also busy.

It was funny to look at, since the only pony smiling… was her.

She tucked the picture back into the saddlebags, and pulled out the second item. At a glance, it was nothing more than a book with sparse entries. But, it meant so much more to her than a couple of scribbles.

Earlier, she had borrowed a pen from the conductor. However, it was tough to get the day’s adventures onto paper. Every time, it sounded whiny, saying something like “Dear Diary, my parents sent me away today”

She looked to past entries for inspiration, but the previous entry was from very long ago. She never wrote in it for a while, since her only entries were how she earned her cutie mark, her cute ceanera, and the best times of her playing with Silver Spoon.

With distaste, she slapped the book shut, placed it in her saddlebags and headed over to get ready for bed.

As she brushed to get ready, she avoided eye contact with the demon in the glass. It took a while to finish, but she eventually emerged from the bathroom. An impatient filly rushed in quickly as soon as she exited. She spotted the line that formed behind her, counting her lucky stars that she didn’t have to wait in a line.

Heading to bed, she pulled out the final item that Randolph packed especially for her. She hopped into bed and hugged this plush tightly, since it would be her only companion.

She looked up to this brave little pony ever since she could remember. This pony had precedence in reality, yet this fictional Alicorn haunted her dreams often, bringing light and life with them like a guardian angel.

But, right now, this Alicorn had been going through tough times. She hoped that this beloved figure would recognize their influence in all of Equestria, especially to her. Who knew a pony full of kindness and empathy would be struggling with their own self-worth?

We all have our weaknesses.

She hugged the plush tight, curling up in her blankets as the cool night sapped her heat.

She yawned and closed her beautiful blue eyes. She took one last breath, and settled in for the long nap.

Chapter 2: Cold

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Diamond Tiara didn’t fix her mane that morning. For one, it wasn’t worth her time. Second, she didn’t care. Nopony on the train would care. Everypony’s mane was fuzzy and untamed from the pillow static the previous night. Everypony remained the same, scruffy, unkempt and tired pony they were.

Back at home, her mother occasionally fixed it in such a meticulous way that it couldn’t be recreated by anypony other than her or Randolph. If anypony else tried to comb it, it would never be the same.

“What will it be honey? Oatmeal or Pancakes?” A hoof reached down onto her shoulder and shook her awake.

“Hey! Get off me! What’s the matter with you!?” She glared at the mare to her right.

The quiet chatter of the other passengers suddenly halted. Her shout woke up sleeping ponies, leaving them to frantically scramble to their senses. Those that were already awake focused on her.

The stewardess blanched and flashed apologetic smile “My apologies miss, I shouldn’t have done that…”

“Humph! You got that right…” She swiftly turned away from the mare.

“You still want breakfast, miss grumpy gills?” She teased lightly.

Diamond heard a familiar voice echo in her head ‘Don’t let her insult you like that! Return the favor with dignity!’

Doing her best to scrap her irritated tone, Diamond politely answered with her teeth clenched together “Yes, please,”

The mare nodded, reaching into her cart “Oatmeal or Pancakes?”

“Oatmeal.” Her words were as bland as meal.

“And what flavors would you like? Strawberry, blueberry, banana, or apple?”

“Just Apple, please.”

She poured a few oats and apples bits into the bowl. Taking a kettle from the hot pad, she poured steaming water into the meal. “Careful, it’s very hot.” She set down a small bowl on a tray in front of Diamond Tiara. The trolley squeaked as the mare scooted away.

After waiting a few minutes, Diamond deemed it safe to eat her breakfast. A quick feeling of contentment filled her soul as she ate her breakfast. Normally, her family would have huge buffets full of food, enough for any filly with a burning metabolism. Here, she was content with eating her humble meal. After all, Randolph bought it with the ticket.

As she crunched on the meal, she overheard a conversation between two young colts behind her. Their speech was riddled with sarcasm, insensitive comments, and crude language no pony dared to repeat.

“Geez, you see that filly over there attack the trolley mare?” One of them started, he leaned toward his friend, “Hey, you okay?”

“Yeah, just fine… I’m just tired this morning,” The other explained, “A stupid filly on the bunk below me was sobbing all night…”

Diamond’s heart boiled. How judgmental and critical! They didn’t see the bigger picture when it came to her circumstances! If only her mother and father were here, they would pay for their insolence!

Her anger simmered as she remembered she was alone. She no longer had her parent’s protection, so whatever happened- happened. Anypony was free to insult her. She sighed again, digging up the last few bits of oats out of the bowl.

“Fillies and Gentlecolts! May I have your attention please?!” A shout came from the head of the passenger car. She glanced toward a stallion standing uprightly like a soldier “We will be arriving to Mane-hattan in less than five minutes! Please prepare adequately so the next passengers can board! Thank you!”

He trotted through the car, and exited through the back.

Diamond Tiara tossed her paper bowl away in the nearest trash bin. She continued to her bed, fetching her saddlebags and suitcases from their compartments. Checking and double-checking the area around her, Diamond made sure she got everything. Little Alicorn Plushy was tucked away comfortably in her pack with the envelope secured in the front pocket along with the picture frame and journal.

Hearing the din of the crowd growing louder, she snuck a quick peek. She noticed a cluster of ponies gathered near the doors of the train car, with more coming on the way.

The screech of brakes could be heard as the train came to a gradual stop. A moment passed as the hiss of gas from the train was released followed by the doors swinging open, freeing floods of ponies onto station’s floors.

The horde of ponies, eagerly making their way out, pushed Diamond outward with gentle force. She scoffed once the goading stopped. As soon as she was out, she began with the basics. She pulled out the letter and searched for an address.

1134 South Maroon Avenue, Midsummer Theater. Great. Now, all she needed to do was get directions. Her heart sank as she looked up from the envelope. Hundreds of ponies gathered in the station. Of all these ponies, which one could guide her to the correct place?

Then, a familiar stallion caught her attention, one she recognized from the train before. She resisted going to talk to him, but figured that nopony else could spare a second.

The Stallion wiped his brow with a white handkerchief that resembled more of a doily. He took a seat on the bench and gave a long tired groan. Judging that he was on break, Diamond was sure he could spare a second.

She galloped hastily toward him, pulling out the letter. “Mr. Conductor!” Diamond shouted.

He sprung up from his seat like a wind-up toy and saluted “Yes Ma’am!” His stout expression faded as he realized it was just a filly who called his name. “Um, may I help you little miss?”

“Yes, I’m looking for a pony named Coco Pommel,” She answered immediately, “Can you guide me to this address?” She pointed to the envelope.

“I-I’m sorry… I don’t know w-who you are talking about.” He scooted away from Diamond, meandering towards the train.

“Do you know where I can find any sort of information on where she is at?” She held out the letter “You see, I’m supposed to give this to her.”

“Um…” The train whistle blew. The conductor reached into his bags and pulled out a cap, with the words ‘Friendship Express’ sown onto the bill. He pressed the cap to his head “I’m sorry, I can’t help you.”

“Wait!”

“My apologies, but I have to attend to the train.” He calmly stated, rushing towards the train, slipping past the doors just in time for the train to leave.

“Well, that was helpful…” She looked around aimlessly around the masses of ponies in the station.

She sighed, trotting towards the exit of the station. She studied her surroundings carefully, finding it odd that the station was almost deserted. Just a minute ago, the whole station was bursting with bustling ponies. But now, it almost empty, with a few ponies dotting the ticket counters. She trotted past the counters, finding most of them had drifted to the city.

Taking a few more steps, she stepped out of the station and conquered the city.

The cold wind blew once more. In that icy gust, Dazzle felt the harshness of the coming winter penetrate her insides. She took that as a sign that Cloudsdale has successfully reached to every corner of Equestria, their strong winter storms planned to come in the next few days.

If she was going to find Coco, she needed to do it soon, or find some type of shelter. However, all she could do was wait in a line in a city full of ponies. She had to find somewhere to stay before the whole world was covered in a blanket of snow. She was left with one choice: find Coco or suffer the cold winter.

However, that couldn’t be helped. She would be searching, but for now, she was waiting in a long line. She figured, if she was going to spend her time waiting, she might as well do something productive. She studied the letter, quaking and shivering in the cold. She could ask a pony in line, or a taxi driver to guide her to the address. She remembered her father used it once or twice while in Canterlot. But, it certainly didn’t hurt to double-check.

Taking a deep breath, she caught the attention of the mare in front of her.

“Excuse me miss,” Diamond Tiara tugged on the mare’s saddlebags.

The mare spun around, facing Diamond. “YOU TRYING TO MUG ME, FILLY?!” the mare’s eyes burned with fury.

“Oh…no, no, no…” Diamond Tiara gulped, trying her best to stand her ground, “All I need is some directions, do you know a pony named Coco Po-”

“Are you kidding me, Stupid filly, I don’t know who the Tartarus you are looking for!” The mare raised her hooves and shoved Diamond Tiara over “Go find somepony else to mug!”

Diamond Tiara got up, clenching her teeth. She held back tears as the same voice came flowing back ‘Don’t cry, only foals cry’. She tried to contain herself, instead it came out in a burst of anger “I’m asking a simple question, miss!”

The mare turned her back on the filly, bitterly seething “Heh… you aren’t worth my time, you are just a street brat that needs to be taught some manners.”

What was this mare’s problem? Diamond was tired of these types of ponies that wouldn’t give her the time of day. Diamond Tiara whipped up an insult in her mind. Making it snappy, and spicing it up with a sarcastic-critical tone, she retorted “Take a good look around everypony! It’s not every day that you see a horse with two rear ends!”

The Mare twisted, raking a hoof through the air towards Diamond. Before she could flinch, Diamond Tiara felt a burning on her right cheek as she fell to her left side.

The mare sneered as Diamond rubbed the pained area. With a scoff, the mare trotted off.

Diamond Tiara picked herself up and brushed off the gravel. She shoved the letter back into her pack, shooting a nasty glare at the other ponies who gathered behind her in the line

Luckily, most stallions and some mares averted their gaze and distracted themselves with their papers, watches, and other items.

“Do you need a ride, miss?”

She faced the taxi driver that pulled up to the curb. Eager to get out of the cold, Diamond hopped into the taxi. The Stallion helped haul her suitcase into the cart. She pulled out the Envelope and pointed to the address “Can you take me to this address?”

He studied the address “Yes,” He pointed a hoof at the bin on the side “The ride will be about seven bits.”

Diamond Tiara hastily grabbed the bits from her pack. Counting them carefully, she made sure it was enough. She tossed them into the bin “There you go, now get me out of here.”

The Cart jolted, sending Diamond flying backward into her seat. She felt the cold wind rush past her as the stallion raced down the streets.

She watched very closely as the world passed by around her, the streets bustling with other carts, with ponies wanting to get somewhere here to the next. There were a few cases in which an impatient mare or stallion would shake a hoof at another cart in frustration. Most cases being on the road when a taxi politely stopped for a pedestrian.

While they were stopped near an unknown street of Mane-hattan, Diamond could see inside an alleyway. A colt with a gray coat and a barf-colored mane was rooting through the dumpsters.

She stayed at a considerable distance, making sure the colt didn’t notice her. It was odd to marvel at, but she wondered how this colt made it this far, with winter right behind the corner.

Suddenly, a mare came out of the shadows from the alleyway, picking the colt out of the dumpster. The colt was at first confused, but the mare set him down, pulling out a tattered fast-food bag from a pair of saddlebags that seen better days. The colt smiled, hugged the mare, and sat back down quietly while the mare dug through the bag.

Pulling out a measly hoof-full of fries the mare split them with the colt.

Before Diamond could gawk any more, the cart sputtered back to life. She flew back into her seat once more, reminded of current situation. She shivered then rummaged through her pack. Finding nothing, she complained “Geez… do you guys have anything to protect your passengers against the cold?”

The Taxi driver responded over the city noise “Nope, sorry.”

Suddenly, the cart came to a stop. He pointed towards a stage surrounded by a wooded park “This is your stop.”

Diamond eyed the stage “I think you took me to the wrong address.”

“Nope, this is the right address.” He replied with a surety.

“I’m pretty sure that she doesn’t live in a theater…”

“Well, the address said otherwise.” The Stallion argued.

“You trying to trick me?” Diamond Tiara accused rashly.

The Stallion sighed “Miss, I saw what happened to you back there… with that mare.” He unstrapped himself from the cart “In my experience, I’ve learned that even if your passengers, or anypony treats you poorly, you should still treat them with kindness.”

Diamond Tiara hopped off the cart. She adjusted her saddlebags. The stallion loaded off her suitcase, setting it on the sidewalk. Suddenly, Diamond Tiara caught a glimpse of a couple bits flying into her suitcase. “Why are you giving me back some bits?”

He fiddled with his jacket, strapping himself back onto the cart. “Someday, what you shown to other ponies, be it kindness or cruelty… it will all come back to you…” He trotted away slowly down the street, gently stating “Now, if you will excuse me miss, I need to do my job.”

Diamond Tiara trotted away from the stop, towards the light. Why would the Driver say something like that? Diamond pondered. At least he was nice enough to give me back some bits.

The light dinged, noting it as safe to cross. She stared at the icy ground, tugging her suitcase across. Perhaps the little taxi driver was right. She’d been taught that principle countless times by ponies such as Mrs. Cheerilee. When she actually applied it, everypony at Ponyville Elementary wanted to get to know her better. Tartarus, even to be her friend.

But, on the contrary, that mare at the taxi stop was certainly not showing any kindness regardless whether or not Diamond was trying her best to be nice.

Suddenly, she felt a pair of hooves wrap around her, pulling her to the other side of the street.

Once she regained her balance, she stared at an older-looking mare, gray mane with a faded turquoise coat. She stood, staring stone-faced at Diamond. Through her wrinkly muzzle, she barked “What were you thinking, filly? You’ll get ran over if you don’t skedaddle across the street!”

Diamond Tiara’s first instinct was to shout back at the granny mare to mind her own business, but the words echoed in her head “Someday, what you shown to other ponies, be it kindness or cruelty… it will all come back to you…” She decided that since she was in a new city, she might as well give it a try.

Diamond mimicked the gentle tone of the taxi driver, “Thank you for saving me, Ma’am. Today has been a little rough…”

The granny mare’s stern expression melted into a smile, though the wrinkles were masking it. “Well, don’t do that too often.” She tilted her head, intrigued. “What might your name be, little one?”

Diamond just about spilled ‘Diamond Tiara’, but stopped herself in time. It wasn’t like she didn’t trust the mare- It was the fact that it wasn’t safe to recite her real name since she was in a city full of strange ponies. Besides, she hated her first name. Her middle name was a little gentler, and technically, didn’t count as lying. She bowed respectfully “Dazzle- Dazzle Tiara.”

Luckily, Diamond found that the granny mare didn’t think much of it. She lifted her hoof up for Diamond to shake “Pleasure to meet you, Dazzle, the name is Jasmine Tea”

Diamond shook her hoof and reached into her pack. It couldn’t hurt to ask ‘Jasmine’ about the address. “Can you help me, I’m a little lost…” She hoofed the letter to Jasmine “You see, I asked a taxi driver to find this address, but I think he got a mixed up.”

Jasmine squinted at the address. A soft giggle came over her while read, “Oh, Coco Pommel, I know her!”

Diamond’s eyes lit up. Thinking about the possibility of finding Coco excited her “Really?”

Jasmine hoofed the envelope back to Diamond. She chuckled, “That address belongs to her workplace, Midsummer Theater.” She pointed a hoof at the stage across the street “However, you are in luck! She lives close to the Theater- just right across the street in fact!” She waved her hoof toward a building just away from the corner.

“Wow, how do you know this?” Diamond asked. “Most ponies I ask, they either don’t know, or trot away”

The granny mare laughed heartily, catching the attention of the other ponies at the crosswalk. She leaned in and whispered into Diamond’s ear “Between you and me, you have better luck asking experienced ponies like me. Coco is a rising star in Mane-hattan, very good at what she does. However, very few young ponies take part in Coco’s plays, because they are too busy with the here and now.”

She retained her posture, trotting across the street with Diamond. Jasmine pointed out “Honestly, the only reason why I know Coco so well is that I helped her organize a play once…”

Jasmine pointed a hoof at the building in front of her, “Rosily Hotel, a humble beginning for a rising star…” She regarded the Hotel “I trust that Entry will help you find Coco.” Jasmine bowed, inching away from Diamond “Send Coco my regards, I need to get back to work! Pleasure meeting you, Dazzle!”

“You too Jasmine!” Diamond waved, bidding the mare farewell.

Diamond Tiara stared at the Monolith building towering over her. She glanced over the envelope one more time, taking one deep breath to calm her nerves. The autumn air chilled her soul, coaxing her towards the warm entrance to the Hotel.

At last, Diamond was happy to know that she found Coco. However, her inner fear kept her from entering the front door. What if Coco didn’t accept her?

The wind pushed her further towards the doors. Diamond figured one thing; if Coco was going to accept her, there was only one way to find out.

She took one final step and entered the Hotel.

Chapter 3: Pommel

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“Welcome,” The secretary greeted as Diamond entered the lobby.

“Hi,” Diamond waved back. Diamond closed her eyes, letting the warmth envelope her. She was in the cold for so long… that she couldn’t remember what warmth was until she stepped into the building.

The warmth of the foyer reminded her of the good times during the summer with Silver Spoon… before everything fell apart. Even though she only had one friend at the time, she was content and happy. She wouldn’t trade those days for anything.

“Hey, miss, I appreciate it if you don’t loiter.”

Diamond opened her eyes. The voice came from the secretary, who was busy with paperwork. Diamond trotted up to the desk. “Sorry ma’am,”

“I don’t want to be rude… but if you don’t have any business here, I must ask you to leave.”

“Well, I do have business here…” Diamond pulled out the letter and set it on the granite countertop. “I’m looking for Coco Pommel, I have a message for her.”

The Secretary’s glum expression shifted into a ‘business’ smile. “Alright, I’ll take this to her upstairs, you’ll probably hear from her in a week.” The letter slid across the countertop towards a pile of paperwork.

“Wait!” Diamond caught the letter before it hit the pile. “I must give that letter to her in person,” Diamond insisted “It’s the sender’s orders.”

The Secretary shrugged and pulled out some more paper from under the desk. “That’d be fine, but I’ll have to record your ins and outs.” She clicked a pen “Name please?”

“Dia…” Diamond stopped herself there. She contemplated on her decision to use her real name. The secretary was probably safe to recite her real name, but she could just as easily use a fake name while in Mane-hattan. Besides, Mrs. Tea knew Coco well, and she didn’t want to hurt Jasmine’s feelings by finding out her name was a half-truth. “Dazzle Tiara.”

“Alright, you are in,” She put the paperwork away. “Mrs. Pommel lives on the 7th floor, room C as in Cat.” She winked at Diamond “Just stay out of trouble, and be nice to our guests, ya hear?”

Diamond nodded, scooting away from the secretary’s desk.

She was about to approach the elevator, when the secretary interrupted, “Sorry miss, that Elevator is out-of-order.”

Diamond Tiara shrugged and ascended the flights of stairs. She huffed as she ascended each flight. Maybe she should’ve payed attention in P.E. She cursed under her breath at how out-of-shape she was.

The stairs were certainly rough, until she finally reached the seventh floor. She scanned all around, finding that the apartments were labeled with letters. However, the Labeling was inscribed in a strange cursive, making it tough to read. To make it worse, she had no idea which order they went in.

She figured it wouldn’t hurt to try the nearest door.

A couple heavy hoof steps followed before a pony answered the door. A pot-bellied stallion stared coldly at her through the crack of the door. A stuffy smell wafted outward, one that Diamond had trouble identifying, though she could recognize the sharp smell of aged apple cider.

Diamond Tiara held her breath “Um, I’m looking for a Coco Pommel, she lives on this floor.”

He grumbled in a low, guttural voice “No Coco Pommel here.”

“Do you know where room C is?” She replied hastily, retreating from this stallion’s apartment. She held back a retch as she caught a whiff of the stench.

The Stallion shouted “Can’t you read, stupid filly?! I’m room A! Room C is two doors down!”

“Sorry for bothering you sir…” Diamond muttered under her breath.

“Heh… you’re stuck-up too!” He scoffed “Go find somepony else to annoy!” The door slammed shut, echoing down the hallways.

Diamond Tiara continued down the hall, following the stallion’s instructions. She took a deep breath as she stood outside the door. She didn’t want to disturb any other pony like that stallion.

Unfortunately, she had to find Coco Pommel. All she could do was trial and error. But what if Coco was as ill-tempered as that stallion? What if Diamond didn’t make a good impression? Where could she run to now?

She sighed, with only one choice ahead of her.

Diamond Tiara lifted a hoof and knocked on the door.

Butterflies formed in her stomach as she heard hoof steps approach the door.

The door flew open. “May I help you?” A mare asked in a gentle, yet dignified tone.

Diamond felt miniscule as the mare towered over her. An unidentifiable aroma wafted off her tan coat, oddly smelling like the flower dotted hills of Ponyville. She looked up, meeting the aqua eyes of the mare.

Diamond found something in this mare’s stance that said otherwise. Even if this mare towered over her in ‘Canterlot’ Posture, she saw something… different.

“Um, may I help you?” The mare repeated, speaking just a little more audible than the last.

Diamond snapped out of her daze “Sorry to bother you, but I’m looking for a Coco Pommel.”

The mare nodded once “This is she,”

Diamond rummaged through her bag. “One second, I should’ve got it out first…” Diamond apologized. She hoofed the letter to the mare. The mare accepted the letter and closed the door.

Diamond was half-tempted to follow the mare inside, but hesitated. It would be rude to barge into the apartment, so Diamond waited patiently.

The door opened again. “Where are my manners? Please, come in.”

Diamond stepped in with bags in tow. Coco motioned a hoof towards a sofa “Have a seat,”

Coco ripped the envelope open “Now, where did those go?” She glanced about, looking for something. Suddenly, she plucked a pair of glasses off the counter and placed them on her muzzle. She began reading over the letter.

To pass the time, Diamond Tiara studied her surroundings, trying to make sense of the situation.

Oddly enough, the mare had her apartment decorated lavishly, like Rarity’s Boutique, but possessed a little more space to room. It had a few pieces here and there, but for most, the room remained relatively empty.

Diamond studied Coco carefully, the grunts of the mare fairly faint. Coco had a stern look on her face as her aqua blue eyes darted back and forth across the page. Her tan coat and complimentary striped aqua mane tied in nicely with her form.

From her days in the Carousel Boutique with her father, she could conclude that Coco appeared like Rarity in the sense of being fine-groomed. Though through closer look, the makeup and grooming was used sparingly.

She possessed a different countenance that Diamond Tiara couldn’t quite place. Coco had the same grace as Rarity, no doubt. But, contrary to the fashionista style, Coco possessed a conserved type of style. Simple, in a way.

She looked up from her letter and addressed quietly “This is an interesting request…”

Coco cocked an eyebrow, shifting her expression from tender to stern. Diamond Tiara shivered in fear. She is not going to accept me, is she? The thought raced across Diamond’s head.

Yet, Coco continued in her quiet manner “Well, taking care of a filly is a little bizarre, but I do owe Randolph a favor for my big break in your father’s company,”

“You know Randolph?!” Diamond’s jaw dropped open.

Coco blanched, backing away hastily. Her eyes widened, like the way Fluttershy did while scuttling away from her own shadow.

Diamond Tiara quickly corrected her error, trying to make a good first impression “Sorry, I have a tendency to do that…”

“No worries.” Coco held a hoof to her chest and breathed deeply.

Diamond rephrased her question “So, you know Randolph?”

“Yes,” Coco pointed towards the balcony overlooking the theater. “Ever since I was a little filly, Randolph and I were good friends. He usually worked behind the scenes in Midsummer Theatre, we became good friends. Unfortunately, we split ways once director Charity headed back to take care of her Grandfillies. For a time, I carried on with costume design as an apprentice under a prestigious and well-known designer.” Her ears drooped “…until I parted ways from the designer.”

“That is when I started getting into legal trouble with designer licensing. My old designer made sure that my life was miserable for abandoning her. That is when Randolph stepped in and persuaded Mr. Rich to help me. I was able to finally bypass my old designer, since the true authorities found nothing wrong with my application,”

“From then on, I was able to go forward with what I loved doing.” She tilted her head “I told Randolph that if he needed anything, I owed him one… Who knew he would send me a filly?” She chuckled.

Randolph actually convinced her family to help Coco. Her Parents! The ponies whose pockets were as buttoned up tight as a snare drum. Fascinating. If only she claimed that the contribution to the school ensured fillies and colts a bright future, things might’ve been able to go differently. But, that was water under the bridge now, there was no changing that.

Coco politely asked “So, Diamond Tiara, I take it you are a Rich too?”

Diamond Tiara wasn’t used to her name being called in a soft manner, most of it was either when her parents were addressing her in loud and clear ‘Canterlot’ fashion. Frankly, using that name brought back too many bad memories. Also, what would Jasmine and other passerby ponies think when her true name was thrown into the street? The lie had gone far enough, but she was ready for a change. Maybe she should stick to her nickname for good measure. Besides, she liked the ring of ‘Dazzle Tiara’

She figured her fake alias would do the trick. “Actually, I prefer Dazzle- Dazzle Tiara.”

Coco shrugged, flashing a cheesy smile. She chuckled softly, “Alright, I’ll make sure I’ll call you Dazzle from now on.” She motioned further into her apartment “So, I take it that you’ll be staying a while, Dazzle?”

“You…” Diamond Tiara sat upright on the couch. “You are actually going to take me in?” Her fear fled like rats scurrying away from a bright light. At long last, an unknown anxiety came over her, dying to know if Coco really meant it.

“I am returning a favor to a good friend.” Coco chuckled “Besides… it would be cruel of me to throw a filly into the street- especially with winter right around the corner.” She tapped a hoof to the floor, “Just as long as you show respect to me and my work, everything should work out fine… I’m sure we’ll become good friends.”

Diamond Tiara ran up to Coco hugged her tight “Thank you, Coco!”

Coco jumped from the sudden shout, managing a nervous “You are very welcome, Dazzle.”

Diamond let go of Coco, following the mare down the quaint hallway. Coco’s footsteps echoed in the hallways “To be honest, I was contemplating on getting a roommate, so I prepared a guest bedroom.” She swung the door open. “Randolph sent you just in time.”

Diamond Tiara found the room to be a little messier than the living room, with fabric, tables, sewing machines, and more strewn out across the room. A solitary mattress occupied the middle of the floor, ironically bare of blankets and pillows.

Coco tapped her hoof on the hardwood, staring at the room like it was a prodigal colt “You know what, on second thought, you could take my room…”

Diamond Tiara affirmed “It’s okay, I’ll be fine here.”

“You sure? It’s awfully cruel of me to have my guest sleeping on the floor…” Coco pointed out.

“I’m fine. Besides, it would be rude of me to barge into your home and take your bed.” Diamond Tiara set her baggage in the room, right next to a desk. “Besides, we can clean up this room as we go, no hurry here.”

“Alright, as long as you are happy- I’m happy.” Coco entered the room. “Do you want me to help you unpack?”

“No thank you, I can manage.” Diamond picked up a couple fabrics and rolled them over the mirrors clustered together in the far corner.

Coco’s expression wavered into somewhat of confusion “Alright, I’ll be in the other room if you need me.” She exited, muttering under her breath about some pattern of colonial Mane-hattan.

Diamond thought nothing of it and cleared a path to the mattress.

Unzipping the suitcase and undoing the button of the saddlebags, she set the contents down gently on the only clear spot of the room- the mattress. Diamond straddled the clothing that Randolph had packed on her back and trotted to the closet.

“OOF!” Diamond’s head bumped on the wall of the closet. She rubbed the pain area and scoffed “Guess I got to get used to the fact that I don’t have a walk-in closet anymore…”

Diamond surveyed the crowded room, sighing deeply as her breath picked up the dust that settled after all the years. She estimated that this room was half the size of the one back in Ponyville.

Oddly though, she liked this cluttered room. It possessed something that the other lacked. Maybe it was because this one was given out of the Kindness of Coco’s heart. At home, anything she wanted could be granted through her parents. Her room in Ponyville wasn’t even one percent of her father’s earnings.

With everything scattered, she oddly liked the mess because it was new… she wasn’t used it, but it was refreshing to find something so colorful in contrast to the grey and white of home.

She set down her personal items carefully after clearing a desk of a sewing machine. Afterward, she took her hygiene items and headed out the door.

Once she exited, it was like a whole new world. The hallway, sparsely decorated with pictures of flowers that looked like cutie marks were hung on the walls. She proceeded toward the closed door at the end of the hallway, light seeping out from under the door.

She knocked.

A couple of hoof steps followed, with the imprint of light coming from underneath. Coco answered, the door muffling her voice “Yes dear?”

“I’m wondering where the bathroom is?”

“Oh, it’s the door half-way down the hall, you can’t miss it…”

Diamond trotted back towards her room, navigating towards a little alcove midway through the hall. Opening up to the bathroom, she marveled at the appropriately decorated with translucent curtains with bamboo designs covering almost every inch of the curtains.

She closed the door behind her to allow enough privacy. The porcelain shone brightly. Diamond turned away from the reflective surfaces. She turned a clear mirror away, revealing a tiny cabinet behind it. Placing her toothbrush and hairbrush into the cabinet, Diamond couldn’t help gawking at the other items in the cabinet. It had Coco’s makeup, and moisturizers in there, along with a fancy perfume called ‘Laverne Chanel- Lush Lavender’

More items occupied the cabinet, from Ibuprofen, to common cough drops here and there. But, there was one item that Diamond couldn’t pry her gaze away from. An orange stained transparent pill bottle sat on the lowest shelf. On the label, ‘Coco S. Pommel’ was addressed in fine black letters, was labeled ‘Vistaril- Hydroxyzine- Antihistamine’

Diamond reluctantly closed the cabinet as she her hoof steps approaching behind the door. The second she finished, Coco knocked on the door. “Dazzle? Is everything alright in there?”

“Yes, just finishing up!” Diamond pressed the handle on the toilet and turned the knob on the sink, letting the cold water gush from the faucet. Placing her hooves under the stream of water, she averted her gaze from the filly staring back at her.

“I forgot to tell you, this is a little odd circumstance… I have dinner with a bunch of friends later tonight,”

“Yeah?” Diamond shut off the faucet

“Sorry, but I’m worried about leaving you here all alone, but I don’t want you to be too uncomfortable… after all, you just got here.” Coco said “So, would you like coming with me to visit some friends?”

“Sure,” Diamond dried her hooves on the towel and opened the door. “I think it would be good for me to get out and breathe for a bit, anything to help me get settled in.”

“I’m sure my friends won’t mind. Besides, Yttrium Fuse is always on ‘code red’, he’ll most likely skip out on us.” Coco waved he hooves in quotation marks as she said ‘code red’. “We’ll be out by four-thirty, so do whatever you need to…”

“Got it!” Diamond skittered into her room, slipping on the hardwood floor. She popped her head back into the hallway “Sorry, Coco, I’ll try not to shout too often.”

“Its fine,” Coco nervously rubbed her head “As long as you are trying your best…”

Chapter 4: Stand Your Ground

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Diamond sorted through the mess, preparing the mattress make-shift from the fabric around. She laid down a variety of sheets and unfinished dresses on the bare white canvas, calling her multicolored den good enough.

She oddly liked the mismatched style. It gave a little contrast to regal and classy pale colors she knew from home. It looked like Pinkie Pie smashed a rainbow-filling birthday cake on the mattress and allowed the cake twins to make a mural of it.

Coco popped her head through the door “Ready to go Dazzle?”

Diamond gazed up from the multi-color mattress, her eyes catching on a nicely dressed mare. Coco shifted side to side, adjusting her collar and velvet scarf. She bounded toward the mare, playing a little game of hopscotch to dodge the clutter that engulfed the entire floor. “Sure am!”

Coco snapped the collar snug “Alright, let’s get going.”

Diamond stopped bouncing and followed Coco out the door, whilst the mare snagged a purple hat off a rack. They entered the hallway, finding a couple construction stallions tinkering with the elevator doors. One of them bowed, taking off his hard hat “Evening Mrs. Pommel, how’s your playwright going?”

“Good, just a little writer’s block-” Coco curtsied toward the stallion before descending the stairs “-but otherwise… I’m doing alright.”

“Glad to hear, you take it easy, Coco!” He called down the stairs in a moderate tone.

“I will!” She steadied her step as she almost fell down the second flight.

“What was that all about?” Diamond gently asked, following the hoofsteps of Coco down the stairs.

“Oh, Rock Hammer?” Coco watched her step as she descended. “He’s an old friend that I grew up with- awfully good at building things.”

“Huh.” Diamond shrugged, skipping the last few steps on the way down.

Coco waved to the secretary “See ya later, Entry.”

The secretary waved back, busy with her muzzle stuck in some paperwork “Have a good evening, Coco.”

Bursting through the front doors, Diamond felt the cold night air in contrast to the warm hotel air. It was refreshing to know that she didn’t have to spend the night in this weather.

She noticed Coco veering off to the side, staying far away from the busy streets. Endless amounts of taxis and personal carts rushed past. Similarly, the pedestrians trotted quickly across the sidewalks. However, she found something a bit off… she was wondering why the others tended to hug the side of the buildings.

“Look out!” Coco yanked Diamond to the side. Diamond caught a glimpse of a taxi rolling overboard onto the sides of the sidewalk. Coco explained in a serious, yet kind tone “You need to be a little more careful, Dazzle…”

“Well, you should mind-” Diamond bit her tongue. She mentally slapped herself, reminding herself that Coco wouldn’t take kindly to mean and snooty fillies. Diamond apologized “I-I’m sorry I- I didn’t know…”

“Sorry, my bad also,” Coco ruffled Diamond’s mane apologetically. “I forgot you came all the way from Ponyville.”

Coco carefully stepped towards the edge of the street “In Mane-hattan, if you can point a hoof outward into the street that means you are too close…” Coco stuck a hoof out into the street. She backed away until her extended hoof met the sidewalk’s edge. “This is the closest you can get.” Coco backed away until her coat met the building’s edge. “But I wouldn’t recommend testing fate, I prefer to stay safe.”

Coco trotted a little ways more, until they got into a line waiting for a taxi. Diamond, in her curiosity asked “Is there more that I should know about Mane-hattan?”

“Well, typically, stay away from dark alleyways, don’t stick your head outside the taxi, obey all regulations- which include strict rules o-” Coco paused “Wait, if you are going to stay with me, then I’ll have to register you to my apartment.”

“Any other rules?” Diamond wondered, anxiously watching as they moved further up in the line “What are the rules of your apartment?” She added for good measure.

“Well, nothing comes to mind.” Coco trotted up in the line “Let’s just follow the rules of showing respect to one another. We can make more concise rules as time goes on.”

“Got it.” Diamond noted.

“Which reminds me… I need to stop and pick up some fabric. I still owe the seamstress some bits” Coco rummaged through her bag and nodded affirmatively “Yep, got enough.”

Diamond spotted a stallion hauling a taxi pull up next to Coco. He leaned out of his harness and interjected “Good on ya, Coco. Honest like Jackleapp.”

Coco rolled her eyes playfully “Actually, Axle, it’s honest as an Applejack.”

The Stallion dug his hooves across the pavement, kicking up dust “Whatever… you want a ride or not?”

Coco smiled “It would be a pleasure.”

Coco hopped into the taxi and offered a hoof to help Diamond up. The mare, with a surprising amount of strength, hoisted the filly in to the cart.

The stallion sped off as soon as they were secure. Not a few seconds later, the cart came to a screeching halt. He cursed at the other drivers in front of him, shaking his hoof in anger. He turned his head back, addressing Coco “Darn Traffic Jam” A toothy grin occupied his face “So, where we headed Miss Pommel?”

“Café eighties.” Coco chuckled softly.

“Mmm, nothing like a good piece of hot apple pie!” The stallion licked his lips. He glanced backward, checking on both passengers. “So, who’s your friend?”

“This is Dazzle, she’ll be staying with me for a time,” Coco answered.

“Glad to hear you finally got that roommate!” Axle chuckled; an undertone grumble in his tone while tailgating another cart.

“Glad too, Axle,” Coco replied. Not a word more escaped the Stallion’s mouth, since Axle appeared preoccupied by the traffic before him.

The cart came to a stop at the corner of a street. Coco stepped off, lowering Diamond down with her. “Thanks a bunch, Axle, tell your wife that I said ‘hi’.”

“Will do, Miss Coco.” He took off again in a hurry, leaving a trail of dust behind him. Diamond coughed.

“Not used to the polluted Mane-hattan air… are ya?” Coco patted her on the back.

Diamond caught a couple rude stares as she retched out a clump of dust. She would’ve snapped at them to mind their own business, but her throat burned. Even breathing felt like swallowing shards of glass.

Yet, unfazed by the confused glances and stares, Coco retained her grace “Don’t mind Axle, he can be uncouth and impulsive, but he always speaks his mind.”

Diamond’s cough halted, Coco smiled kindly “There ya go, all better now?”

“Yeah,” Diamond’s throat hurt, but no longer burned. Coco rushed to hold the door open, guiding her into a café. From the Outside, the silhouettes of ponies were peering through the blinds, a small din of chatter escaping through the doors

Upon entry, the noise grew to louder. The café was chock-full of clamoring ponies. Diamond assumed this was probably due to the dinner rush.

Coco scanned around, searching for something. Suddenly, a mare waved her hooves, catching their attention. That mare in hushed shout, greeted them “Hey, Coco! Over here!”

Coco’s attention diverted to the group sitting in a booth next to a window. Light on her hooves against the tile, Coco trotted to the group of ponies awaiting them. Coco claimed her seat, inviting Diamond to take the one next to her.

“So, Coco, how have things been going with ‘An Equestrian Tale’?” A stallion across a table asked. He had a slick silver mane with a gray coat, the contents of it shining to the perfection that Dazzle turned away from it. She feared she should see the filly staring back at her. Luckily though, the Stallion was dressed nicely in a black suit and tie, hiding most of the shiny coat.

“Fine, I’m just having problems finding the right color of the colonial skirt…” Coco sighed, bowing her head in disappointment.

“Try rooting through your ‘Over a Barrel’ collection I’m sure that the cowpony style can suffice.” A mare next to the stallion suggested. She had a white coat with a red amber mane. Luckily, her shiny white coat was covered in a silk red dress, complete with a gold chain necklace with a purple star as the pendant.

Coco continued, “I tried that, but I can’t find the right shade of brown… it’s either too Ivory or too Beige.”

The final pony, a mare proceeded to speak. “I’m sure you’ll find it soon, Coco.” Her tone of voice was strangely an oxymoron of her style. She had a regal, gaudy and gimcrack style of a bright yellow mane and magenta purple coat. Diamond thought she’d seen it all when Rarity went overboard to impress Trenderhoof, but this mare left that egregious season in the dust. She looked like Jacob Mare-ley from ‘A Hearth’s Warming Carol’.

Her sunglasses and the overly applied blush obscured her expression. Diamond had a hard time telling if the mare was smiling or frowning.

The mare pointed across the table, hundreds of bracelets lining her hoof that you could barely see the coat underneath. Again, in a strange sympathetic and gentle tone, she asked “Who’s the little one?”

“Oh, sorry everypony,” Coco gestured to Diamond. “This is Dazzle. She’s going to stay with me for a while.” Coco introduced the others, pointing a hoof to each “Dazzle, this is Florin Buttercup, Montresor Python, and Marigold.”

“Florin, Montresor, and Marigold,” Diamond repeated. She found it easy to assign a name to a face, since each name fit so nicely. Florin was dressed as beautiful as a Buttercup. Montresor, sat up, poised like a Python. Lastly, Diamond figured the triple-decked mare had something to do with precious metals, like ‘Merry Gold’.

“-Wow! So Coco Pommel has finally found a roommate!” Montresor interjected “A filly, no less?-”

Coco explained, “The funny thing is, Randolph sent her.”

“Randolph?” Marigold huffed “Is this his granddaughter?”

“No, Randolph’s my butler,” Diamond clarified, raising an eyebrow toward Marigold. She didn’t notice a bit of snootiness snuck into her speech until Coco nudged her.

Coco fiddled with her hat. Diamond found it a bit odd, since Coco’s hat looked finely placed. Coco let go, blowing a strand of hair out of her face “So, Goldie, how’s Bling-Bling been doing?”

“Awful. He got into trouble hanging out with his pesky friends again…” Goldie rubbed her temple. “If only somepony could tame that wild colt…”

“You’re talkin’!” Florin interrupted. “Monty and I are having trouble getting Napoleon out of the house!”

“Don’t worry, once Napoleon gets his chance to step out, he’ll be the Twilight Sparkle of Mane-hattan Elementary!” Montresor assured “Napoleon is a good colt to say the least, he just needs to stop reading those dusty old books.”

“Be thankful!” Marigold’s eyes flared “I’d rather have a bookworm foal than one that goes around mugging ponies!”

Florin retorted “Be thankful! I’d rather have a troublemaker foal!”

“Say that again about my Bling-Bling…” Marigold grit her teeth “I will slap you so hard, you’re grandfillies will feel it!”

Diamond noticed Coco was slipping under the table like a filly when mother and father were fighting. Wanting nothing more than the arguing to stop, Diamond shouted “Everypony stop!”

The bickering came to stop and everything became quiet. Too quiet.

Oh no… not this again. Diamond turned around in her seat, noting the blank stares she gathered. Having a strange sense of dae ja vu, she bit her tongue, and decided to approach it differently “Sorry everypony, pardon my shout.”

The rest of the café kept staring at her, so she decided that they needed to know the full truth “Mrs. Pommel here doesn’t like it when ponies shout at each other, we’d appreciate it if you kept it down”

Suddenly, a stallion, sitting on a stool raised a cup of apple cider and raved “You heard her! This little filly has guts! Keep it down for Mrs. Pommel!”

Other than a couple glares, the café took to their own business, the chatter was reduced to a soft hum.

“My apologies Coco, I just get fired up over this type of stuff.” Marigold coaxed Coco to get back into her seat.

Coco slowly rose and bid a ‘thank you’ to Diamond and Marigold. “So, besides ‘An Equestrian Tale, what other plays do you want me to plan?”

“’A Raisin in the Sun’ by Langstallion Hooves,” Marigold Suggested.

“We did that last time!” Montresor scoffed. “How about ‘Mare-ison Bergeron’ by Cart Vonnegut?”

“Eh… I’d rather not repeat Starlight Glimmer Propaganda, honey.” Florin Buttercup stuck out her tongue in disgust “What about ‘The Cart of Amontillado’ by Edgar Allan Pony?”

Montresor nudged Florin, “I really don’t want to scare little fillies and colts, Florin. Besides, we should keep Coco’s work within PG-thirteen ratings.”

Florin’s ears drooped, “sorry, I went overboard.”

“What’ll be tonight?” a voice called.

Diamond jerked her head toward the end of the table, surprised to find a stallion. He pulled out a notepad and quill from a pocket stuffed to the brim of crumpled pages.

Awfully hesitant, Coco motioned for the others to go first with a wave of her hoof.

“We already ordered, Coco.” Montresor waved back at her.

Coco skimmed through the menu “Um, I’ll have a parfait.” She passed the menu to the stallion.

“Alright, and you?” He pointed his quill to Diamond.

Diamond’s mind went blank. But, for some reason she was craving Apple oatmeal, but she had that for breakfast. Her mind came back to the suggestion from the taxi driver a few minutes ago. “I would like a slice of hot apple pie.”

“Alright, I’ll have those orders done with the others in a few minutes.” The waiter retreated to another table.

Montresor shifted stance, re-igniting the conversation “So, where are we at?”

“A Raisin in the Sun” Marigold whispered, trying to sneak her suggestion in.

Florin, ignoring Marigold, gazed at Coco with the ‘puppy eyes’ “I guess it comes down to you Coco, which one do you think is best?”

Coco itched her neck, “Well, I don’t know… they all sound good.”

“You need to choose, honey, you can’t possibly do all three…” Marigold tapped her hoof against the tile.

Diamond Tiara noticed poor Coco sweating profusely. Based on what Diamond can derive about Coco, is that she doesn’t perform well when she is under pressure, especially when somepony shouts at her.

“It’s okay if you don’t pick ‘the Cart of Amontillado, Honey,” Florin added.

Diamond figured she should intervene once again, but she only one play came to mind. What if she made it worse? Poor Coco would die of stress! But, Diamond couldn’t let her sit there and decide. Ultimately, it was worth a shot. If it didn’t work, she could always use ‘She needs to sleep on it’ excuse.

Diamond offered “What about ‘The Duchess Approves’?”

Marigold scratched her muzzle “That actually sounds good, about ponies showing each other who they truly are regardless of family and friend influence!”

Montresor scratched the stubble on his chin, “Also has the issue of gender roles implemented here and there. Sounds like a good choice.”

“And it also has my epic battles between friends and enemies!” Florin waved her hooves, mimicking an explosion like a little filly.

Montresor teased “And you wonder why our little Napoleon has a stick of dynamite as his cutie mark?”

Florin’s muzzle grew beet-red “Hey, I didn’t mean to blow up the washing machine! How was I supposed to know that mixing bleach and ammonia causes an explosion?!”

“I still have holey socks from that day…” Montresor chuckled.

After a few square hits to his shoulder, Florin smiled bashfully while averting her gaze from the stallion next to her.

Coco held a hoof over her muzzle, giving a good-natured giggle, “So ‘The Duchess Approves’ it is?”

Marigold finally gave a grin that Diamond could recognize. “Yes, it would be marvelous.”

Montresor nodded, “aye.”

“I would love to see it.” Florin’s cheeks slowly inked back to pink.

Coco scribbled down the notes on a napkin, marking down ‘The Duchess Approves’.

The waiter came back, balancing a tray of food. He set down each meal to the respective pony. Diamond minded herself while she took a muzzle-full of her apple pie. It burnt her tongue, due to the temperature, but she didn’t mind. Nothing could keep her from enjoying apple pie.

...Of course it wasn’t as good as the apple pie back home, but it was decent.

Coco nibbled on her parfait, taking her time.

Diamond Tiara finished her pie, catching the glance of the receipt. Coco set down a hefty pile of bits onto the piece of paper, then squeezed out of the booth.

Montresor waved a hoof in protest. He set down his hay-burger “No Coco, that’s way too much.”

“It’s okay, I can pay for your meal.”

Florin clicked her tongue, “No honey, you need that money to buy your fabric.” Florin used her soup spoon to push a couple bits toward Coco.

Coco nervously reached for the bits, hesitant on taking them back.

Diamond improvised “What Coco meant to say is that she’ll foot the bill since you were kind enough to help her with her plays.”

Marigold insisted “Coco is trying to be nice, Florin, it would be rude not to accept her gift…”

Everypony at the table held their peace, letting Coco and Diamond slip past them and out of the café.

“Whew!” Coco took a deep breath, seemingly glad to get out of the café “Nice one back there, Dazzle… You really saved my rump!”

Diamond felt memories flash back. Oddly, the compliment made her feel a little better. She was in a new town, with strange ponies. But, Coco seemed nice enough. As long as she was by her side, she had nothing to worry about.

“I take it that you are a ‘take-charge’ type.” She started walking toward the taxi line down the street.

Diamond replied, “Um, yes…”

“Must explain your cutie mark.” Coco pointed toward the picture on her flank. “You must be a very good leader.”

Diamond Tiara resolved with doubtful and sarcastic “You bet!”. She knew that she wasn’t a good leader. Her thoughts soured as she remembered the infamous Foal-Free Press incident. Diamond shuddered on the thought of how her Mother sprayed her off with a pressure hose to wash the ink off. All she could remember from that ordeal was how her mother kept throwing insults; Serves you right, next time, stop being such a brat…

Coco continued “I’d expect no less than a filly of one of the finest business ponies in all of Equestria.”

Both of them hopped into a taxi when it as soon as it pulled up.

Coco patted her on the back “Randolph sent you just in time,” She hugged the filly in a snug embrace “Can you teach me a thing or two about standing your ground?”

“I honestly don’t know,” Diamond Tiara shrugged. “I mean, what can a filly teach a full-grown mare?”

“You’d be surprised, Dazzle…” Coco let go of Diamond. “I guess I can pick a few tricks just by watching your example. But, for now, do your thing.” She tapped Diamond on the muzzle.

Diamond looked outside, watching as the neon lights flashed by the cart. She found most to be restaurants and stores, and a few caught her attention. One in particular was “An Apple a day…” restaurant or “Crimson Heart” charity. She wondered on how to join one of those organizations… if they would let a filly in at the very least.

The cart came to a stop. Coco hopped off, with Diamond hopping off without Coco’s aid. Awkwardly, Diamond got up after she belly flopped into the sidewalk. Coco showed a bit of concern with a helping hoof, but-

“I’m fine.” Diamond assured as she brushed the gravel bits off her coat.

Coco held the door open, motioning Dazzle to come inside “I already can tell that we are going to be good friends.”

Diamond entered the lobby, following Coco closely. The secretary greeted them “Welcome back.”

Coco approached the desk “Excuse me Entry, but I got a favor to ask.” Coco tossed a couple bits on the counter “I finally got my roommate.”

Entry smiled while scribbling down a couple notes. “Glad to hear.”

Coco trotted toward the stairwell. Entry interjected “By the way, the elevator is fixed.”

Coco called back, twirling on the railing, “I’ll take the stairs, one more time!”

Diamond challenged Coco to race “Hey, you want to race me?”

Coco snickered, “Sure!”

Diamond headed toward the elevator and impatiently clicked the button. Once the shiny metal doors swung open, Coco’s hoofsteps clattered up the stairs. The filly clicked the 7th floor button and spammed the ‘close door’ icon. The metal doors closed and the elevator sped up through the layers.

Once the doors opened, a short of breath Coco gloated “Beat you to it…”

“You see, now you are taking charge and becoming assertive!” Diamond hopped out and bounded towards Coco.

“I-I guess so.” Coco trotted to the hardwood door and unlocked room C’s door. She flicked on the lights, illuminating her apartment. As both of them entered, Coco closed the door “So, Dazzle, I have something to ask.”

Diamond sat attentively.

“Just so you know, I always get to bed at an early time.” Coco trotted toward the hall with Diamond following after. “I know it may not make sense, but I need my beauty sleep, as a wise element of harmony once suggested.”

“Sounds reasonable.” Diamond Tiara glanced at the clock. “So, six-thirty and seven is the time we usually get to bed?”

“Take the time you need. First night can be pretty rough.” Coco motioned toward the guest room “As long as you are doing something quiet and don’t wake me too early, I can be a pretty happy pony…”

Diamond Tiara stepped down the hall, going into the bathroom. She hastily pulled out her toothbrush and squeezed a dab of toothpaste onto the brush. Coco trotted in, copying Diamond and brushing her teeth.

Coco commented, with a mouth full of foam “It’s so nice of you to come, things have gotten lonely”

“Actually, it’s all thanks to you for taking me in.” Diamond spat her toothpaste into the sink and wiped her foamy mouth on a hoof-towel.

Coco blushed, following Diamond out of the Bathroom. They parted ways as Diamond trotted toward her room.

Diamond headed straight for the desk, setting up her family picture. She opened up her journal, taking a seat on a sewing machine.

Somehow, someway, the words came to her easier as she wrote, saying, “Dear diary, today, I managed to meet a sweet and gentle mare, named Coco. She took me in, introduced me to her group of quirky and nerdy friends”

Diamond Tiara smiled towards the heavens, thinking of more she could put “Overall, I’m grateful the opportunity to start anew. I made some new friends today!”

She paused, tapping the pen to the cover of the journal “Something a little odd happened today. Instead of being the mean filly I once was, Coco was able to help me become better just by being there. She is awfully quiet and shy, and jumps at any loud sound like a scaredy-foal. I’m trying my best to be kind and speak kindly of others. Coco is teaching me. Even though I may trip at times, I promise to be true to myself and be the filly I could be. I finally see that life is what you make of it, what you choose to be. So, what happens now? Starting a new life can be a little scary…”

Diamond felt as the same feeling from when she helped Ponyville Elementary enveloped her, she wrote down more words. “I realized, that the rest of your life is for you to decide. Nopony is doomed to be the pony they were, everypony can change, regardless of the past. This may be my first entry, but this is how I feel about where I am going.”

“That’s all for now, diary, ‘til another time”.

Diamond slapped the book shut and headed to bed, snugging the plush in a hug from the desk. She carefully settled in the covers as Rarity would. A firm expression of happiness lingered on her muzzle as she closed those beautiful blue eyes, and sunk into a restful night’s sleep.

Author's Notes:

I'm pretty sure I've given fair warning. But....

I am full of references and I am coming for you!

So many references in this chapter... some intentional, some unintentional. All I have to do is watch myself, and make sure none sneak past my radar. Gotta catch em' all! (Oops... here I go again).

Anyways... this concludes setting the foundation for the story. The boring part is over, and the next few chapters are coming. Sorry this one ended up to be 4000+ words. I hurried it along, trying to get to the juicy parts.

To be a little honest, chapters 2-4 were supposed to be one single chapter. But, if you are ~~ADHD~~ ...anything like me, then a chapter consisting of 10000+ words would take a long time to read.

As for the insanity in the next chapters, nothing will be as concentrated as this one... at least I hope.

Well, anyone who has made it past this point... Congratulations! It's about to get a whole lot better- I'm so excited! Next chapter- is a secret of Diamond Tiara!

Chapter 5: In Dreams

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Many ponies dreamed of glories such as riches, fame, and power. Some were close to achieving it, while others were lightyears away. Some would do anything to get it, and some lost hope of getting it. However, some ponies dreamed very differently.

All alike, the silent majority of dreams had to do with internal thoughts and feelings about reality itself. Luna had seen it all: from mild fears dwelling with earning cutie marks to concentrated nightmares dwelling on Equestria-wide catastrophe. However, just as important as those dreams were the dreams concerning simple fears.

It is known when a pony is dreaming about where to get their next meal, or where to find a set of warm clothes- Something has gone terribly wrong. Simple fears included a variety of the simple needs never met. On the edge of this plain- was family issues. These were the dreams she had to pay close attention to, for most simple fears start when the family falls apart.

Unfortunately, the fabric of the dream forbid her entrance until the dream escalated to a full-scale nightmare. It was problematic, but intervening at the wrong times, can alter a pony’s personality for the worse. It would do more damage than good.

Luna wished she could help ponies with simple fears.

Sometimes, all you can do is watch.

Diamond Tiara awoke amidst a beautiful plain, filled with lush grass. She glanced around, trying to make sense of her surroundings. She had no idea how she got here, or where to go.

She didn’t care.

It was a strange place, but familiar at the same time. She remembered there was a solitary, gentle hill in this place. On top of the hill was a tree, beautiful and blooming with flowers, ready to bear fruit.

She remembered playing in these flower-dotted hills when she was a foal. She enjoyed rolling around down the hill on her side. She would also chase her mother and father in a game of tag or watch the clouds, thinking they were ice cream cones or fuzzy bunny rabbits.

The thoughts in her mind flew away like doves as she heard the faint sound of flute music. The music’s gentle rise and fall, help her recognize the tune as “Winter Wrap up”.

She trotted up the hill, following the music as it floated in the air. She reached the top, glancing at a familiar pony sitting at the foot of the tree.

A stallion, holding his flute in his magic, glanced over to Diamond while carrying the tune. His greasy mane was no more, replaced by soft and silky one. His tan coat was nicely groomed, like he came back from Aloe and Lotus’ Spa.

He finished the musical phrase and set the instrument down at the foot of the tree.

“Good Afternoon, my little filly,” he greeted.

Diamond Tiara took a seat right next to him. “Hi dad.” She gave him a hug. He responded with wrapping his right wing around her.

“How is my beautiful crown jewel doing?” he asked.

“Nothing much,” she answered. “What about you?”

He looked out further, beyond the endless plains of rolling hills “Just enjoying the day.” He looked around. “We live in such a beautiful world,” his gaze stretched onward through the endless plains. “It almost feels like heaven… but it is missing something” His horn glowed “At first, I didn’t know what was missing- now I know,”

“What is it missing dad?” Diamond asked, leaning closer to him.

He looked to his daughter “It was so simple… but I was so blind” The glowing of his horn faded “It wouldn’t be heaven without you…”

His horn flashed back to life “Look at yourself, you’ve changed.”

A mirror materialized out of thin air, but Diamond quickly closed her eyes, refusing to look at her own reflection.

Her father, in a soothing voice, guided her toward the mirror “Why do you turn away from your own reflection?” His gentle tone continued to soothe her “Please, I beg of you, gaze upon my finest masterpiece.”

When Diamond Tiara finally opened her eyes, she stared at the reflection in the mirror. Staring back at her was a filly. Oddly enough, the filly was smiling, her bright eyes possessed a certain light that she couldn’t describe.

The filly playfully flapped her wings. Diamond Felt a mysterious connection to this filly, like she was no longer earth, but all-powerful like the Alicorn in the Mirror. He levitated a familiar item toward her head and carefully placed it. “Since I am the King, you are Princess Diamond Tiara, the crown jewel of this world.”

Diamond Tiara backed away. “Dad, I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I’m not that filly in the mirror. I’m fine without my horn and wings.”

He waved his hoof across the mirror, revealing another filly, glowing like the Alicorn before her, only this time, possessing no wings nor unicorn horn. He patted the filly on the back “Alicorn or not, you are still my precious daughter, and I love you in any form.”

As Diamond felt the Alicorn horn and wings being changed. She knew her identity, but she felt different. Diamond asked “Dad, what is my name?”

“Diamond Dazzle Tiara.” He repeated “Your mother picked it out.”

His horn glowed, and he pointed out into the distance “Look there, our home.”

Diamond looked in the distance. Her eyes lifted as she saw the city of her birth.

Ponyville, a small, yet profound town bustling with ponies that were good at what they were at.

She leaned in closer to her father “You are very kind, but the greatest gift you can give me is time with you.”

“You are just like your mother, pure in heart,” he said “Let’s enjoy our time under the sun in our new home”

She snuggled in the curve of his neck. “I love you dad,”

He kissed her forehead “I love you too, Diamond”

As both of them held in embrace of each other’s hooves, Diamond noticed that her father’s flank was blank. If he was an Alicorn, then why he didn’t have a special talent? She was acquainted with the bag with a dollar sign on it, but why then was it missing?

She gingerly asked “Why don’t you have your cutie mark?”

He flashed a look of concern “In this world, there is no cutie marks. We do still have talents, but we aren’t limited to just one.” He waved towards her flank “In this world, you are free to be anything you want to be…”

She looked to her flank, relieved that there wasn’t one there. She hated that picture, it kept her from trying new things. After all, that crown meant nothing. She was no longer trapped.

“Cutie marks… unfortunately, once a pony has one, they are banished from this plain of existence, forever. The cease to be.” Rich explained. “One third of Ponyville is gone for that reason, they have no idea what harm it could do a pony.”

His horn glowed, and a basket appeared in front of them. Diamond opened the basket to find a bunch of baked goods. “For you, my sweet daughter.”

She took out a simple sugar cookie. Nothing was special about the cookie, just a plain, old sugar cookie. But when she took a bite, it tasted better than she expected, like honey more than sugar.

“Thanks, daddy,” she leaned toward him, and wrapped her hooves around him once more. She wanted to stay that way forever, in her father’s arms.

“Your welcome, honey,” he patted her on the back.

The both let go, as the wind rushed past them. Diamond noticed a red and white picnic blanket had appeared under them, with the shade of the tree outlining a safe zone from the sunlight.

“Want to go meet up with the others?” He asked, looking towards Ponyville.

“Maybe Later…” Her smile faded “I mean, we are in no hurry correct?”

Her father shot another concerned look “Are you alright, Diamond?”

“Yeah…” Diamond laid on her back and looked at the light filtering through the tree’s leaves.

He shrugged, going back to munching the blue enveloped cookie.

He didn’t give it any second thought… Go figure.

Diamond fell back on the blanket, staring up through the sunlight filtering through the tree’s leaves. She realized why she was present here, in this beautiful place. She had visited it a thousand times.

It was all fake.

This place was only a manifestation of her unconscious mind. Surely it had the same ambience from her previous visits, only the tangible details were rearranged.

She had read it a thousand times- she had wrote it a thousand times.

…Once upon a time, there was a filly named Diamond Tiara, she loved to spend time with her dad. One day, like any other day, it was Diamond’s birthday. Her father promised to go onto a picnic with her, just the two of them.

Diamond wrote one ending, “…And they enjoyed the picnic, in each other’s arms and lived happily ever after…”

…while Reality wrote the other- the true ending to the story.

Her memory bled into dream. She opened her eyes to realize the diversions of her mind. She scanned around, tears welling up in her eyes as she floated through the familiar landscape.

A house.

She entered cautiously, floating into the gargantuan hollow that she used to call home. By the light of a wax candle, she followed a familiar figure down the hall. His old hooves trembled under the own weight of his body. On his back, he carried a small plate with a tiny slice of cake, presumably no, absolutely coming from Sugarcube corner, alit like a beacon in the darkness.

The floorboards creaked and moaned as the Stallion trotted gently across the hallway, cursing at his arthritic hooves. Alone, he mumbled “I hope you know what you are doing, Mr. Rich”

At last he burst into the kitchen, setting down the yellow light next to windowsill. “Yet another birthday, another chance to renew your relationship with your daughter,” He opened the window, letting the cool spring air in, damp and earthy from an April shower.

The old stallion watched the flame with his tired eyes, watched it dance in the wind, until the wick was blown out, flooding the room in darkness. In monotone, he sung “Make-a-wish, it’s your birthday… Make-a-wish, it’s your birthday…”

He plucked the candle out of the cake. He shook his head at the plate, saying “It’s a shame, Pinkie Pie makes the best cakes that make any filly and colt smile.” He rolled out a bin from the cabinet under the sink and tossed the wedge into the liner. “Pinkie’s rare recipe… you only see these in birthdays where the parents can’t make it.” The Stallion rolled the bin back into the cabinet “Shame that Pinkie’s magic doesn’t work on Mistress Tiara anymore…”

He shuffled toward the foyer, looking at the massive painting on the wall, depicting another stallion, known as the master of the household. “I followed your very orders sir,” He bowed “Permission to speak freely sir?”

The painting narrowed its eyes at the old stallion before him.

“It’s your daughter sir, you see, she is terribly ill,” he spoke “I must caution you about your priorities- I know you are busy trying to provide for her, but what she needs is some quality time with her father… not more toys.”

The stallion took a deep breath as a flash of thunder illuminated the estate for a split second. “I know that you look at numbers all day long, making sure your finance is in tip-top shape, but I must warn you, don’t treat Mistress Tiara like a number in your logbook, she is a special filly that needs your love.”

Thunder crackled again, making the servant back away from his master “I understand sir,” he turned away from the painting, trotting up the spiral staircase “If you’ll excuse me, I’ll attend to Mistress Tiara.”

He opened the door, carefully stepping into a filly’s bedroom. The thunder crackled again, noting that he had to shut the paper-thin curtains. As he muffled the scattered light, he picked up couple toys scattered throughout the room, putting them back into the bin.

He hesitated to pick up an Alicorn plush. Gently, he scooped it up and set it right next to the filly curled up in her covers. He shook his head again, checking the damp covers for any sign of life.

A heartbeat. A breath.

He smiled softly, “I always knew you were an overcomer.” He set the toys back into the chest, then checked the drawers.

Finding nothing but a small crown tucked away on the nightstand, he trotted away. The stallion slipped through, keeping the door a-pinch. As he shut the door, he called out, praying “May Celestia have her watchful eye over you.”

However, unbeknownst of what the butler suspected, Diamond knew that the filly under the covers wasn’t asleep. She was surely awake. Those blue eyes dared to peek through the covers into the vast space of the room. Her gaze shifted downward, looking at the cold floor.

“If only…”

The blue eyes faded as the filly fell through the surface of the world, drowning in her own sorrow. Black water filled around her, as she struggled for the air pockets in the dark room. It became hard to breathe as the thick darkness strangled her.

Her soul, filled with deep despair… accepted fate, and took one final breath.

…The iron grip loosened, and she dashed towards the light at the end of the tunnel, and resurged back to reality, safe in her new home.

Dazzle awoke to a semi-messy bedroom. The floor greeted her, littered with fabrics. Never before in her life had she felt so alive and so happy. She smiled, the love and warmth of the apartment enveloping her- energizing her.

…Or that could be the smell of cinnamon and apples in the morning.

Dazzle stretched, popping her spine, “Better get up…”

Chapter 6: Small World

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-Late September-

Coco stirred the batter quietly. Making sure the batter was the right consistency without making too much noise was challenging. Cooking was definitely not her talent. Sewing was. Not only could she mend a shirt or a jacket, but also make things from scratch. It was her forte. She could do it as fast as she wanted, as slowly as she wanted, or as quietly as she wanted.

Cooking was a different story, she couldn’t make anything from scratch, unless pancake or waffle mix counted. At least if Dazzle woke up, she could offer her a waffle.

This was new. Everything was new. For starters, this whole situation was new.

In his letter, Randolph had warned her to be cautious. He mentioned why in passing. Dazzle’s family dynamics were unstable at the current moment, and what she needed most was peace, quiet, and tranquility.

And peace, quiet, tranquility is what she was going to get.

The spoon slipped out of her hoof and hit the floor. She clenched her teeth and squeezed her eyes shut.

Peace and quiet… Sort of.

She bent down and picked up the spoon. As she put in the sink to wash it, she caught a glimpse of Dazzle trotting out of the hallway.

Coco faced away and felt the slow burn of guilt in her chest. She already broke two promises: She certainly wasn't quiet last night... nor did she get any beauty sleep, like she told Dazzle.

She heard the sliding of a chair. She turned to face the magenta filly who was taking a seat at the table.

Dazzle was hidden behind a bundle of fabric, only her ears and ratty mane visible from behind the pile. Coco started towards the bundle, but when she saw her hooves sticky with batter, she went back to what she was doing.

“Uhm, Dazzle, can you be a dear and move those to the living room? I’m not quite done yet.” Coco said, washing her hooves in the sink.

Dazzle yawned and hoisted the pile of fabric on her back. Coco went back to her cooking, pouring the batter carefully into the iron. She heard the screech of a chair then looked back.

Coco balked when she saw Dazzle with bags under puffy eyes. With her foreleg propped under her chin, Dazzle zoned off, staring at the table’s glassy surface. Coco looked up, checking for any sign of bedhead on her mane.

“Sorry for my ruckus last night.” Coco apologized. “I hope I didn’t wake you,”

“Not one bit,” Dazzle waved her other hoof to dismiss it. She batted at the strands of her purple and white mane dangling in front of her face.

Coco doubled back and tipped the iron slightly with the part of her hooves that weren’t sticky with batter. The steam wafted off the waffles. Coco washed her hands in the sink and gingerly peeled the waffles away from the iron. The Waffles flopped onto the plate. She put the empty plastic mixing bowl in the sink and washed her hooves. She turned off the iron and dried her hooves

She snagged the apple she sliced before, placing half the slices ton the waffle, and setting the other half aside. She turned back to the countertop and put one extra slice on the waffle. She set the in front waffle to Dazzle.

Coco let out a yawn. She set the pile of waffles in front of Dazzle. “Sorry it isn’t much of a breakfast- it’s time to make a trip to the grocery store.”

“Mmmh Hmm,” Dazzle grabbed the nearby bottle of syrup and proceeded to drown the pancakes. Her droopy eyes peering through the thin veil of her ratty mane.

Coco took a seat at the opposite side of the table. She ate the dish set before her: a little yogurt with some berries to the side. Her favorite meal, though it got boring after a while, since she ate it so much. The grocery shop had a sale on it, and she couldn’t resist. Maybe she’d strike it lucky in today’s grocery run.

Next to her bowl was a small white pill. She tossed it in her mouth and took a spoonful of yogurt to drown out the bitter, chalky taste. As Mare-y Poppins would say, ‘just a spoonful of Sugar (or Yogurt) helps the medicine go down’.

She glanced at the pile of fabric in the other room, just barely visible over the island. The nagging thought of her urgent deadline coming up resurfaced in her mind. Fall was here, and that meant the October Festival was upon her. The deadline loomed very close, and her project was not so much of taking careful measure to make sure everything is turning out correctly, but rather, trying to finish in time. Earlier, she could afford time to stress over the minutiae of the styles, but matters were pressing.

She ran out of fabric in the middle of the night. The clothing was practically saying the same thing that Randolph had suggested in the letter: take a break and make new friends. It seemed like a cheap excuse, but she couldn't continue without help.

“Hey Dazzle, do you want to go shopping with me? You could meet more of my friends!” Coco said.

“Nah. I have a headache.” Dazzle prodded her food. Her word’s seemed more like a yawn as they trailed off.

“Sorry,” Coco apologized as she slumped back in her chair.

“Sorry about what?” Dazzle asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Coco gulped. She couldn’t read Dazzle. Dazzle was masked by a groggy face: frown and hunched eyebrows, making an overall agitated expression. It was the kind of look that meant she was about to pounce over the table to tackle Coco, but Coco knew it was a rough night last night, especially with the noise.

“Uhm, keeping you up last night.” Coco concluded that was the best answer she could give.

Dazzle smiled, rather sleepily though “You’re fine, Coco. I’m just not used to the big city yet.” She yawned “I just need some time to get adjusted.”

Coco felt the tension in her hooves soften. Suddenly, her mind flashed back to last night. She knew the familiar feeling. The same tension was released- twice even in the same night. As odd as this whole situation was, this filly was doing wonders for her. Or, her presence at least. Then, she remembered what she was taught last night- ‘take charge, Coco, this filly needs you!’

“Well, I don’t want you to stay cooped up here. You probably need to stretch and have some fresh air.” Coco began, with a steady voice. “I have some friends I really want you to meet!”

Dazzle had a puzzled look on her face as if Coco just sprouted Wings and a Horn. Not quite dumbfounded, but in mild amazement. Coco hoped this meant well.

“Let’s go then.” Dazzle hopped out of her chair.

The walls were chocked full of fabric, each in seperate bins or spooled up. The room was colorful with the arrangement of fabric, a seamless rainbow threading from wall to wall.

Coco held a couple rolls of fabric on her back as she waited in line at the counter.

An older stallion stood, pushing a cart of fabric carefully. The tippy top of it looked as if it were to fall over.

Coco smiled as the clerk lifted her head and smiled.

“Good Morning Coco!” She said.

“Hi, Jasmine.” Coco greeted as she set the fabric on the counter. The mare dialed the keys on the cash register. Already knowing how much it was, Coco set a couple bits onto the counter.

“I see you made a new friend!” Jasmine said.

“Right you are! Allow me to introduce you- Jasmine, This is Dazzle,” Coco motioned. “Dazzle, Jasmine.”

Jasmine offered a hoof slowly.

Dazzle reached out and shook Jasmine’s hoof. “Hi.”

“Hi,” Jasmine smiled. “Long time, no see!” She pushed the register door back and jumped when she glanced at the clock on the wall.

Coco just about dropped the fabric on the floor. “Wait… you know each other?”

“Yes, I met her on- Oh! What a co-winki-dink! Right on time!” Jasmine scanned her surroundings and found the stallion, who just barely finished up the cart he had in tow. “Hey, Pecan, can you take the floor for me?”

The stallion pushing the cart nodded with a grunt and stepped towards the counter.

“Meet you in the backroom.” Jasmine instructed, hanging up her apron. “I'll explain later.

Coco shook from her daze and quickly tucked the last of the fabric in her saddlebags.

Jasmine disappeared into an alcove of the store. Coco followed her, with Dazzle tagging along to her side. At the end of the hallway was a white door. Ambient light was shining through the small window on the door's face.

Coco pondered about asking Dazzle where Jasmine and her met, but figured it would be too direct.

Jasmine held the door open. “After you.” She motioned.

Coco entered the room. Her breath was snatched away as she saw it had no windows, but were lit up by an enchanted ceiling that showed a blue sky with the occasional puffy white cloud. It looked real for a moment, but Coco was pretty sure that there was cloud cover outside. Plus, since the shop was adjacent to the park, Amber leaves would've littered the skylight.

“I'm going to get my lunch.” Jasmine said. “Have a seat anywhere.”

Jasmine disappeared down another corridor. Without any hesitation, Dazzle took a seat, the legs squealing against the stone. Coco set the saddlebags down near the foot of the table and took her seat, doing so quickly to avoid the obnoxious squeal.

Jasmine entered the room holding a lunch box in her mouth. “One Minuth.” She said, setting the lunchbox down on the table.

“Ah, that’s better.” Jasmine said. “Wanna granola bar, Coco?”

“Yes, Please.”Coco said.

Jasmine took a seat, then opened her bag. “Catch!” She shouted as she tossed a granola bar at Coco. Coco caught in between her hooves and unwrapped it.

Jasmine looked at Dazzle. “Wanna granola bar?”

“Yes.” Dazzle said, cupping her forelegs.

Jasmine tossed another granola bar over.

Coco fidgeted in her seat and cleared her throat. “So, Jasmine, you are telling me you met Dazzle on the street yesterday?”

“Yes I was about to mention before I noticed it was lunch break.” Jasmine cut in before Dazzle could answer. “Saved her from a nasty spill while crossing the street.”

“Yeah, she helped me after I came to a phoney address.” Dazzle added, rolling her eyes. “Luckily you were right across the street.”

“Funny how things tend to work out” Coco smiled.

“Indeed.” Jasmine nodded. “Anyways, what trouble have you been causing lately?”

Coco chuckled. “Not too much trouble. Things have been dull lately, but it just happened that she came in the nick of time!” She nudged Dazzle. “We had a great night yesterday. Dazzle got to meet Marigold, Montressor, and Florin.”

“And with that bunch, there is never a dull moment.” Jasmine said, pulling a canister out of the bag. “Speaking of never a dull moment, what about Yttrium? He was supposed to be at the meetup.”

“Busy, as always.” Coco sighed. “After this, I’m going to pop by and see how he is doing.”

“Good, Good. Tell him Jasmine says ‘hi’” Jasmine said before she sipped the contents of the canister. From the aroma, Coco could tell it was hot chocolate. “How's the project coming along?”

“Slowly. Luckily, yesterday gave me a boost of energy.” Coco said. “It's wierd, I came home, tried to sleep, but I went into a sewing mood.”

“Second Wind.” Jasmine said. “Maybe it's the outing with friends that recharged your batteries.”

“Just in time too.” Coco looked over to Dazzle. Maybe Dazzle was a good luck charm. “Yesterday, Dazzle saved my rump when the Florin and Marigold were getting rowdy.”

“When do they not get rowdy?” Jasmine slid the canteen across the table to Dazzle. “Looks like you need this.”

Dazzle opened it and took a sip. After she wrinkled her face, thinking about the taste, she took another.

“So, yesterday, I saw you wearing a tiara. Did you lose it?” Jasmine asked.

“Oh, I left it at Coco's apartment.” Dazzle answered in between a gulp.

“Oh.” Jasmine said. “Tis’ a shame, you look pretty with it on.”

“I do, but if I wear it too long, it hurts.” Dazzle said. “So today, I'm taking a break.”

“So, how long you staying?” Jasmine asked.

Dazzle shifted in her seat and looked down at the floor. “Well, I don’t know.”

Jasmine raised an eyebrow. “Where are your parents?”

“Back in Ponyville.” Dazzle replied.

Jasmine blanched. “What are you doing here such a long way from home?”

Dazzle stayed quiet for a long time. Coco noticed Dazzle frowned- A deeper frown that seemed more serious than the expression from this morning.

“Where’s the little filly’s room?” Dazzle hopped out of her chair.

Jasmine scowled.

Dazzle whined.

Jasmine sighed and pointed towards a white door. “Down the hall, to the left.”

Dazzle hopped out of her chair then stepped towards the door. It squeaked as she pulled it open.

“Don’t mind it, it does that.” Jasmine explained.

After the door shut, Jasmine asked. “What’s going on Coco?”

“I’m not sure if I should mention it, it’s awfully private.”Coco started. “Even I don’t know the full details.”

“What do you mean you don’t know the full details?” Jasmine said.

“Randolph sent her here. All I know is that she needs a place to stay.” Coco explained. She figured that mentioning Randolph wouldn't be too much trouble.

“Randolph?” Jasmine asked, noticeably quieter this time. “How long did he say?”

Coco tilted her head back and forth. Her eyes looking up at the ceiling. “I don’t know. Could be a week, could be a month, could be… longer.”

“Usually the old stallion is proper in giving you at least a week’s notice. Especially with something like this. Didn’t he send you a letter before-” Jasmine stopped herself. “That explains the letter Dazzle was holding.”

Coco nodded. She knew that Randolph was proper- even in letters. Though she only received letters from him years ago.

She remembered that the cursive was a hint scratchy, but she dismissed it as his arthritis kicking in.

It was rushed.

“I would write him as soon as you can.” Jasmine continued. “This is no easy task. Taking care of a filly is a tough job- Trust me, I speak from experience.” She placed a hoof over her heart. “Also, don't you have a festival to worry about? How are you going to balance this with the festival?”

Coco patted her saddlebags. “That's why I came here. Figured a little multitasking couldn't hurt.”

Jasmine frowned. “Coco, the play is in three weeks, you can't possibly balance-”

The door squeaked. Both looked at Dazzle as she came back into the room.

Silence hung in the air. Coco wondered if Dazzle heard any of that conversation. Coco smiled, hoping her guilt didn't show through.

Jasmine sighed and scooted out of her seat. “Well, I won’t keep ya. Yttrium's break is in twenty minutes, so I’d say you better get a move on.” She stuffed the canteen back in her pack. “If you don't mind, I'm going to take my daily stroll.”

Chapter 7: Yttrium

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“He usually wears a trench coat- usually if he’s without a lab coat.” Coco described.

“Nope, never met him.” Dazzle said.

“Just checking,” Coco said. She wanted to make sure that nothing was awkward, or look like a fool again. How was she supposed to know if Dazzle passed him by on the street? Though, she knew it would be very unlikely.

The door swung open. “Yttrium!” Coco cheered, holding out her forelegs.

Yttrium wrapped his forelegs around her and chuckled. “Good to see you Coco!”

Coco rocked back and forth on the heels of her hooves. “So, what’s up?”

“Same old, same old. Got caught up in the lab again- not watching the clock can really mess with you. It's time I get a watch.” He examined his gray forehoof and sighed. “Sorry I missed yesterday's meetup.”

“You're good!” Coco said. She glanced over to Dazzle, who was sitting in a chair, seemingly waiting for the right cue.

“Anyways, meet Dazzle!” She motioned over.

Yttrium approached Dazzle and offered a shaky hoof. “Dr. Fuse, glad to meet you.”

“Doctor?” Dazzle raised an eyebrow as she shook his hoof. “Why do they call you Yttrium?”

“Oh, my parents were into Metal. And I don't mean the material- they adored the music. So, the result was naming their son ‘Boron Yttrium Fuse’.” He adjusted his glasses and stroked his Crimson mane behind his dull silver horn. “I’m rather not fond of my first name, But, I respond to both.”

“No worries, I completely understand,” Dazzle said.

Yttrium smiled.

“Anyways, Yttrium, how are the experiments going?” Coco asked.

“Harsh, that pesky curse is a doozy- luckily we are cracking down on its containment.” His shook his head as it drooped. “We have yet to find the antidote.”

“What’s going on now?” Dazzle asked as her eyes widened. She tilted her head.

“Oh, sorry, I haven’t told her about what you do.” She shifted her gaze from Yttruim to Dazzle. Coco giggled as the look of wonder on Dazzle's face reminded her of a filly in candy shop.“Yttrium here is one of the scientists assigned to find a cure for this awful curse going crazy.”

“It’s an entropy incantation.” He explained. “It causes a variety of ailments, depending on the pony. Some are immune, some aren't. We suspect it’s a strain of poison joke somewhere in the city, but we haven’t found any flowers yet.”

He turned towards Coco. “Do you have any free time? We have a vacancy in hospital volunteers.”

“Unfortunately, I wish I had some. But Dazzle and I need to get home after this so I can finish in time for the festival.” Coco answered.

“Can I volunteer?” Dazzle asked.

Yttrium's eyes widened. He smirked. “You would?”

Dazzle explained. “I have wondered a long time how cool it would be to work in a lab, with a cool lab coat.”

Yttrium leaned into Coco's ear and whispered. “I like your friend already!”

Yttrium's expression wavered from the jovial to a dull one as he shook his head in response. “As much as I want to say ‘yes’- unfortunately, you are too young. You have to be at least fourteen.”

Dazzle's ears drooped.

Yttrium trotted up to her. “I'm sorry.” He craned his neck down and whispered something in her ear; something that Coco couldn't hear. She watched Dazzle's ear perk up and her eyes sparkle.

He slid off his lab coat and draped it over Dazzle. “I gotta get a new one anyways.”

Dazzle's jaw dropped open. She squealed as she hopped around in a circle, the coat flapping like a cape behind her.

Coco wanted to giggle. She could imagine, how cute Dazzle would be, he eyes aglow and starry as they were right now, working in a lab beside Yttrium. Suddenly, a thought came to her head. It was risky idea, but it tickled her muse.

“I'll tell the Secretary that you can take it. She'll have no problem with it. Just check with her first, and she'll give you a lollipop for the road.” He instructed.

He looked over to Coco “Again, sorry that I’m busy Coco, but with all these incidents, I gotta move. I promise once it’s over, I can hang out more often.” He smiled at Dazzle.

Dazzle smiled back but flinched when her stomach growled.

As if in agreement, Yttrium’s stomach growled. He looked to Coco “You know what, Coco? Curse isn't going anywhere- we got it contained. How ‘bout we grab some grub?”

Coco felt the tug of the nagging need to get back to sewing. However, Yttrium was ditching work, and just for her for that matter. “That would be… wonderful.” She finished.

“Wonderful.” He repeated, stepping towards the door. “Just let me get my trench coat and I’ll meet you in the Foyer. Cafe 80’s sound good?”

“Sounds Perfect!” Coco pulled a scarf out of her saddlebags. Another nagging thought entered her mind as she caught a glimpse of the fabric she bought earlier.

“Great!” He said as he slipped past the door.

“Well, let’s get heading.” Coco said. “I hope you don’t mind Cafe 80’s twice.”

“Their apple pie is good. I’ll get another.” Dazzle said. “On our way down, can I stop by the secretary? I want a lollipop.”

Coco snickered, knowing that Yttrium has worked some magic once again. He could cure anything, except that pesky curse. As they exited to the stairwell, she asked “What did he tell you?”

“He said he's been in my horseshoes. And when I finally get to volunteer, he'll accept me into the lab in open hooves.” Dazzle said. She gently tugged at the white collar. She ran a little, letting the coat tails catch the air. It flowed like a cape. “He also said that this lab coat is a lucky charm.”

Coco thought about her plans now, hold bold and risky the were going to be. The coat is the exact thing that She and Dazzle needed. She laughed. “Yes it is.”

Coco did her best to carry Dazzle up the stairs to the apartment. She juggled her keys in one hoof as she tried to keep Dazzle steady. Luckily, the groceries were already inside with the fabric from this morning. She let Dazzle wait on the couch while she made the rounds. Upon return, Dazzle had dozed off. She looked so peaceful, so she didn’t want to wake her.

Weaving through the dark, she carried Dazzle to her room. She carefully stepped around furniture, making sure that Dazzle's slumber wouldn't be disturbed. She set her on her bed, and tucked the blankets over her. Coco was about to exit the room when her eyes met with the button eyes of an Alicorn Plushie. The occasional gleam from a passing taxi glazed across its eyes from the windowsill. She could tell from the faint light that the buttons were electric blue. She smiled as she picked it up off the floor and placed it near Dazzle’s forehooves. In response, Dazzle pulled the plush closer and snuggled it in the crook of her neck. She yawned and smiled.

Coco’s heart warmed. She hadn't done this in ages. At home, her siblings have all grown up and moved away. Oh, if only she could bring those times back.

She tip-hooved around the stray fabric still strewn across the floor and slipped through the door quietly.

As she shut the door, she stepped across the hardwood, making her way to the sewing room- which doubled as her bedroom. Her hoofsteps were muffled as she stepped across carpet. Along the way, she smiled at the pictures she had hanging, ones of family and friends. The ones who help her put her dreams together.

Quietly, she situated herself in front of her sewing machine and started to push the pedal. Darkness surrounded her except the glowing light under the sewing machine's neck.

Nothing to bother her. It was just her and good ol’ sewing machine. She zoned out as the rest of the room faded into darkness.

“White and Red Spool.” she mumbled as she opened a drawer door underneath the desk. She flinched when she pushed a box of needles away over an unsent letter underneath. Which reminded her.

Slamming the drawer shut, she inspected her hoof. “Good, It didn't draw any blood.”

Rolling her eyes at the fabric under the light of the sewing machine, she scoffed and trotted over to the kitchen.

Her hooves clattered on the cold surface of the floor. She came to the kitchen and pulled the refrigerator door open. She squinted as the light blinded her.

When her eyes adjusted, she rummaged through the fridge. She silently celebrated a ‘gotcha’ as her hooves found purchase on the can of soda she bought earlier from the grocery store. She flicked it open.

She took a sip. “One down, Twenty-three more to go.”

As she sipped on the soda, her mind glazed back to the letter. She tried to shake it off, maybe procrastinate sending it, but the time she dawdled away was over.

Figuring it would be better for her than cozy fabric, or the purr of sewing machine, she snatched a piece of paper from the counter with her reading glasses. She scooted into the table, took a deep breath, and started to write.

‘Dear Randolph…’

Chapter 8: Tying Up Loose Ends

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-Beginning of October-

It took a week before Randolph's letters arrived back.

Dear Coco,
Thank you for getting in contact with me. To reach you, I asked Rarity (Rather hastily, If I may add) for an address to reach you. But, now that you’ve sent a letter here, I realize why you weren't answering back. So, I apologize in advance if the theatre's post box is full.
I'm glad that she made it. I also can imagine how she felt meeting your friends! All the more better to have a night out with the gang to relieve any tension she is having.
It's also curious you mention the lab coat! In my experience, I have found that ponies still find an assortment of interests and hobbies, regardless of their cutie mark. In all honesty, I never found her to be the medical type- but that's the joy of discovery.
As for your concerns, I'm glad that you have accepted her into your hooves. In saying that you are the only pony capable of taking care of Mistress Tiara, no pony is more qualified than you. I mean it when I say that any other family is not safe or stable enough to support her.
As for her folks back in Ponyville, I trust that you can keep a secret. As I said before, her family dynamic is unstable. Her mother has already filed the papers. Thankfully, her father's side of the forms are at standstill due to preoccupations with work.
If you accept, please go to the city offices to file a form for legal guardianship. In the form, set me as the current guardian. That way I can help you.
As her guardian since she was born, I am immediately grandfathered in. (I don’t find that term flattering). This will make sure that I am present at the time of the hearing, whilst keeping it under the nose of the Rich’s.
Your old friend (but not so old),
Randolph

Coco reread the letter over and over. No matter what she did to calm herself down, she felt all of this would get her into more trouble than she could handle. She could be thrown in prison for foal-napping Dazzle! Jasmine was right about all of this- she could get into serious trouble.

Yet still... in her heart, she knew that Dazzle needed somepony to care for her. Randolph trusted her with this work, and even if this was a tough task, he knew her capabilities.

She sent a letter back, expressing her concerns, but said that she was more than willing to accept.

She received a letter yesterday.

Dear Coco,
Thank you for helping me out. I request that you head to the city offices as soon as possible. As soon as we set you as her legal guardian, the more stable the situation will be.
Don’t worry about a thing. Once I step in, the court will be understanding of your situation.
Even if you are busy, these are dire times, and I know you can spare the time.
Respectfully,
Randolph

She set down her spectacles and sighed.

Coco resented that last statement. She didn't have too much time left. Two weeks left on the clock, to be exact. She had stayed up countless nights trying to wrap up her project.

She took a peek in her folder, looking at all the designs she had to do. Flipping through the leaflets, she was surprised to see that there were only two dresses left.

How did it happen? She estimated it to be another week and half- if she was lucky. But somehow, these last few could be done overnight if she wanted to.

Maybe since she stayed up late, it whittled down the extra hours. Oddly enough, she didn't even feel tired. Usually by the time she finished up a project like this, she would be nodding off every time she blinked.

Maybe it was due to Dazzle recommending she move the sewing machine to the kitchen. Since Dazzle was struggling to get her rest, Coco took Dazzle’s suggestion to move the noisy machine.

In hindsight, it potentially saved her a lot of time and aggravation. She could read a letter. She could enjoy the view of the sunset on the city. Best of all, she could snack on something while she worked, making the process less of a chore.

Maybe this new setup could allow her to finally get to that cookbook she has been putting on the backburner for ages. But, again, it had to wait. She had to take care of Dazzle first.

Coco set the letter down atop her sewing machine, right next to the bobbin. She flicked the machine off. That was a precaution. Knowing herself, she would look for any excuse to procrastinate Randolph’s request. As soon as she would see that sewing machine with power on, she would convince herself to do just one more pattern. Then another. Then another.

She shook off her daze, then tip-hooved down the hallway. She had to be careful to make sure the clatter of her hoovesteps didn’t wake up the sleeping filly.

Dazzle's door was ajar. She peeked in.

Dazzle stirred. The little filly snuggled Yttrium's lab coat closer to her barrel. Coco’s heart melted. She nudged the door open.

She snuck up to the side of the bed, silently thanking Dazzle that the mess was cleaned up. Somehow, Dazzle found a home for every knick-knack piled into the room. Nothing was left on the floor minus Dazzle’s bed.

A frown stretched across Dazzle’s face while she drooled up a storm. Her pillow was soaked.

She tapped Dazzle on her shoulder.

“Hmm?” Dazzle rubbed her eyes. Her eyes were pink.

“You okay?” Coco asked. She contemplated mentioning that Dazzle’s eyes were bloodshot, but figured it would’ve been too rude. Instead, she asked: “Am I still keeping you up at night?”

“Pfft. You're fine.” Dazzle waved a hoof before closing her eyes and rolling back into her sheets.

“Sorry to wake you, I just wanted to take you somewhere. We need to take care of something.”

“Leave me alone. I have a headache.” Dazzle rubbed a hoof over her temple.

“Oh sorry.” Coco apologized, keeping her voice down.

She started towards the door. But the nagging feeling still ate away at her stomach. She turned around and offered. “Let’s give you some medicine. I made breakfast.”

“Five more minutes.” Dazzle buried her face in a pillow.

“Come on and get up. The sooner we do this, the sooner you get over that nasty headache.” Coco stomped a hoof.

Dazzle sprung up and glared at her. After a minute of narrowed eyes, she peeled off her blankets. “Fine then.”

Coco trotted out of the room. Maybe that wasn't the right move. Maybe she should've gone back to sewing. The slow burn of guilt started to well up in her barrel. Did she do the right thing?

Too late to turn back now though. Dazzle was already up. Coco approached the kitchen and snagged an apron that was hanging on a rack. She wrapped it around her barrel. Preparing herself, she rolled her shoulders. Working at the sewing machine too long gave her shoulder cramps.

After a minute of heating up on the stovetop, Coco was ready to exclaim, but kept it at a level that Dazzle's headache wouldn't overwhelm her. “Your favorite. Apples and cream!” Coco scooped some oatmeal into a bowl. She set a bowl of oatmeal in front of Dazzle.

“Oh. Almost forgot.” Coco trotted over to a drawer and took out a spoon. She set the spoon in Dazzle’s bowl.

Dazzle limply lifted the spoon. “My favorite apple is zap apples.” She sighed and prodded the oatmeal with the spoon. “Too bad I'm not there to see them gather the zap apples.”

Coco blanched. She shut off the pot of oatmeal. Even if it was a simple bowl of oatmeal, that was the very extent of her knowledge. Perhaps she had to turn it up the heat- like brownies or cakes. She gave a glance to the cookbook sitting on the counter.

She broke out of her daze again and remembered. On her tippy-hooves she reached up and grabbed some medicine from the counter. She took out a canister of pain relief pills and a canister of her her medication. She set the canisters down and unscrewed the lids.

She took out two red pills and two white pills. Slowly, she approached the table, careful not to drop the capsules.

“Well, eat up, we have a long ways to go.” Coco laid out two red pills before Dazzle.“Now, after we get finished with breakfast, we are going to the city offices.”

Dazzle groaned.

“I know. But in order for you to stay, we need to jump through a couple hoops. Make it official.” Coco tapped on the table playfully. She looked at her oatmeal. It was getting cold.

Dazzle arched a brow. “Why all of a sudden?”

“You're underage. In order to for you stay here, I-” Coco stopped herself. She cleared her throat and took the pause an opportunity to take a bite out of her oatmeal. She popped two white pills into her mouth, hoping to drown out the chalky taste. “We need to fill out some forms.”

Dazzle scoffed.

Coco glared at Dazzle. She wanted to tell Dazzle to watch her attitude, but stopped herself. Dazzle just woke up on the wrong side of the bed, that’s all. It would go away in time. Coco chose to distract herself as she looked disdainfully at the sewing machine.

Her project was ninety percent done, but she needed a little more to power through the last ten percent.

She didn't want to bug the filly, but it wouldn't hurt to ask. Besides, she needed some help since her filly manakin was too small. “Hey Dazzle, I know it's a lot to ask, but would you be willing to help me with the last of my sewing?”

Dazzle lifted her head. “Really? Can I?” She squeaked.

Coco blanched. She would've suspected a flat ‘No’ or a passive ‘Maybe’.

Still, Dazzle's eyes suddenly glazed aglow- the same aglow when Yttrium gave her his coat.

Maybe she was into design also?

Coco chuckled. “If you want to.”

Dazzle huffed “Are we-” she wheezed “Are we there yet?”

They should've took a taxi. However, Coco was running low on funds and had to be thrifty. It would be a little over a month before she would have some revenue. Thankfully, she was on the home stretch with the next play coming up.

“We’re here.” Coco said, opening the glass door.

The smell of apples flowed out. It was probably to lighten the atmosphere. However, the fragrance didn't seem to lighten the atmosphere.

A wry smile came across Dazzle’s face. Coco was trying her best not to mimic it.

This is going to be tough. The process will be quite a lengthy and grueling one. It agitated her just in the slightest, but urgent measures had to be taken.

Coco sheepishly trotted up to the secretary’s desk. A secretary, just like Entry from her apartment complex, scribbled away at the papers on the desk.

“Hewwo! Welcoom to the fitty Offife” The mare greeted with the pen still stuck in her mouth. She spit out the pen. “How can we help you?”

“Uhm, I’m not sure how to do this... but, is there a form that I can fill out for legal guardianship?”

The secretary glanced at Dazzle and nodded. “Sure,” She rummaged through a stack of papers to the side of her desk and hoofed a couple over to Coco. She pointed to a couple blank fields on the forms “You will need to fill out this request for a hearing,” She flipped the page. “As well as fill out your information and her information.”

Coco took the pen from a nearby cup and started writing as they approached the seating area. Her hooves echoed as she stepped across the pristine marble floor.

She admired the ornate carvings and olden feel of the building. Yet, it had the gentle touch of modern updates like the clear glass doors and the furniture placed around.

She took a seat and sighed in relief. At least the chairs were comfortable. Dazzle took a seat right next to her.

Coco started to fill out the information she knew; her name, birthdate, and address.

“It was a long walk over here and my hooves hurt.” Dazzle whined.

“Oh, I’m sorry-” Coco stopped herself. Maybe that came out a little wrong. She was meaning to help Dazzle not hurt her. So, for good measure, she smiled, and in her best ‘Fluttershy calming the animals’ voice, she soothed, “Good thing we are sitting down. You can rest here for a bit, I’m just going to ask you a couple questions.”

Came to think of it, that last remark sounded like a therapist’s standard dialogue.

Dazzle shrugged then laid down on the couch. Coco found that she was a bit uncomfortable. Maybe she could use her flank as a pillow. However, she figured that Dazzle needed a little more time before she was comfortable doing that.

“Uhm, Dazzle, when is your birthday?”

“April 5.”

“How old are you?”

“Eleven.” She said.

Something was wrong. The way that Dazzle said it was like a yawn, fading out to nothing, as if in apathy. Coco inched closer, hoping for her to open up.

Instead, Dazzle scooted away from her. Coco frowned in response.

Coco shook off the feeling as her eyes reeled back to the paper. Maybe the next few questions would allow her to open up. “Where were you born?”

“Ponyville Hospital.”

Coco scribbled down the notes.

“Social Pony Number?”

Dazzle surged upward. She twisted back with a confused look on her face. “What?”

“Social Pony number?”

“What is that?”

Coco frowned. “A Social Pony Number is your identity. It helps offices like this keep track of all the ponies roaming about Equestria.”

Seeing her confusion still persisting, Coco realized that the explanation she gave wasn’t enough. “Think of it as like a cutie mark. It is unique to the individual and help show other ponies who they are.”

“Oh.” Dazzle’s confusion molded into a frown.

“Only instead of a picture, it’s a number, and it helps Celestia and her guards know where a pony is at, and their history.” Coco added for good measure.

Dazzle went back to lying on the couch.

Coco clicked her tongue. “Looks like I need to send this to Randolph.” She said as the only thing she could recall was just his name.

“Wait, you are sending stuff to Randolph?” Dazzle popped up from the couch.

“Mmm hmm.” Coco said, rolling up the letter and putting it in her bag. “He would know how to do this. He was one of my mentors while I was taking designing classes. He specialized in the regal and proper.” She fixed her posture, as if Randolph was present. She let out a chuckle. “Sure fits he knows how to do paperwork.”

Dazzle leaned closer. She looked up at Coco with curiosity in her eyes.

“Not only that, but he was the backbone of fashion so to say. Simple. To the point. Minimal distractions. His style agitated most students, since they were more focused on being the forefront of anything trending.” Coco continued. “However I didn't mind his style much. In consequence, him and I became close friends. ”

Coco sighed. “After a while, he left to be a butler for the Rich family. We stayed in contact, until...”

Suri Polomare

Coco closed her eyes, and took a deep breath.

“Until?” Dazzle asked, leaning closer.

Coco looked to Dazzle, trying to find the best way to describe it. Coco let a tear fall from her eye. “Sometimes, you do things that you regret. You just want to forget, but it's hard to.”

Dazzle’s ears drooped. She leaned into Coco and hugged her.

Coco jumped a little. She didn't know if it was safe. She looked around, and found nopony gawking. She hugged Dazzle back.

“Thanks. I needed that.” Coco said as soon as Dazzle let go.

“Okay Dazzle, hold still.” Coco tied a red bow in Dazzle's frizzy hair.

“Reminds me of Applebloom.” Dazzle said, looking up.

“Who's Applebloom?” Coco asked, taking a step back. She tapped a hoof at her muzzle and observed.

“Just a friend.” Dazzle answered.

Coco tilted her head and paced back and forth. Every angle counted. “Hmm, I just can't seem to find what's missing… the red sets the the tan apart, but it needs a little more flair.”

“I think Little Strongheart looks fine,” Dazzle said.

“Maybe the dress can be shortened.” Coco considered the possibility but shook her head. “I don't want to destroy bottom trim though.”

“Add a red bow to my tail.”

“Of course! Dazzle! You're a genius!” Coco exclaimed.

Dazzle winced.

“Oh, sorry. Forgot about the headache.” Coco sat at her desk, and cut a ribbon off a spool.

Like a present, she wrapped Dazzle's swirly tail in in the ribbon. “Take some medicine before you go to bed.” Coco instructed.

Dazzle nodded.

Coco took a step back again and clapped her hooves together. “Perfect.”

She took the bows off Dazzle's mane and tail. “Go ahead and take it off. This dress is finished.”

Dazzle wriggled out of the dress daintily. She folded it neatly and set it on a chair.

“Thank you for letting me use you as a mannequin.” Coco said. She lifted the presser foot and shut the sewing machine off

“You’re welcome!” Dazzle said. “What are we going to do next?”

“Go to sleep. I'm exhausted.” Coco yawned as she pulled her fuzzy robe off the nearby rack.

“Already? I'm not even tired.” Dazzle whined.

“It's seven at night, I need my beauty sleep.” Coco said.

“C'mon! One more please?” Dazzle pleaded.

“You need to take some medicine and get to bed.” Coco said. She shuddered after she finished that sentence. Now she sounded like her mom.

Dazzle shook her head. “Not tired though.”

“You're probably having headaches from lack of sleep.” Coco reasoned.

“I know you need to get stuff done. You'll stay up anyway” Dazzle said. “New rule: You stay up, I stay up.”

Coco glanced the hallway. She couldn’t wait to get into those fluffy warm blankets.

She wanted to add another rebuttal, but then, she looked at Dazzle.

She looked at Dazzle, into those cold aqua eyes. Yet they had a warmth, a warmth that Coco couldn't place. Like a fire that burned bright at the end of a day.

...“Get your lab coat on, I have an idea.”

Chapter 9: Play Time

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Randolph was right. When she checked the theatre’s post box, letters flooded out on her like on Looney Toons.

The first thing she did was clean up the stage. From the stage’s roof to the floorboards, she made sure everything was in tip-top shape.

Six months was able to gather up enough dust to make her and Dazzle sneeze. She didn’t complain though. Applejack did most of the heavy lifting a few months ago, she was just doing the standard TLC maintenance

Surprisingly, Dazzle helped with no complaint either. She wouldn’t have thought Dazzle to enjoy sweeping the floors from all the dust they’ve gathered or clean the leaves off the rooftop. The funny thing was Dazzle asked good questions about cleaning. Figured since Randolph had a feather duster cutie mark. He must’ve hogged all the cleaning to himself.

Speaking of Randolph, she caught up with all the letters.

After cleaning, of course. She needed them to take a load off. Those letters were good for two things: stress relief and a break from boring chores.

Currently, she was reading a letter she received yesterday.

Dear Coco,
I'm glad to hear everything is coming together. Congratulations on getting everything ready for the play! To get an enormous burden off my back, I’ll give you the bad news first: I will be unable to make it. Mr. and Mrs. Rich are keeping a close watch on me, which makes it hard to attend to other’s matters.
That’s it for the bad news though. Now, for the good news: I filed the papers, and got a letter in the mail saying that the hearing will be held in November. I will see you in Mane-hattan court November 11th at 8:00 AM. Because it was an official government document, Mr. and Mrs. Rich are forced to comply my leave.
We are starting to see light at the end of the tunnel. Everything is settling back down to normal over here in Ponyville. You’d be surprised what problems arose after Mistress Tiara left.
On your side of Equestria, I'm glad that Mistress Tiara is doing well. I guess that pesky headache of hers was because of the weather change from from mild Ponyville fall to frigid Mane-hattan winter. It brings me joy to know her situation is finally stable. Like you've mentioned, she has had it rough- traveling alone, braving the chill of winter, and worst, without family, and without anypony to care for her.
I'll be sending a package to your apartment, express delivery. I feel bad that she has taken almost nothing with her to Mane-hattan. So, I prepared a little care package for her. It should be on your doorstep by the evening of October 10. Don’t say anything about it until it arrives. I want to keep it a surprise. If it doesn't arrive, please let me know. It’s crucial that it arrives before the things get too busy with the play.

Coco looked at the calendar on the wall. Oh dear, today was October 10th. She had to think of something to keep Dazzle distracted until evening. Maybe shopping would do the trick.

She read the last bit of the paper.

Lastly, just keep this between you and me, Rarity has talked Twilight in coming to see your play.
No pressure!
Wish I were there!
Randolph.

Coco breathed deeply as she stuffed her reading glasses back in her bag.

What a Honor. One of the Princesses coming to see her handiwork. Again, she resented Randolph's last statement.

She had to make this count. The moment of truth approached. She took another deep breath and glanced around.

Dazzle fidgeted with her tiara, adjusting it slightly. Each time, she would pause then re-adjust, unhappy with the position on her head. She noticed Coco staring at her. In response, Dazzle flashed a grimace.

Coco snickered. Today was a special occasion, and all of them had to look their best. That included pinchy boots that chafed Coco's hooves and a pinchy tiara.

“Florin Buttercup.” A mare popped her head out of the office door. Coco saw the mare was trying to frown, but by the looks of it, she wasn't doing a good job of it.

Florin eagerly waved towards the door.

Coco folded up the letter and tucked it in her saddlebags. “Come, Dazzle.” She said.

Dazzle hopped off the bench and joined her. Florin filed into the room first, then Dazzle. Coco took a deep breath again, then stepped inside the office.

Coco found the austere surroundings of the office to be intimidating. The smell of old paper unnerved her, as it brought back memories of the numerous times her offer was rejected.

The mare stood behind a cherry wood desk, with a banker's green lamp and a typewriter.
“You may have a seat.” The mare finally said.

They sat down in their wooden chairs while the mare took her fancy leather chair. Made of rare hydra skin, as Coco recalled.

The mare closed her eyes, clicked her forehooves together, and hummed low. Coco’s body stiffened as she heard the sound of her low humming.

The mare sat up straight, her posture stiff and eyebrows slanted. Her mane was simple. No flairs, nothing fancy. The only thing that noted she was different from any other face in the crowd was her horn, dull and gray as her coat.

...Maybe Coco could model her style in another play.

The mare’s mouth clicked as it popped open. She swiveled around to her cabinet.

“After review, I have made my final decision.” she took a file out of her cabinet, spun around and tossed it in front of Florin.

Florin opened the folder and read the contents. Coco stifled a gasp as she saw the big, bold red letters out of the corner of her eye.

Approved.

“Thank you, Willow Chair.” Florin closed the file. “We will do our best to make sure An Equestrian Tale is successful.”

Coco gulped. Now was the moment of truth.

“We have an... odd request.” Florin started. “But, since this was Coco's idea, she should take the floor.”

Coco's heart thumped in her chest. Willow's eyes narrowed at Coco.

After a couple breaths, Coco started, making sure to enunciate. “If I may be so bold to ask, can we obtain the licensing to another play?”

The mare lifted a pen up to her right temple. “Which play?” She asked in a firm tone.

“Mare-ison Bergeron- adapted for theatre.” Coco said. She bit down on her tongue as she pulled out a paper from her bag. As she offered it, Willow swiped it from her grasp.

She scowled. Coco sank back in her chair.

Willow read over a couple lines, her eyes occasionally darting up to look at Coco over the rim of her spectacles. All of a sudden, a smirk came across her face as she bit her fancy pen. “Hmm… Consider the filing done. When do you want the license?”

Coco felt the cold beads of sweat running down the nape of her neck. She gulped, as she knew she was asking a lot already. This next request was deal-breaker. “If possible, three days”

Willow’s smirk reverted back to a scowl. “I'll see what I can do.” She walked around the desk and pulled the door open. “For now, your excused.”

Once they got out of the office, the door slammed.

“I-I can't seem to read her.” Coco dipped her head.

“You can't do anything about it except live transparent.” Florin patted her on the back. “She likes you, Coco. It's just for scare. You did great.”

“Thanks.” Coco whispered weakly.

“Live transparent?” Dazzle asked curiously.

Coco lifted her head.

“Oh, it's just a little saying Coco and I made up when we were still in school.” Florin pointed out. “It's fancy for ‘just be yourself, don't let anxiety control you.’”

“Oh.” Dazzle craned her head backward. “That's… weird.”

“You'll get it after a while.” Coco chuckled. She turned toward Florin. “Now that’s over, should we celebrate?”

“Are you joking? We should!” Florin sprung up.

Coco let out a giggle. No matter what she did, Florin always found a way to cheer Coco up.

“Let's go post the banners first.” Dazzle interjected. “I know we need to get that done.”

“Right… We shouldn’t get carried away.” Coco said. She found it a little odd for Dazzle wanting to do that first, but didn’t argue. The more time she gave for the package to arrive, the better. “Let’s go take care of that first.”

“Wow. Sure hope it doesn't rain like this on the night of the play”. Coco looked up, as the pitter patter of raindrops thudded against the glass ceiling. As they hit the glass, they fizzled in a bright array of colors.

She lifted up her bags, continuing to shoulder the weight of her splurge.

Earlier, Dazzle complained when Coco took too long deciding what she wanted. As if in agreement, the shopkeeper flashed her a weary look, hinting that she overstayed her welcome.
Coco had a hard time shaking off the nasty feeling. Luckily, a trip to the food court was the cure. Besides. Dazzle was starving.

That made for dinner…

Coco looked at Dazzle again, who was still entranced by the dancing flurry of colors overhead.

And a show.

Coco couldn't help but giggle at Dazzle. She wished she had a camera. Dazzle’s mouth was agape. Her eyes were aglow with spectacular shower of colors.

“Designed by some of Celestia’s greatest-”

“Shh!” Dazzle shoved a hoof in Coco’s mouth. She still kept her gaze on the heavens full of color.

Coco was taken aback, but giggled in the end.

She waited until the Aurora BoRealis faded, seeing Dazzle's trance following suit.

“I wish Ponyville had a mall like this.” Dazzle said.

Florin hauled in heavy saddlebags. “Well, I'm drained.” She said as she put the bags down on the nearby bench. The bench creaked in protest.

“Monty is not going to be happy…” Dazzle said.

“Relax! We have the play coming up in few weeks.” Florin waved a hoof.

“Pfft.” Dazzle rolled her eyes.

“You know Dazzle, let’s go pick out something for you… anything you want.” Coco offered.

“Careful, Coco.” Florin warned. “If she steps hoof into a candy shop, the profit you earn from next play will be gone and then some.”

“We just ate.” Dazzle said. She put a hoof up to her muzzle. “Though I want to stop by the upstairs gift shop.”

“Sure.” Coco said.

She threaded her way through the crowds to the stairwell. Dazzle followed not far behind.

“Coco, can you wait up?” Dazzle shouted.

Coco paused and looked around. Her heart pounded. With so many ponies milling about, she had some trouble spotting Dazzle.

She sighed in relief as she saw Dazzle pushing her way through a couple ponies. Some passersbys glared at Dazzle, but she shot an equally poisonous one back at them.

“Sorry about that.” Coco apologized.

“No need to apologize.” Dazzle held up a hoof “Let’s keep going. I can’t stand this.”

After a flight of stairs and a couple departments down, Coco stepped into the store.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Coco jumped. After she regained her composure, she looked back to Dazzle, who was frozen in place.

“Don't mind it, its mental.” The nearby cashier said not taking her eyes off of scanning a customer’s items.

“What was that?” Dazzle asked.

“Anti-theft device.” Coco explained.

“But... I didn't steal anything.” Dazzle said.

“No need for a plea.” Coco took her by the hoof and guided her in. “Don't worry. The cashier said it has issues.”

“We don't have those in Ponyville…” Dazzle glanced wearily at the red lights on the glass doors.

“I guess it comes with the Aurora BoRealis.” Coco said. “C'mon, let's pick out your present.”

Coco was big on window shopping. She knew she was a fickle customer. It must’ve been because of her sense of style. Many stores gave into trends and fads, whereas she discovered her taste to be on the conserved, sharp style.

Dazzle had the same sentiment. At least that's how it felt after Dazzle inspected every knick-knack. At this point, if Dazzle kept at the same pace she was now, they would be stuck in the store until morning.

This made the store clerk nervous. A good indicator was that the cashier from earlier kept an eye on them.

Dazzle scanned through various items.

Coco carefully picked up a snow globe and shook it. Inside, a snowstorm covered the Mare-pire state building and Filly Liberty. She scoured across bracelets. Then Earrings. Then a modest watch with a leather band and a wooden frame caught her eye. Fairly simple in design, yet possessed a beauty that she couldn't quite grasp.

Dazzle picked up white picture frame. It had a sky blue stripe running in curls like calligraphy. Coco also thought of it as cute, but swore it needed a little something more.

“Hmm. I thought you already had a picture frame.” Coco said.

“Not yet.” Dazzle replied.

“I notice that you have a limited number of knick knacks.” Coco stated, recounting only a picture of her family, and a stuffed doll. “By the way, who is that Alicorn doll you have? I don't recognize him.”

“Oh, that's my dad.” Dazzle said. “Even if he's an earth pony in real life, he didn't mind that I wanted an Alicorn doll of him.”

“You sure you just want a frame?” she asked.

“Yeah I'm sure. I need some glass to protect it though.” Dazzle said.

“Gotcha covered.” Coco said as she pulled out her wallet.

They stepped up to the checkout, the cashier with a cheesy grin on her face. Probably her next paycheck in a long time.

“Find everything alright?” She asked.

“Yep,” Coco said. “Can we get some glass for the picture frame?

The package arrived before they got home.

Dazzle looked at it with wonder, then read who it was from. The rest was history. The wrapping paper didn't last a chance.

Before she knew it, her living room was the epicenter of a candy tornado. Dazzle munched happily on the popping candy.

“Randolph says the candy's name is Zing-Zap.” Dazzle said, with a mouthful of the candy.

Coco picked up the smaller box . She took off the lid. Inside it was a whole pack of photos. But a few envelopes stuck out. She flipped through a couple, pulling out a random envelope. This one looked suspicious, since Randolph usually used an envelope with a sack of money watermark.

“Who's Sweetie Belle?” She asked, examining the pretty, curvy writing.

“Wait! Let me see that!” Dazzle lunged towards Coco and swiped it out of her hooves. Dazzle looked at the writing “Sweetie Belle sent me a letter?”

Not hesitating another second, the envelope was torn off like the wrapping paper. The lined paper unfolded as she read it. A smile came across her face.

As usual, Randolph's magic. She started pulling out some photos, seeing foals and adult ponies she didn't recognize. One that particularly caught her eye was a photo of Dazzle in a cute pink dress next to a gray filly with a spoon cutie mark. There was nothing special about it, except the photo was taken from a weird angle. It was either the camera was mounted to the ceiling, or the picture was taken by a very tall pony who was holding the camera upside down. Then she noticed a small detail, a fluff of frizzy pink nestled in the corner of the photo.

“Is this Sweetie Belle?” Coco held up the photo.

Dazzle looked up from the letter. “No, that's Silver Spoon. My BFF.” She folded up the letter and hovered over the tiny box. “What else is there?”

Coco hoofed through a couple more photos. She came across another letter and pulled it out. “Hmm, Applebloom.” she held it out to Dazzle.

Dazzle popped a Zing-Zap into her mouth and took it. While chewing on the candy, she opened the letter and read it.

Coco sat quietly, not sure whether to leave Dazzle to her business or stay put. She awkwardly rocked back and forth on her hooves.

Dazzle smiled “Applebloom worked with Pinkie and the Cakes to develop this new candy.” Dazzle said. “What we have here is the prototype.”

She read a little further and laughed. “The cake twins helped too. Mr and Mrs. Cake didn't want them to, but Pinkie insisted.” She glanced up from the letter. “Those two are lucky! My Parents would never allow me to do anything like that.”

Figured. Even after a couple weeks, Coco recognized how independent Dazzle was. The fact that she made it Mane-hattan on her own was remarkable. Coco drew another letter. This, she recognized. Dignified, sharp letters.

She held it out to Dazzle. “This is yours.”

Dazzle took it and opened it. After a moment of reading, she sighed. “Aww… Randolph isn't coming to the play.” She whined. Her eyes darted back and forth across the paper. “Oh, and he put a slice of cake in another box under the candy!”

She put the letter down. Rummaging through the box, she pulled out another box and unfolded it. Inside, under a protective plastic lid was a wedge of a cake. She smiled “I always wanted to try this flavor!” she opened up the container.

Dazzle took out the cake. “Hmm, what's this?” She took out a folded piece of paper that was hiding underneath the cake. She unfolded it piece of paper and read it.

When she finished she shook her head playfully and closed her eyes. She sat munching on the cake with her eyes closed.

She opened her eyes and then took another bite. She then closed her eyes again and munched on the cake.

Coco raised an eyebrow. “Uhm. Dazzle, What are you doing?”

“Pinkie says that this is a triple wish cake. It grants three wishes. All I need to do is eat it, close my eyes, and make a wish.” Dazzle explained. She placed the unfinished cake back in it's container. “I will save my last wish for later.”

“What exactly did you wish for?” Coco asked.

“I can't tell you, otherwise it won't come true.”

“C’mon, Dazzle…” Coco smirked and shook her head.

“I'll tell you my first wish though. I wish to be older.” Dazzle snickered. “That always comes true.”

Chapter 10: Chasing Dreams

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Nothing warmed Luna's heart more than sweet dreams. The main reason why is that she hadn't had them in a long time with the Tantabus around. The corrupted dream aura would penetrate and poison other dreams quickly. Whenever a sweet dream would come along, it would attract the Tantabus like a moth to the light.

Thankfully, the Tantabus was gone. She thanked Twilight and her friends for showing her the light at the end of her mistakes. She thanked them for showing her that she can be truly forgiven.

Because of them, she basked in her masterpiece; a gentle tapestry of sweet dreams stretching across Equestria. That included her. She was no longer ostracized for her misdeeds long ago. And finally, she had friends.

Sometimes, all you could do was watch.

“Diamond, I want to tell you something.” Her father said.

“Yes, Daddy?” She answered, rolling towards her father. She nuzzled her head in the crook of his neck.

“I want to tell you a secret” He whispered in her ear. “But first- I want you to close your eyes and think of your happiest memory.”

She closed her eyes and searched her mind. Her mind raced back to the days before her school days. She was a little filly, without a care in the world, racing through the sprinklers.

You got it?” He asked.

“Yes.” she answered.

“Now, describe what you see.” She felt his weight shift off the picnic blanket. She fought the temptation to take a peek. She feared he would bolt away and abandon her, but still, she trusted him. He was her father, after all.

“I see a little filly, acting like a lion, chasing gazelle daddy through the sprinkler savanna.” She said.

With her eyes still closed, she could feel the warmth of the evening sun on her face. She smiled.

“Now, open your eyes.” He said.

She opened them.

In front of her, lined up like a runway, were sprinklers. They twirled as they sprayed diamond droplets everywhere.

She turned to her father. He no longer had a horn and wings. In place of it, he was dressed with curvy antlers and a short tail. He lifted his beautifully striped hooves out, ready to prance down the lane.

As if on instinct, she growled deeply. The growl like a grumble of thunder in her throat. She covered her throat. She would’ve gasped, but it came out as a confused growl. She caught a glimpse of her mane. It was wrapped around her head like a lion. Like a finishing touch, her snout bristled with whiskers as the wind rushed by.

“Well, what are you waiting for? Come with me to dinner!” He said, bounding down the path.

“Oh no you don’t!” She charged down the path, feeling the droplets brush across her fur.

...She charged further and further down the path. Her hooves squelched under the wet grass. Normally, her mother would tell her to stop so she didn't track mud into the mansion, but at this point, nothing else mattered. Just her and her dad, charging down the lane in paradise as the caramel light of dusk brushed upon her pink coat. If the light was truly caramel, she could almost taste it.

...As she chased him down the path, three lions came out to join her. Two charged with her at her side.

“Let's get him!” One of them shouted. She recognized the voice, sweet and smooth. She glanced over to her right.

She froze.

Three fillies up ahead halted in their tracks. Only, like her, their manes wrapped around their necks, and they had claws on their hooves. One of them smiled, flashing a row of sharp teeth.

Diamond shuddered.

“C'mon Diamond! He's getting away!” Applebloom roared.

Diamond mouth gaped open, lost for words. Why were they here? Why did they join her? And how did become lions like her? She decided the last question was the best to start with.

“King Rich's magic transformed us.” Scoots explained. She motioned her head down the trail, obviously impatient to continue the chase. “The more we wait, the less food we are going to get!”

“Always thinking about your stomach,” Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes.

Scootaloo kicked.

“Ow! Remember you have claws?!”

Diamond snickered. She ran towards them. The three fillies gathered around her. After they traded glances in acknowledgement that they were all in this together, they blazed the trail.

Her father happily pranced about in the fields. He pounced up, snapping his teeth onto low hanging apples like a dog leaping to snatch a treat.

“He's going to pay for that!” Applebloom growled.

Once he spotted the four of them, he laughed jovially and bounded down the path a little more.

Down and down they went, dodging cattails, tail grass, and trees. Finally, Diamond broke through the foliage, finding herself at the edge of a town.

Diamond noticed something peculiar about the town- all the houses were made out of glass, some plain- some modern. She passed what she recognized to be familiar landmarks, like Twilight’s castle, or Sugarcube Corner.

Some looking like the stained glass from Canterlot palace. Some glass was opaque or a different color, adding variety as she meandered down the stone streets.

Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she saw her Dad darting nonsensically from one street to another. She chose not to gawk too long. Back to the task at hand.

Wait a minute… where were the other three?

“Nah! Nah!” Her father teased as he brushed past her.

She shook off the daze and started to chase him down the streets.

Inch by inch, she got closer and closer. However, he wouldn’t allow her to get any closer than a full pony length from him. As she locked onto him, she figured she take the risk.

She leapt towards him. He skittered to the right suddenly. Her claws found no purchase as she barreled into a nearby building.

She clenched her teeth. Glass flew everywhere around her. She curled up, trying to protect herself from the jagged tiny daggers.

As she tumbled, her stomach burned warm. Then it froze cold. The mixture of dizziness and fear nauseated her. Neither could she place or get a handle on. This is what it must've felt like to be in shock.

When she dared to open her eyes, she saw the glass flying around her. However, not at huge shards, but as fine as sand. The grains were suspended in air like dust particles on a sunny day.

Suddenly, the sand flew back into the wall, and pieced the glass wall back together.

“Nifty, huh? Princess Sparkle placed a spell on it. She calls it- Living Transparent” Her father stood in front of her and tapped on the glass.

She looked in amazement as the last of the sand trickled like an upside-down waterfall back into the glass without any sign of a scratch. Not even a hoof print.

She looked around. Desks, Chalkboard, Crayons… How could she not recognize the building? This was the schoolhouse!

He galloped towards the exit of the building and waved his gazelle tail. “You going to chase me or not?”

She smiled and rolled her eyes. “You're forgetting something…”

“What?” He asked, mimicking the same mischievous smile. He glanced over his shoulder. As soon as he noticed, his eyes widened as he skittered inside. In pursuit, the three lion crusaders stormed after him.

This was her chance. She took the opportunity and lunged towards him.

Her claws hit him square in the back. She rolled, taking him with her.

She slowly got up. As she tried to brush the rubble off, she found none on her fur. Upon closer inspection, she also couldn't find any cuts or bruises.

Her father got up and brushed himself off. “You got me.” He chuckled.

The three fillies surrounded her and raised her up in the air. Applebloom cheered. “Nice! You got him!”

Diamond smiled. A warmth enveloped her heart. If felt so distant, so alien, but at the same time, familiar. Like she was finally where she needed to be. That she belonged.

Suddenly, a flash of light threaded out of her flank. She smiled, but with a little skepticism, “My Cutie Mark?” Again?

Her father pushed through the fillies with a grim look of worry on his face. His horn gleamed.

Suddenly, the light flew out of the flank. At the same time, with expert craft, a glass jar formed out from the glass pane. The lid was made out of glass also.

The jar popped open. He stuffed the light inside. Diamond found it wonderous that the light had the consistency of a cloth.

Diamond looked back at her flank. Her ears drooped.

It was blank. She noticed next that her lion tail vanished. The lion mane on her head disappeared with the tail, back to her boring braid. She glanced back at her Dad, who had his wings and horn back.

Her dad put the jar in his saddlebags. “That was a close one.” He smiled at the four and pointed, “To sugarcube corner!”

Something awakened. Originally, that something clung to the light with all of her heart. Created for the benefit that future generations wouldn't know of the destructive power of a nightmare. It originally used its powers for good, for defense, but with taint of evil desires, selfishness and hate clung to that pure being. The creator tried to keep it at bay, but that light she created struggled for expansion as dreams bridged reality, and reality bridged nightmare.

Poisonous Light.

A lantern gleamed in the darkness. The stallion clenched his teeth on the handle carefully as it swayed in the cold wind. “Easy now.” he reprimanded the lantern quietly. “Don’t want you going out on me.”

He glanced up at the sky. He sighed as nothing but the dark clouds of winter blotted out the stars.

“Hope she's doing alright.” he said.

...It had been about month since she left. Since then… nothing has been the same. He only hoped that things weren't tough for her in the big city.

He trotted down the empty streets, the smell of dead leaves hung in the air. The cold wind whipped around the houses, dark and cold. He had the eerie feeling that he was being watched. Yet, at the same time, he felt alone, his lantern as the solitary light in the darkness.

He shook off the feeling, as he noticed he was lingering too long. He continued forth, with his destination in mind.

As he continued, the train whistle blew. A long, baleful call, shrieking in the darkness. He looked over, just in time to see it the lights climb the hill, and recede into the mist of night. That line raced to Mane-hattan. It would arrive around noon tomorrow.

As he reached the building, the only building with lights on, he approached the door and knocked softly.

Immediately, the door creaked open. “Come on in.” A pink mare spoke.

“Thank you, Miss Pie.” He offered a smile, then trotted in.

Pinkie bounded off to attend to her chores. Randolph wasn’t surprised Pinkie was still this giddy at this hour.

He took a seat at a booth, acknowledging another mare sitting there. Her horn protruding out of her white cloak.

He set down the lantern and bowed. “How do you do, Princess Twilight?”

“Good to see you, Randolph.” Twilight said, popping her hood off. “I'm glad you came to me; I have something I wanted to speak to you about.”

Randolph stretched, a few bones popping and his joints creaking. When he got himself situated, he said “What is your favor?”

“Actually, not so much of a favor, but a request to help you out.” Twilight said. “This meeting is about your matters after all.”

She waved a hoof in the air, motioning for Pinkie to come.

Pinkie trotted up to the table, clenching a hoof-kerchief in her mouth.

Pinkie set the bag down on the counter, letting the sides of the hoof-kerchief roll down and show what was inside.

Inside it was a cake, packaged nicely in a plastic container with a bow on top.

Pinkie zipped off to the kitchen. When she came back, there was a mug atop her head. She came to the table and set it down carefully.

“Thank you, Pinkie.” Twilight said, accepting the mug.

From the smell, Randolph inferred it was Hot Chocolate.

Pinkie smiled, squeaked quietly, and bounded back to the kitchen.

Twilight sipped her hot chocolate. She stared off into the nearby lantern. Her eyes blazed with the solemn reflection of the lantern’s firelight. “Need me to pay for postage?”

Randolph's mouth went dry. He shook his head and smiled. “News around Ponyville spreads quick, doesn't it?”

Twilight snickered. “Applebloom and her friends can't keep a secret.”

He paused.

“Still, there is something else you are here for.” Twilight pointed out. “I want to hear your side of the story.”

“Well, I need to know first what you have heard.” He started. “I bet you know about Zap-Zangs?”

“Indeed-dirino!” Pinkie shouted. She covered her mouth. “Whoops.”

Some crying was heard from upstairs. Pinkie groaned and facehoofed. “Well, gotta go take care of that.” She sighed as she trotted upstairs.

Twilight shook her head and smiled.

Randolph dug in his saddlebags. He pulled out a pile of letters and set them right next to the cake.

Twilight turned back to Randolph. “Had a sample yesterday.”

“Mmmm.” Randolph stroked his chin.

“Do you know about her new interests?” He asked, tapping on the pile of letters.

“I heard she wants to conduct research with Doctor Fuse.” She pressed a hoof to her muzzle, suppressing a giggle. “I didn't expect it. The little filly is an egghead.”

Randolph smirked. “Now, now. I would be very careful about saying that in front of her. She gets very defensive, you know.”

“I know.” Twilight smiled back. “Speaking of which, I might want to place a spell on my horn to protect me from any corrosion.”

Randolph raised an eyebrow. “Has it already has hit Ponyville?” He said with a slightly raised voice.

“No, its still contained in Mane-hattan. For now.” Twilight answered. She sighed. “I'm going up with Rarity to go see one of Coco's plays. By free postage. I can deliver personally...”

“Hmmm. I see,” Randolph said after thinking to himself. “She would enjoy that, but I must decline. She needs this package as soon as possible.”

“I can respect that.” Twilight said. She took another sip of her cocoa. “Funny you say Dr. Fuse has taken interest in Diamond. Knowing Boron, his zeal for finding the cure is as contagious as the disease he is trying to eradicate. Getting another earth pony involved on his team would be a strategic move.”

“Curious.” Randolph said. “He tried to get Coco on board first, but she declined. Then, Mistress Tiara asked him. Unfortunately, she isn't of age yet. So that negates that option.”

Twilight stared off into the distance. A smile crept on her face. “Comes to think of it, I have an idea.” The corners of her mouth twisted. “But first, I need to know how much time you have. I don't want to keep you from your duties.”

“All night.” Randolph answered. “I told the Rich's that I'll be out visiting the Apple’s as I usually do, but I let Granny Smith know I won't be stopping by tonight. They know that I had matters to attend to.”

“Good.” Twilight nodded. “Here's the idea.”

Chapter 11: Mare-ison Tiara-on

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Dazzle wore her tiara to the play. Coco questioned her at first, wondering why she chose to do something like that. After a likely excuse to use it for the occasion, Coco didn't press any further.

She watched the actor, as fuzzy and frivolous as Pinkie, dance on top of a piano and belt out “You gotta share! You gotta care!”

Then the red curtains rolled.

As soon as the curtains closed, the actors broke character as one hopped off the top of the piano, brushed herself off, and trotted towards the fitting room. The stallion at the piano stood up from the bench, stretched his hooves, and popped his neck.

Coco and Mrs. Chair trotted out from the backstage curtains.

“You did great!” Coco congratulated in a hushed voice.

“Thanks Coco!” The stallion said. He rushed over to a rope and cleated it onto the piano. With the help of the rest of the clean-up crew, they heaved the piano out of sight.

Florin trotted past Dazzle. Dazzle sighed, thankful that the scrutiny of a pair of eyes on her was directed away from her, just for a moment. Florin was in charge of watching Dazzle since Dazzle couldn't sit alone in the crowd. Yes, it was a little odd Dazzle was backstage, rubbing shoulders the other actors, but she figured it was Coco’s preference.

“You doing okay, Coco?” asked Florin, who was marking up a clipboard.

“Yes.” Coco grinned. Dazzle noticed her legs trembling. That was a bold-faced lie.

“Don't worry dear, you’ll do fine!” Florin patted her on the back.

Florin must've picked up on it too.

The curtains rolled back, and Coco was escorted to the front of the stage with Mrs. Chair.

“Now a round of applause for Coco Pommel!” The director announced. The crowd cheered.
After the applause ended, the director continued. “Miss Pommel has a surprise for this Nightmare Night season.”

Coco bowed. Dazzle noticed Coco's legs quivering more violently.

Coco began “Fillies and Gentlecolts! I am pleased to announce the short play for this evening! Mare-ison Bergeron by Cart Vonnegut!” Coco bowed and backed toward stage left? Yep, that was stage left. Dazzle remembered that Coco mentioned that the stage was centric to the actors and not the audience.

They said the show must go on. But they hit a nasty roadblock.

On the loudspeaker, the director announced. “Please stand by. We are experiencing difficulties.”

Dazzle was swept back, since Florin told her to stay with her so the paramedics could do their job.

Even through the commotion, Dazzle saw the gleam of tears in the actor's eyes. Her steady, penetrating voice managed to cut through the noise. “Do I get overtime for this?” She managed a weak smile.

“Cut it out of my paycheck. I'm so sorry, Rose Masquerade, this is my fault.” Coco said, standing by while the medical staff worked away.

“She's jok-” One of the paramedics was about to chuckle. She turned pale.

“Your highness.” The paramedic bowed her head.

Like a wave, everypony else was in the room bowed.

Respectfully, Dazzle followed everypony.

Dazzle turned around. Princess Twilight and Rarity stood in the doorway. Rarity was, as always, fashionable as she wore a beautiful crystal blue dress. Twilight was dressed in the same dress she wore at her coronation. However, it had something more… something different… but Dazzle couldn’t quite put a hoof on it. Maybe Rarity had something to do with it.

Rarity covered her hoof with her mouth. “Oh my, we are in quite the predicament…”

“That's just grand!” Rose Masquerade complained, looking around aimlessly with blank eyes. “Just in the moment I meet Princess Sparkle and Miss Rarity face to face, darn disease blinded me!”

Twilight trotted towards her. “Let me have a look.”

The medical staff blocked her way. “I'm sorry princess, we can’t have you catching-”

“Corrosion.” Twilight tapped her horn. “I'm already covered.”

The paramedic traded glances with their partner, then sighed. “Alright. Please be careful, your highness.” The paramedic stepped aside.

Twilight motioned at Rarity to stay where she was.

The staff left their stray equipment on the floor. Twilight leaned in closer to Rose. As she put her hoof under her jaw, Rose winced back.

“Easy.” Twilight said. “It's just me.”

Rose's eyes were wet with tears. What made it a little odd is that she was staring off into space.

“Hmm… Floppy Horn, chemical burn under the skin.” Twilight observed. “Severe symptoms… not fatal though.”

“Can you… fix it?” Rose pleaded.

“Not quite. I know a recipe to suppress it though.” Twilight said. “But it requires you to soak in a bath of water-- I'll escort you to the hospital in a moment.”

“But first, I have an oath to fulfill.” Twilight glanced at Dazzle.

Dazzle gulped. What was Twilight going to do? Reprimand her for all the rotten things she did? A few actors traded glances of worry as the Princess approached her. That didn’t help either. In contrast to the commotion outside the curtains, the only sound that penetrated the backstage was the creaking floorboards as Twilight approached.

Twilight smiled. Dazzle’s heart lifted a little.

“I see you are wearing your tiara, just like Randolph said you would.” Twilight said. She held out a hoof. “Mind if I take a look?”

Dazzle took it off and gave it to Twilight. She sat down and examined the tiara in her forehooves. She craned her neck around it, inspecting it like a jeweler. “He came just in time. I spent so much time trying to perfect a spell.”

Her horn glowed, and her aura surrounded the tiara. “I'm taking a risk by this, so let's hope it works.”

Twilight’s horn glowed brighter and brighter, then faded in an instant. When Dazzle's eyes adjusted, she saw. The crown glowed, imbued with energy. The glowing pulsed with magical energy for a minute, then faded.

Dazzle tilted her head. What exactly did Princess Twilight do?

“Put it on, hopefully this works.” She said.

Dazzle obeyed the princess and propped the tiara on her head. Instantly, she grew a little dizzy. It felt like the time she was on a roller coaster and the cart she was in lurched forward unexpectedly. She closed her eyes and held her breath to keep her from vomiting. Then, it stopped. Something happened. She felt… different. She finally had the courage to open her eyes.

Everypony in the room gasped. Coco, who normally froze or ducked when she wanted to escape from the situation, stared at her with wide eyes and an agape jaw.

“My apologies if you feel a little queasy, Diamond. I’m still working on the minor kinks.” Twilight said. “I’m just thankful it didn't turn you into a colt.”

“What?” Dazzle asked, checking to see if she heard right. In the same motion, she covered her mouth. Her voice… it wasn't her own. It sounded a lot less squeaky and less high pitched.

“Can you get me a mirror, please?” Twilight asked.

One of the nearby actors wheeled a mirror to Dazzle.

She saw.

In front of her, in place of her reflection, was a mare, pink coat and purple and white braided mane and tail. She was notably taller, sharper features. Curvier, Stout, and Regal.

Dazzle looked at Twilight, then back to the mirror. She turned her head to inspect the mare in the reflection.

It was her. Her heart pounded faster, and a wave of chills ran up her spine. This was actually happening. She gave the mare a wide smile and she smiled back with a sereneness that she was mildly jealous of.

“That's Randolph's second surprise.” Twilight explained “Coco mentioned in passing that you wanted to volunteer at the hospital, but aren't old enough.”

“It still is in the perfecting stage, and I wanted to wait until after the play to give you it, but circumstances say otherwise.” She stood up straight and brought a hoof to her barrel and bowed. “Since advanced magic like that is costly, it recharges whenever you wear it proudly. Designed by yours truly.”

Wait… magic that recharged off of her emotions? She hadn’t learned this in Cheerilee’s class. If only Sweetie Belle could hear this, maybe she would find it-

“Luck must really have something against me. First, I’m missing the sight of one of our beloved princesses. Now I don’t even get to see a little filly turned mare.” Rose complained.

Princess Twilight looked at Rose and then back to Dazzle and giggled. “Just in case, when I'm there, I'll put in a good word for you. Tell them to hire you. Princesses can pull a couple strings” She winked.

Coco gasped. When all eyes shifted upon her, her cheeks grew red and she cowered back.

“As the playwright always says. ‘The show must go on.’” Twilight said. She trotted back to the ailing actor and said in a firm tone and a smirk “Get back to work!”

The actor looked up with tired eyes toward the princess. In a weak voice, she asked “You mean, instate a backup?”

“Yep, but I recommend not using another Unicorn.” The princess said “Unfortunately, I think one of your props is infected, you will need an Earth Pony if you want to continue.”

“Princess, you mentioned that there is a Corrosion resistance spell.” Mrs. Chair said. “Can’t we just use that?”

“You are right that a protection spell can be used, but for that, you need poison joke repellant potion.” One of the paramedics stated. “And even then, it is still a little dicey.”

“You mentioned Earth Pony. What about we choose Coco? She knows the lines” Beaux, one of the actors, asked.

“I… I don't do well on stage…” Coco looked down at the floor and rubbed her hoof against her foreleg.

“It's your choice, of course.” Twilight sighed. “I’m thinking of some Earth pony else.”

Suddenly, a couple wandering eyes met their destination. Everypony stared at Dazzle.

“Are you saying Dazzle should be our backup?”

“She does know the lines.” Coco added. “Eep.” She replied as the scrutiny shifted back to her.

“Well, isn’t that curious?” Twilight said. She giggled. “Now I’m copying Randolph. Anyways… reality can be funny sometimes- in the bleakest moments, the answer presents itself in a form of a miracle. It’s funny it so happens now.”

Beaux looked to Dazzle, then back to Twilight. After a moment of contemplation, he nodded solemnly “Well? What are we waiting for?”

Dazzle's heart raced.

“Well, in that case, Let's be off.” Twilight craned her neck under the actor’s right foreleg.

“No, it's fine princess… I can- OW!” the actor grit her teeth and squeezed her eyes shut.

“One misunderstanding is that I don't need to lift a hoof.” Twilight said. She rocked her head, signaling the others to help her out.

As more rushed to her aid, they hoisted the actor onto Twilight’s back.

“You comfortable?” Twilight asked.

“As much as I can with a corroded horn.” Rose replied.

Twilight giggled and said to the others, “I'll fly her up. Don’t worry about me or her. I'm protected.” she tapped her horn. “Rarity will help keep the show going.”

Everypony turned towards Rarity. Rarity gracefully bowed. “I have worked with Coco in the past. The show will always go on.”

Twilight flapped her wing and smiled at Rose. “I hope you don't mind the bumpy ride.”

“Don't worry Princess. I don't get motion sick easy.” Rose replied.

Twilight chuckled. “We're off then!” She posed to lunge forward.

“Wait! Princess! I never acted in my life!” Dazzle rushed towards her.

Twilight paused in midair.

“Don't worry, dear. I can handle this.” Rarity waved a hoof. “Now go! There is no time to waste when it comes to a curse.”

Twilight nodded and bolted out of the nearest window.

Rarity turned towards Dazzle. “If the Princess believes in you, I know you can do it.”

Dazzle opened her mouth to reply something, but she couldn't argue. She never had been treated with this type of sweetness before. Why was Rarity being nice to her? Even after what she done to Sweetie Belle…

Rarity just smiled, and closed Dazzle's jaw. “Now, now, we done have much time for Dilly-dallying…”

Coco came up to Rarity and gave a sheepish smile. “Thanks for coming to the rescue.”

“No problem, dear.” Rarity smiled. “I hope you don't mind me adding some adjustments.”

“Not at all!” Coco said.

“Good.” Rarity had a mischievous look on her face as she turned to Dazzle. “Last I recall, Mare-ison was an earth pony, relying upon her own strength rather than magic power under Diana Moon Glimmers tyrannical dictation. All you need is to be strong, like her!” She flared out a hoof towards the ceiling.

The rest of the crew didn't wait another second. They strapped a faux metal beam around her neck, and put a straitjacket on her.

“What is happening?” Dazzle asked, as she chased circles around another actor.

“You’re getting into character.” Rarity stated with a squeal. “Ooooh! Beautiful job, Coco! Once Diamond is out there, she will shine like a star!”

Dazzle's vision went blurry as the crew goaded her towards the front of the stage.

“Wait! Rarity! I’m not ready!” Dazzle cried. She had no idea how she was going to pull this off. In front of a crowd of thousand ponies (minus a princess), she was bound to make some cruel mistake. Maybe this is what Rarity was planning, to make a public example of her and how bad she was at everything- friendship, acting...

“The show will go on as planned!” The director announced, before backing into the curtains.

Dazzle stepped forward on the stage full of actors. All wearing fake equalities like her. She felt a pit in her stomach, yet still was pulled forward by something.

The actors looked as nervous as her.

She craned her neck up and snapped the foam brace. With all the vigor and anger she pulled inside of her, she wrestled off the straitjacket until it ripped like paper. Well, because it was in fact, paper.

The audience stayed dead silent.

She could hear her heart beating in her chest. Her ears burned like somepony lit them on fire. She felt the cold beads of sweat run down her neck. All her senses died as her body began to quake. This was it- this is would be her end.

Then… something happened. Her heart raced; her eyes looked up to the spotlights overhead. Her being stopped quaking, and weirdly enough- she could smell the autumn air mingled with the dewy winter.

Something inside her was energized. She never felt this way in her life before. She never felt more alive, more present. Yet, she was here. In reality, standing on the stage beyond her wildest dreams.

She was alive.

“Come!” She announced to the group of handicapped dancers. “I demand a king to help me rule!”

A confused stallion stepped forth. She gripped his equality mask and wrenched it off. Then she gasped. With Coco constantly going over the lines, she would’ve thought the stallion to be more handsome.

This was weird. First, being aged instantly to an adult, then being critical of a handsome stallion. She would take the tiara off as soon as the play was over.

She lifted a hoof up. “Play some music! I will dance with my new King!”

The band started to play some Vivaldi. Seasons, she recalled as she recognized the piece. Maybe the times Randolph pounded his classical music into her head wasn't so useless after all.

Suddenly, the stallion gripped her hooves and started to twirl with her. As they passed round by round, she grew more and more comfortable.

More actors approached her, lifting their chains and equalities. This was her moment. She reached down a tore at each block, chain, and mask with all the fury she could muster.

The actors joined her as they twirled around in a mesmerizing charade. The stallion was so kind to guide her through the steps.

He spun her around, twirled again, and dipped.

“FIRE!” she heard behind her suddenly.

A pie flew through the air and slapped her in the face. She fell to the floor. Her heart sank.

“Party’s over. Put your equalities back on, NOW!” She heard.

“Wow, Dazzle! I didn't know you could do that!” Coco applauded.

Surrounded by flash photography, she stuck up her neck. Her head buzzed with pride, it felt good. Like she was floating on air.

Then, she noticed somepony in the crowd. A filly, like a reflection of the past, stared back at her with cold green eyes. Her coat was orange, and her mane a cherry red. She frowned. When she noticed Dazzle looking at her, she turned away.

Dazzle tucked her head in. A headache pinged, and sharply slammed into her skull like a railroad spike. It worsened as the flash of lights pulsed through her vision. Everything was blurry as the lights were burned into her irises. She darted as quick as she could out of the crowd and retreated towards the backroom.

She was a demon. Why was she getting this? She didn't even deserve it. This is the reason why her parents sent her away. The cycle was repeating over again. Once she was shown any bit of love or attention, she hurt somepony. She hurt that filly in the crowd.

“Dazzle. Are you okay?” she heard Coco as the door creaked open.

Dazzle hid her face, trying her best to hold back tears.

“Dazzle?” Coco asked again.

Dazzle looked up. Through blurry eyes, she saw the Silhouette of Coco in the door.

Coco flicked on the lights.

She smiled gently, and started to clamber over the many props. It was interesting, like a new plot to one of her plays, because those props were the equalities that Dazzle ripped apart.

“I… I just needed some air.” Dazzle answered.

Coco took a knee next to the chair.

“I-I don't know what came over me. I felt so good, so important… then it…” Dazzle coughed.

“Curdled?” Coco sighed. “Knots in your stomach? Can't breathe? The world is about to fall apart?”

Dazzle nodded. “Dizzy… about to throw up…”

“Yes, I know. That's the life of an artist.” Coco said. “You did great.”

“Why didn't I feel it onstage though?”

“I have no idea.” Coco patted her on the back. “You are amazing, Dazzle. You did better than me. The first time I was on stage, my lines went… poof!” She waved her hooves out, miming fireworks. “I stuttered all of them. Thankfully, I was playing a minor character. The fact that you were able to play a starring role and ace it first try shows that you are a magical filly.”

Dazzle picked up the tiara from the old worn table in front of her. She did her best to avert her eyes from the monster in the mirror. “Or, it's just an enchantment.” She said as she clutched the tiara.

“Enchantment or not, you saved the show.” Coco said. “If we didn't finish, we had to give out refunds.”

Dazzle looked at her. Then went back to staring at the tiara in her hooves.

Coco tilted her head, eyeing the tiara with fondness. “I got a secret to tell you.”

Dazzle's ears perked up. “A secret?”

Coco leaned into her ear. “He told me that Twilight was coming to see the play. However, he told me to keep it a secret. That's why in the office, I was half tempted to call the second play off.

“At first, I was terrified. A princess? Coming to my work? It is an honor… but I had to make this good.” Coco continued. “What I didn't know is that he had something special planned. That's the thing about his work. He is simple, but his simple style usually has a hidden surprise.”

Dazzle looked at her tiara. Something… curdled inside her. It wasn't normal. She wanted it out.

“The night my parents… my parents…” tears welled up in her eyes.

Coco smiled. “I understand. Go on.”

“That night, I tried to give away my tiara. But he insisted I keep it. I don't understand why he is so kind to me when I've been nothing but cruel to him.”

Coco twisted her lips a bit. Then hugged Dazzle “You weren't. He mentions in his letters to me how he is proud of you and what you are doing.”

Dazzle's heart ached, it churned, it twisted, and burst like a popped balloon. She could feel her face melting as her muzzle was plugged up and her eyes were puffy with tears. She didn’t want to be this gooey- it made her feel… cheesy.

However, this felt right. Somehow, an improper way of acting, contrary to what her parents taught, she was crying on a shoulder of a stranger she only met weeks ago.

…If being mushy was like this, then she didn’t mind.

Coco patted her on the back. “Tell you what. I'll tell the others you are tired and that a filly needs her beauty sleep.” Coco trotted towards the door.

“Coco?”

“Yes, Dazzle?” Coco looked over her shoulder.

“C-can we go to the h-hospital tomorrow?” Dazzle asked.

“We sure can!” Coco smiled. She reached for the door.

“Coco?”

“Yes Dazzle?” Coco paused.

“Th-thank you…” Dazzle sniffled.

“You're very Welcome Dazzle.” Coco looked back and smiled. She started to hum as she stepped out the door. It was an awful familiar tune, from the play. The one that Pinkie belted out.

Dazzle couldn’t help but start humming also.

It was a catchy tune.

Chapter 12: Welcome to the Hospital

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Dazzle looked away from the needle. Even if she had an aging spell on, she was still had the same squeamishness about needles. She distracted herself with the room.

Bland, as a hospital room was. A couple chairs were arranged near her. A poster on the other side of the room caught her eye. It had a stallion with a lab coat and a stethoscope on the barrel of a little filly. The caption said ‘Helping tiny hearts for 47 years.’

“Confirmed,” The nurse stated. She put a vial of blood on a nearby rack. “Blood type AB positive.”

Dazzle looked at her cutie mark. Her cutie mark was of a drop of blood. It perfectly matched her name; Blood Transfusion. A rather haphazard name, if Dazzle said so herself. But, yet a useful talent to have.

She flinched as the needle was pulled out of her foreleg. The doctor dabbed the affected area with a cotton ball and wrapped a bandage around it. She was surprised that is was not the colorful bandage that foals got after taking their vaccination, but the plain, tan, older grown-up pony bandage.

She forgot that being older came with its own downsides. But that was the stipulation for her volunteering at the hospital’s laboratory.

As he looked at the pinprick on her other foreleg, the doctor stated, “No sign of Tuberculosis either.”

Dazzle raised an eyebrow. She babied her left foreleg as a ghost pinprick would haunt her every time. How many hoops had she to jump through? Didn’t they know that is was Princess Twilight Sparkle that recommended her in the first place?

“Everything is in order! Wel-” The doctor said before being interrupted.

Dazzle’s smile dropped.

“Not so fast, Doctor Globin!” The nurse toted a clipboard and said “One final thing before completing the application- Organ donor?”

“What?” Dazzle asked “Why would you need to know that?”

“It’s a simple question- yes or no.”

She bit her tongue as words from the past came back to her. She should learn how to be kind. To be patient. Coco seemed to be good at it. Another thought crossed her mind: Relax, they are just trying to make sure everypony is safe. Tuberculosis is a horrible disease to spread.

Dazzle calmly replied “Yes.”

Doctor Globin walked up to her and held out a hoof. “Diamond Dazzle Tiara, welcome to Mane-hattan North Hospital.”

She accepted it and smiled. “Glad to be here.”

“Follow us out.” The Doctor instructed, trotting out of the room. The nurse followed him. Dazzle got up and tailed both of them.

Once outside, Doctor Globin greeted her with a smile. “Being the first day, let’s have a tour.” He said.

As they trotted down the hallway, they came to a shop filled with flowers. The doctor held open the door. The nurse trotted in and greeted the mare at the desk. “Zinnia, meet our new recruit!”

“How do you do?” Zinnia greeted as she held out a hoof and Dazzle shook it. “Welcome to Mane-hattan North Hospital.”

Zinnia reminded Dazzle of those flighty flower mares back in Ponyville, but older. She had a pink and yellow mane with a tan coat.

Doctor Globin stepped in and gestured to Zinnia. “Zinnia is head of flower delivery at this hospital, she will teach you how to sign for deliveries and deliver packages, mostly flowers to the patient’s rooms.”

Dazzle flicked her ears. Her? Doing Deliveries? Wasn’t she going to be too busy in the lab?

Before she could say anything, Nurse Transfusion pushed her out of the room and back into the hallway.

Geez, why did Nurse Transfusion have to be so pushy?

“Next up, this is the wing to the Emergency. You might be called there once in a blue moon. It’s fast-paced, but critical to the survival of some patients coming in.” Doctor Globin pointed a hoof down a corridor.

“Doctor?” Dazzle started. “Don’t mean to be hasty, but when do we get to the Laboratories?” She asked.

“Oh, that is on fourth floor, on the opposite side of the building from the ICU.” Doctor Globin answered. “We’ll get there. Just 2 more floors.”

Dazzle’s ears dropped. She sighed.

“Next up is the cafeteria, with your card that you get next week, you get a free meal each time you clock in.” He waved a hoof down another corridor.

Dazzle could smell the delicious food wafting out of the kitchen. The smell of hay-burgers and hay fries hung in the air. The clattering of utensils and the din of chattering ponies signaled her that the it was rush hour for them. She licked her lips.

“Speaking of which, its lunch time, C’mon, I’ll buy you something!” The doctor added.

Dazzle didn’t have to be asked twice. Food was always inviting.

Up ahead, there were a couple more doctors with nurses in line with a couple ponies in between.

“Ugh, new recruit line is always the longest.” Doctor Globin grumbled. “Sorry, Diamond.”

“Dazzle, actually.” She corrected. “And I don’t mind the line. So, these are all the new recruits?”

“Yep.” Doctor Globin answered.

“Each department gets one-to-two new volunteers every month or so. Heh, high turnover… what can you do?” Nurse Transfusion added. “There is the Neurological department, the Skeletal Department, and so forth.” She pointed to a Doctor to the next one.

“This is a weird hospital.” Dazzle said.

Doctor Globin chuckled “Just the way we work. There is a method to this madness, believe me.”

Dazzle nodded.

“Hey hey, cook! How’s it going?”

The mare in behind the counter smiled. She was tall and slim, her brown hair caught up in a hair net. “How’s it going Doctor Globin?”

“Fine! How are you?” He asked.

“Great!” The mare said. “It was a heckuva day a few days ago- Princess Twilight almost cleaned us out of hay fries!”

Doctor Globin laughed. “It was sure an interesting day when she showed up. We had to practically coax her into making sure she didn’t have the Corrosion!”

The mare laughed and lifted up a notepad “The usual?”

“You know me so well!” Doctor Globin said.

Dazzle looked at the menu, trying to decide for herself. Oh, so many choices, but the daily special caught her eye. Fettuccini with Celery, served with a roll and a drink.

“What would like to order?” The mare asked Dazzle.

“The daily special.”

“What would you like to drink?”

She looked through, and picked one “Black cherry soda.”

“Got-cha!” The mare said, tapping the order onto a notepad. “Anything else?”

“Nothing else.”

“Alright! Order will be at the end!” She pointed to where Doctor Globin was out. He was taking out his wallet.

“I’m paying for her too.” Doctor Globin said to the cashier as he pointed to Dazzle.

After he swiped his card, he took the tray by his hoof and trotted to an empty table.

Nurse Transfusion trotted by. “Need me to carry it?”

Doctor Globin rolled his eyes and stuck out his tongue. “No, I got it.”

They took a seat at the table, which was marked with a folded greeting card. The card had an anatomical diagram of a heart with a “Cardiac Department” printed on it. Others were there as well. Another Doctor, Nurse, and a colt.

“So glad to finally have an earth pony come into the hospital!” The other Doctor said.

Nurse Transfusion rolled her eyes and scoffed. “That's right, Platelet. finally scored another one.” She said blandly.

Dazzle raised an eyebrow. She looked around, spotting Pegasai and Unicorns. Mostly Unicorns though. That was odd, she was the only Earth Pony.

Dazzle looked back to Doctor Globin. Unicorn. Next to him was Platelet, who was scribbling down some notes with a pen in his mouth. Also Unicorn. The Nurse next to him. Pegasai, white coat with a frizzled red mane. Cutie mark of O2. The colt right next to her. Unicorn. Primed back pink mane, white coat. Cutie mark of a strand of DNA. What made Dazzle more comfortable is that Nurse Transfusion was also an Earth.

“Why aren't there so many Earth Ponies?” Dazzle asked.

Doctor Globin exchanged glances with Nurse Transfusion. “Last few got fired. We figure that they were aggravated and told their friends about it. Hence, a shortage of Earth Ponies.” He said.

“Hope you don't have anything against Unicorns.” The colt next to her turned and held out a hoof. “Myrrh Helix.”

“Dazzle Tiara.” Dazzle replied, accepting his hoof. “It was just a question.”

“Gotcha.” He said as he went back to sipping his drink.

Doctor Globin made a racket as he struggled to open his container. “Ugh, this is so hard.” He complained. After a little finagling, he opened it and picked up the wrap with his mouth.

“Want me to spoon feed it to you, baby?” Nurse Transfusion said, taking a bite out of her daisy sandwich.

Doctor Globin chuckled. “Try eating with your most dominant hoof tied behind your back.” He replied.

Dazzle inched away from them. She knew they were flirting. Ugh, ever since she put the tiara on, she wasn't used to being a grown up. Maybe she’d tell Twilight that there were a couple bugs. Dazzle decided on munching on her fettuccini was better than thinking about it.

Doctor Globin haphazardly munched on his wrap. Everything was quiet for a while, until another pony took a seat next to Dazzle.

“How's it going on the sample, Platelet?” A familiar voice said.

“You're not supposed to be here. This is induction for volunteers only.” Platelet narrowed his eyes.

“I know I'm late. Got caught up again with another tangent.” The pony replied. “I figure it wouldn't hurt to pop in and have a look see at our new volunteers.”

“Time for you to get a new watch.” Doctor Globin said.

“Working on it. Just hadn't had the time.” He said. “Ha! Get it? Just hadn't had the time!”

Dazzle turned to the Stallion. Her jaw dropped. “Yttrium?”

He looked over to her and his eyes widened. “Dazzle? H-how?”

Dazzle chuckled as she pulled off her tiara. “Princess Twilight enchanted my tiara.” She felt herself shrink back into her tiny filly body.

Soda came out of Platelet's nose. The nurse next him had her jaw hanging open. Myrrh leaned over to take a peek at her. His eyes widened.

Doctor Globin laughed “And that's why we were late. We never had a volunteer whose real age was eleven. Hence, more paperwork.”

“Sweet Celestia… you should've warned us first.” Platelet said. His eyes watered as he coughed. “You'd better be careful, or you'll end up with another patient to worry about.”

“Agreed.” The nurse next to him said. “Not to mention, Mare-ison Bergeron.”

“What?” Doctor Globin looked back at Dazzle “The star of the play that mysteriously disappeared after she ran backstage?”

“Precisely.” Nurse Transfusion said. “Honestly… you didn’t notice while filing out her paperwork?”

Doctor Globin blushed.

Yttrium nodded. “Here’s my claim to fame. Look at the coat, seems familiar?” Yttrium pointed at the lab coat that Dazzle had on. “You really like that thing, don't you?”

Dazzle smiled as she put her Tiara back on. “It's fits me better when I'm older.”

Doctor Globin stiffened. “Wait… why do you have his lab coat?”

“You’re not all here today, are you?” The nurse next to Platelet teased.

“He gave it to me.” Dazzle said. “This is the whole reason why I came to the hospital, to work with Yttrium.”

Nurse Transfusion took a sip of her soda. “That must've explained why she asked about the labs. That also explains why they put her in the Cardiac Department.”

“Oh no.” Doctor Globin pointed a hoof at Yttrium. “You are not stealing the only Earth Pony volunteer to help in your research.”

“Relaaaaax.” Yttrium waved a hoof. “We can share.”

“Wait… what?” Dazzle asked.

“Don't you know? You have to at least volunteer three weeks working in the labs.” Yttrium explained. “And that's not including twelve weeks of training.”

“Did you even read the paperwork you signed?” Nurse Transfusion asked with a smug look on her face. “You're stuck with us, mare. Or should I say, immature filly?”

Dazzle knew it was cliché to think it. She grumbled. “You tricked me!”

“Easy.” Doctor Globin stuffed a hoof over Nurse Transfusion’s mouth before she could say anything else.

Yttrium put a hoof over Dazzle's shoulder, signaling her to stay down.

“You can't change the fact that you can't terminate her contract with the hospital. She either has to decline it or do something malicious.” Yttrium explained. “Now, Let's stop making a scene. The other Departments are watching.”

Dazzle glanced around. Another feeling of Deja vu hit her. She got up from her seat and announced. “Sorry everyone. Heated argument.”

Everypony slowly got back to eating their food, trying to distract themselves from the scene.

Yttrium smiled at Dazzle. “Done that before haven't you?”

“When I was a filly.” Dazzle joked.

Yttrium snickered. He looked to the group and said. “Let's get to the Cardiac Department before it gets crowded. I had enough judgement from other Departments for today.”

Dazzle followed Yttrium as the rest of the group trailed behind. Everything was quiet except the clatter of hooves going through the hallway.

Dazzle looked behind, with the indifferent faces of everypony, except Nurse Transfusion. She glared at Dazzle.

“This is the waiting room.” Yttrium gestured. The room was filled with chairs and coffee tables with some magazines scattered about. Dazzle could tell that it was well used. For one reason or another, there seemed to be only a few ponies present.

Dazzle recognized the room, as it was the one Coco and her waited in before meeting Yttrium.

Doctor Globin keyed in a code next to the door, then a click was heard. He pulled and held the door open.

“...And finally, the Cardiac Department.” Yttrium announced.

Immediately inside, facing the doors, was a little area with a couple chairs and a few counters. Underneath, there were a couple binders.

“This is the Nurse's station.” Doctor Globin gestured. “When you start your shift here the nurses will clock you in.”

They filed into the station and Doctor Globin pulled a binder out. “Every morning, you'll note the status of each patient in this wing of the hospital. It may sound like a lot, but with many hooves, it’ll get done quickly.”

Nurse Transfusion sat down in a chair and pulled out a stethoscope and a pressure cuff from the drawer. She wiped it down the stethoscope with a disinfecting cloth, and put it in her ears.

“Nurse Transfusion will show you how to take blood pressure.” Doctor Globin said.

Myrrh eagerly stepped forward. Nurse Transfusion wrapped the cuff around his foreleg.

“Doctor Fuse.” said a voice behind them.

All of them looked at another nurse standing near Yttrium.

“Doctor, there is a patient in critical condition. Come quickly.”

Yttrium nodded and started to follow.

“Can I come with you?” Dazzle blurted. She didn't know what got to her, but for some strange reason, she wanted to follow him. Maybe it was because she wanted to stay as far away from Nurse Transfusion as possible.

Yttrium smiled.

“Not yet, Doctor.” Nurse Transfusion said. “She hasn't even learned proper precautions yet…”

Yttrium waved a hoof. “Relax. It is not like she needs to put a spell on her horn.”

Now that was just weird. Didn't Yttrium know that Dazzle was an Earth Pony?

“But…” Nurse Transfusion stopped herself and glared.

Dazzle didn't comment though, since it apparently shut Nurse Transfusion up.

“Come. Watch and learn my magic.” He said.

Dazzle tailed him as they trotted down the halls.

“What's her problem?” Dazzle asked.

“Watch your tone.” Yttrium whispered. “Some patients are sleeping.”

Dazzle saw. As they passed by some room, she saw a whole assortment of ponies either in horrible condition, hooked up to countless machines. There was an occasional one that looked ready to get out of here.

As they passed by the countless rooms, she noticed another set of doors. This time, instead of wood doors, it was a heavy steel door.

The nurse keyed in the passcode, and walked inside. “Who's the new recruit?”

“This is Dazzle. I believe you remember Coco?” He asked.

“I sure do.” She said.

“She is bunking with Coco for now.”

“Gotcha.”

“Dazzle, this is Mrs. Radius, one of my colleagues.” Yttrium introduced. “Go ahead and shake her hoof. I can't because I need to sanitize.”

“Sanitize?” Dazzle asked.

“You'll see.”

Dazzle obeyed and offered a hoof. “Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too!” She turned back towards Yttrium. “Anyways, the poor thing is in stage three of the Corrosion.”

“Mrs. Avocado?” His expression hardened.

“Yes.” She said, trotting down the hallway. As they followed, she slipped into another room.

“After you.” Yttrium said, gesturing her in.

Dazzle saw. Inside, was a Unicorn mare. She had a brown coat with a green mane. However. She had her eyes barely open. Most notably, her horn was covered in a thick white dust. Beneath the dust, the texture was as pockmarked as swiss cheese.

“Mrs. Avocado, I hope you don't mind, I'm training Dazzle here.”

The mare answered weakly. “You're good.” Her eyes shifted towards Dazzle. Dazzle noticed her irises shook violently. “How's it going, sweetheart?”

“Uhm… good.” Dazzle said, trying to be careful with the situation.

“That's good.” She said.

“Watch and learn.” Yttrium said as his horn started to glow a light blue. He closed his eyes. Suddenly, an outer shell of a ghostly green shrouded the blue. The coated aura latched onto a machine. then started to scan Mrs. Avocado's horn.

“What spell was that?” She asked.

“Sanitizing and protecting.” Mrs. Radius said. She flew up and took a bottle of liquid and a bottle of milky solution off the shelf. She noticed the ridges of her wings were highlighted the same ghostly green. She faced Dazzle “Doctor Fuse has to protect himself from the Corrosion.”

She watched as Yttrium worked away, pouring the liquid onto Mrs. Avocado’s horn and then pouring it with powder.

“This is a basic solution.” He held up the bottle and put it back on the shelf. “Do you know what an acid is?” He asked.

“A liquid that melts stuff?” Dazzle answered.

“Yep.” Yttrium said. “A base is quite the opposite, and it neutralizes the acid. Pour that with a couple specks of Carbon-Fiber or Silicon Dioxide” He lifted the bottle with the gray powder. “Non-toxic to Unicorn horns by the way.” He put it back up on the shelf. “The graphite allows the horn to grow back.”

“What causes this in the first place?” Dazzle asked.

“Remember the curse I spoke about a while back? This strain is called the Corrosion.” He said. “It has a variety of Specific charms, from inverted flying, loss of vision, or lowering of voice.” He sighed. “All those effects are curable, except one.” He looked at the mare in the hospital bed. “Corroded horn. Slowly, it seeps into the meninges, and pulls the unicorn into a coma. We can hold it off for months of intense treatment, but it is inevitable.”

A tear fell out of Mrs. Avocado’s eye.

Dazzle shuddered. “Should I be protecting myself?”

“Luckily, you do not. It’s an odd occurrence, but we noticed an odd correlation, and it seems that Earth Ponies are exempt.” His tone became lighter. “You neither contract it nor carry it.”

Wait… that meant...

“You're immune.” Mrs. Radius said.

Dazzle's jaw dropped.

“That's why I wanted Coco to help me. She wouldn't be affected whatsoever. But because she is so busy, as with every other Earth Pony I've talked to, they all decline. The few that have come in have quit before three weeks probation is up.”

“Hospital life is tough.” Radius started. “The only reason why I made it is because my advantage is to fly ponies quickly and smoothly from room to room. Whenever in a hurry, I'm your mare.”

“Because of magic, I can perform operations without cutting open the chest.” Yttrium said. “Pegasai and Unicorns have an advantage in the hospital at first, but there are things that we can't touch directly.” He gestured to Mrs. Avocado’s horn.

“So, no matter what you do, do not quit… The labs need ponies like you to find the cure.” Yttrium said. “Things will be tough since you are Earth Pony. But the reward is that your disadvantage becomes an advantage that holds the key to unlocking the cure.”

So much responsibility upon her shoulders. This was only the start. Dazzle wondered if it could get any worse.

Mrs. Avocado glanced towards Dazzle and smiled. “I'm counting on you.” Even with her tired eyes, Dazzle felt warmth when she smiled.

Yttrium stepped out. Dazzle took one last look at her, and said “I'll do my best.”

Mrs. Radius shut the door behind them.

“So, how hard is it going to get?” Dazzle asked.

“Depends on how smart you are.” He tapped his temple. “But I believe in you. As long as you work hard, you'll be able to join me in the lab. Just three short weeks.”

Dazzle looked back at the closed metal door that led into Mrs. Avocado’s room. She hoped that the mare could hold on.

“This is a little odd for your first day.” Yttrium said. “But, since you wanted to follow, I figured it couldn't hurt.”

Yttrium started down the hallway, his hooves clattering softly against the white floor.

Dazzle followed him back to the Nurses station. As they trotted, he stopped at a room and pointed at a wooden door. “This is my office. Whenever you need me, whether you are having a hard time, or just need a friend to talk to, just come in.”

“Thank you.” Dazzle said.

“Let's get back to the group.” Yttrium instructed. He nudged Dazzle. “Ready to work hard?”

Dazzle lifted her head up. “I'll do my best.”

Chapter 13: Hearing

View Online

November

The clatter of hooves echoed across the stone floor. Dazzle would’ve expected the courtroom to be a little more regal, but the stands, the benches, the tables, the walls, all the way up to the ceiling were made up of wood. Each and every time, her surroundings felt less of home, and more distant, even more so… ominous.

As many ponies took their seats, Dazzle's heart raced. She hadn't seen droves of ponies like this before. She whispered to Coco “I know it's a big city, but honestly, doesn't everypony have stuff to do?”

Coco nodded. She adjusted her dress, which she picked out for the occasion. “Always busy. They give up a business day to show up for these things they are randomly called to.”

“Wait... you mean that they are randomly selected?” Dazzle asked. She thought for a second that they were showing up because they had some relationship with her family.

“Most of them.” Coco said. “The few that we recognize are the ones on their own account. Oh, speaking of which, there he is.”

A lean, purple coated stallion with a scraggly white mane stepped in. He bore a slanted frown, as if critiquing a painting. Although he had an intimidating scowl, the very sight of him made Dazzle smile.

She hopped out of her seat and approached him.

That austere frown a was replaced by a warm smile. “Good to see you again, Mistress Tiara.”

She leaned in and embraced him. A warm feeling gathered around her. She felt his hooves brush the crown of her head.

“I see that you aren't wearing a tiara.” Randolph said.

“Wearing it might make it hard to tell my age.” Diamond giggled.

“Ah,” Randolph clicked his tongue and nodded. He raised a hoof to check his watch. After checking the time, he nudged Dazzle. “Go join Coco. The hearing will begin shortly.”

Diamond took her seat. She grinned at Coco. However, Coco looked… worried. At least more than usual.

Before she could give it any more thought, a voice boomed throughout the courtroom “Please Arise!”

After the whole courtroom finished up their conversations and arose. The judge instructed “Court is now in session. You may take your seats.” She pounded her hammer like a knife on a cutting board. Diamond shuddered.

Clearing her throat, the mare read the statement on the stand in front of her. “Coco Pommel. We have received your request filed for the legal guardianship over Diamond Dazzle Tiara.”

Coco flashed a concerned look towards Diamond.

“We will hear every side, starting with you, followed by Diamond, followed by her current legal guardian. Afterwards, the Jury will discuss the matter. After which, the final verdict will be given.”

Coco stood up and trotted towards the stand. When she stepped up, the officer had her raise her hoof.

The officer near the stand instructed “You swear, under oath, that you will tell the truth and nothing but the truth.”

She repeated “I swear I will tell the truth and nothing but the truth.”

The officer grunted and Coco took her seat.

The judge started, staring out to the rest of the room, not giving Coco a sideways glance “Coco Pommel, since you are the one this process affects, it is necessary to examine your motives. Why did you apply and send in the paper work?”

“I thought about this for a long time.” Coco said solemnly. “To put it simply, Dazzle is in need. I cannot ignore or neglect that need. To do so would be injustice. But, whereas it is a duty, it is also my pleasure. I don't do it to meet requirements, but out of friendship.”

Dazzle never heard more eloquent words. She was surprised that Coco was able to state it firmly. She must've had some practice.

The judge grunted. “You understand the scope of how much responsibility will be placed upon your shoulders to be the legal guardian of Diamond Dazzle Tiara?”

“I understand.”

“By accepting this, you are subject to cross examination of your background. Do you wish to proceed?”

“Yes.” Coco said with a nod.

“We will hear from all sides of the story. The jury will make final consensus after that.” The judge said. “You may have a seat.”

“Thank you.” Coco stepped down from the wooden stand and took her seat.

“Diamond,” The judge gestured towards her.

“You're up Dazzle.” Coco said.

Dazzle felt a pit in her stomach form. Suddenly, that same feeling pushed her forward with the same energizing feeling she had on the night of the play.

The officer by the stand held a hoof, but Dazzle whispered “No thanks… I got it.” as she clambered up the steep stairs.

When she got herself into the chair, The officer near the stand repeated. “You swear, under oath, that you will tell the truth and nothing but the truth.”

“I swear to tell the truth and nothing but the truth.” Dazzle said. A knot formed in her stomach. What if she didn't tell the full truth?

“Diamond Dazzle Tiara,” The judge started. “From your side of the story, is there anything in Miss Pommel's conduct that is harmful or degrading towards you?”

Dazzle smiled. She knew this one was easy “No. Coco is a nice, sweet, gentle mare.” She tried to say with the same eloquence

The audience shifted. Some of them gave raised eyebrows. Some whispered in each other's ears. She noticed Coco with a intense look of worry on her. Randolph rubbed his face with his hoof.

Dazzle's ears lowered. She did something wrong- she could feel it from the ponies in the audience.

“Mmmmm.” The judge mumbled. “How many meals per day do you get?”

“Uhm, all three.” Dazzle said.

“How much rest do you get?”

Dazzle paused. She thought of mentioning how her rest was hard to get because of the city noise and the transition she made. Not to mention… the nightmares she had on the daily. But she didn't want to make Coco look bad again… that is if she did.

The judge cleared her throat.

Dazzle didn't want to lie either, so she said. “On average, six hours.”

The whole jury gasped. Coco's eyes widened. Randolph clenched his teeth.

The judge nodded grimly. “Diamond Dazzle Tiara, are you happy?”

“Now what kind of question is that? Yes!” Dazzle answered. She didn’t fear any disapproval- she would make sure that Coco would win this… meeting… or whatever the heck it was.

“Thank you, that is quite enough. You may have a seat.” The judge said.

Dazzle was let off the stand and she stepped towards Coco. She didn't want to look Coco in the eyes. After all. Dazzle knew she betrayed her.

“Randolph.”

Randolph got up from his seat and trotted slowly towards the stand.

The officer to the side of the stand help up a hoof, but Randolph held another hoof up and smiled. The officer sank back down in his chair.

“Randolph, as the current legal guardian, are you in any way, shape, or form opposed to Ms. Pommel's request?”

“No.” Randolph said.

“Is she currently residing with you?” The judge asked.

“No.” Randolph stated.

“Reason?” The judge asked.

“Section 319B of the Foal Protective Services handbook.” Randolph stated. “If the current place of residence is in any, way, shape, or form unsafe or unfit for habitation, then movement to a secure location is required.”

The jury whispered in between themselves.

The judge raised an eyebrow. “In the application, it is noted that you aren't the biological guardian. Can you confirm?”

“I am not.” Randolph said.

“What is her current connection to you?” The judge asked.

“Caregiver. Her biological parents are severing ties.” Randolph answered. “Come in a month, I'm the only legal guardian left of hers.”

“Is there anything you want to add before we hear from the citizens of Mane-hattan?”

“None.” He said.

“You may have a seat.”

He frailly stepped down from the stand and sat back down in his seat.

“Snow Globe.” The judge asked.

From the crowd, a mare stepped forward.

Dazzle recognized the mare. Though, she couldn't place where.

After the oath, the judge started, “Snow Globe, since you have mentioned you know the mare and the filly, and also have come to this hearing on your own account; please shed some light for us.”

“Well,” Snow Globe started. “I don't know them personally, but I have something to add.”

“I usually tend the back offices, but I was put on the front desk for the day to fill in for Mrs. Clampers. So, on that cold morning, these two came in. At first, I was wondering what such a young mare in her twenties be doing with a filly that's almost a teenager, if your records are right.”

“That's accurate. Proceed.” The judge said.

“When she asked for a form, I gave it to her.” Snow Globe continued. “Then, during the middle of the paperwork, Miss Tiara hugged Miss Pommel. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but if the ages were different, like Coco being older or Diamond being younger, I would’ve mistaken them as mother and daughter.”

The jury shifted about. Faint whispers were heard.

“Thank you.” The judge stated. “We'll take that into account.”

The hearing was taking forever. Not because Dazzle was bored; She was paying close attention. It was because the minutes inched by like hours.

What if the jury didn't agree with their plea? What would she do?

“Berry Ice.”

A shuffle in the crowd could be heard as a mare approached.

As soon as she laid eyes on the mare, Dazzle's heart stopped. She recognized who this mare was. It was three weeks ago, but she could remember it clearly, a bad memory reeled back it’s ugly face. Her left cheek started to burn.

It would be all over in minutes.

“... Berry Ice, you have mentioned you also have another side of the story.”

“Yes.” She replied. “I was minding my own business-”

Dazzle's blood boiled. She surged up and shouted. “I KNOW THIS MARE! SHE SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE!”

The jury was sent into commotion.

“ORDER IN THE COURT!” The judge pounded her gavel.

The court went silent.

The judge glared a Dazzle.

“Dazzle, sit down… please.” Coco whispered.

Dazzle looked to Coco who had a genuine look of worry on her face- a look of desperation, as if she was pleading for her own life.

Dazzle sat down and the judge cleared her throat.

“Berry Ice, continue.” The judge fixed her collar.

“As I was saying, I was minding my own business until a snobbish, self-centered brat with no manners bumped into me.” Ice Berry narrowed her eyes at Dazzle. “I do not like the idea of her living with Coco.”

“Reason?” The judge asked.

“The fame and fortune of Coco Pommel would corrupt her. Coco is slowly rising up the charts. Publicity would be with Dazzle's grasp. And she would use it for selfish desires.”

“Objection.”

Dazzle turned to her right. Coco was standing firmly. Why of all times did she take a stand right now? Just a while ago, Dazzle tried to cut in, but that was denied.

“Hmmm…” The judge said. She nodded firmly “Allowed.”

“I understand your concern, Berry Ice.” Coco started, with a voice that echoed gracefully through the courtroom. “If I may be so bold to say, I felt I was unfit to have Dazzle for a little while. But, let me tell you this. Once Dazzle came, my productivity increased. I knew that I had a filly to take care of, and I was going to do everything in my power to make sure her needs were provided for.”

Dazzle stood in awe. Coco was glowing with confidence and power. She had never seen that before.

“So, in other words, fame isn't going to corrupt Dazzle. Dazzle has become my inspiration and motivation.” Coco finished. “I end my objection.” She sat back down.

Dazzle smirked.

Berry Ice glared at Dazzle.

“Proceed.” The Judge instructed.

Berry Ice shook her head. “I would like to end my remarks.”

“Very well, have a seat.”

Berry Ice hopped down from the stand and took a seat.

“The Jury had come to consensus. Since the biological parents are not present, a letter for final objection will be sent. It is agreed that after that time period, if Coco Pommel passes background check and Dazzle Tiara is registered into Mane-hatten’s Education System, then the guardianship is fulfilled and put into effect.” The Judge said. “Coco Pommel, what is your verdict?”

“I understand and agree to the terms and conditions.” She answered.

“And to you, Dazzle Tiara?”

Go figure. That no good, rotten Ice Berry had her two cents in this; sending her to school as a way to seethe.

The judge cleared her throat. “Well?”

Dazzle sighed “I agree.”

“Hearing adjourned.” The Judge pounded her hammer again.

Coco picked up her purse. Dazzle hoisted her saddlebags and fumbled with the latch.

“Went better than I thought it would.” she heard. Dazzle turned toward Randolph. He fixed his bowtie.

Coco nodded. “Although I got more things on my plate now.”

“It may be a hollow victory, but we still have reason to celebrate.” Randolph glanced at his watch. “My train doesn’t come until late this evening, so I might as well lollygag for a little while.”

“About time Cloudsdale stops teasing us with this cold weather.” Randolph looked out the window.

Snow fell like feathers outside. However, the bustling streets wouldn't allow any of it to set as slush was kicked up by every cart that passed by.

“Must be an omen.” Randolph chuckled. “On a cold evening like this one, Diamond came into the world.”

“Which brings me to another question, I’m getting confused whether to call her Diamond or Dazzle?” Coco asked, trading glances between Randolph and Diamond.

“I always called her Diamond.” Randolph lifted a brow. “Why? do you prefer Dazzle?” He said with his eyes shifting towards Diamond.

“I like the ring of my middle name.” Dazzle explained.

“Just like Yttrium!” Coco pointed out.

“Well...” Randolph chuckled. “I can see why they get along. Dazzle it is then!”

“Soup?” Coco asked, offering him a bowl with oven mittens on her hooves.

“Yes, thank you.” Randolph held out his hooves.

Coco shook her head. “Allow me, it needs some time to cool off.” Coco set the bowl in front of him on the table.

“Mmmm.” Randolph sniffed. “smells good.”

“Minestrone Soup.” Coco said. “I’m trying new things.”

“I could see that.” He said while staring out at the slushy streets below. “I heard the play was a success.”

“Oh yes! Coco made these beautiful dresses!” Dazzle cut in. “I got to see everything come to life!”

Coco made her way over to the steaming pot, and prepared another bowl.

“What can I say more? One of the best artists in all of Mane-hattan.” Randolph added.

“Oh, you’re too kind, Mr. Duster.” Coco set down another bowl in front of Dazzle.

Coco’s regard shook Dazzle out of her trance. “Wait… Mr. Duster?”

Randolph chuckled. “I see that Ms. Pommel hasn’t told you that she was once a student of mine.”

Coco’s cheeks grew rosy. She took a seat at the table after placing a bowl of soup for herself.

“Coco? A student?” Dazzle asked. “Was it long ago?”

“Careful, Diamond- er- Dazzle.” Randolph cut in. “Given the fact that Coco is in her late twenties, I’ve only taught her about twenty years ago. I’m old, but not that old.”

“So, how was Coco? Was she a good student?” Dazzle asked.

“She was an excellent student! Very respectful too!” Randolph said. “Although her friends got her into trouble.”

“Now, Mr. Duster, I don’t think Dazzle needs to know about this…” Coco grimaced.

Randolph grinned. “Remember when you pushed me out of the way of a falling sewing machine?”

“Wait! I gotta hear this!” Dazzle propped her head with her forehooves.

“You don’t need to tell her… I wasn’t my best self.” Coco grimaced.

“If I remember, it was you, Cilantro, and Thyme that were in detention.” Randolph continued, seeming ignoring Coco’s plea.

Coco’s face went strawberry red.

Randolph continued. “Even being a prestigious school, the immaturity of the younger generation can baffle you. That week, Cilantro, Coco, and Thyme were caught cheating on an exam.”

Dazzle gasped. She looked over to Coco. She was slowly ducking under the table. Her face as red as Sweet Apple Acres in Summer.

“So, I had to foalsit them after school.” He scoffed “I had no idea what was going through their mind, but as the old saying goes: foals be foals.”

Anyways, there I was, trying to grade assignments, when Coco warily got up out of her seat. I scolded her to get back in her seat and do her schoolwork. Coco was trying to get my attention, when suddenly she pushed me out of the way.”

He shook his head and smiled. “That wobbly cabinet would’ve sent a thirty-pound sewing machine on my head. But, instead, It fell on Coco.”

Coco, with a twist in her mouth, said “It wasn't life threatening. I just got a couple scrapes.”

“And a broken hindleg.” Randolph added. “Anyways, even when she tries to deny it, she saved me, I daresay, my life.”

Dazzle smiled at Coco. She first saved Randolph from a sewing machine. Then, she saved Dazzle from a cart.

“Needless to say, she spent time in the hospital after that.” Randolph said, taking a sip of his soup “It’s good now, the soup has cooled down.”

“Speaking of hospitals, Dazzle is volunteering.” Coco pointed out.

Dazzle glanced back at Coco. She knew she was trying to get off the subject. But, she didn’t mind. After all, she was spending time with Randolph.

“Is that so?” Randolph raised an eyebrow.

“Yup, I’m helping Yttrium with Corrosion!” Dazzle said.

“Oooh, that sounds very exciting.” Randolph folded his hooves on the table as his gaze fixed on Dazzle.

“All thanks to Princess Twilight.” Coco said. She nudged Dazzle “Why don’t you put on your tiara?”

“Only with my lab coat, Okay?” Dazzle trotted over to her saddlebags, which were set nicely next to the coffee table in the living room.

“Okay…” She heard Coco giggle.

Dazzle popped on the tiara and draped on the lab coat. She felt her body stretch. She felt a little dizziness every time her field of view lifted of the ground, like the dizziness on an amusement park ride.

She stepped back into the dining kitchen and took a seat at the table.

“Ah, all grown up.” Randolph gestured to Dazzle.

“Mare-ison Tiara.” Coco said with flair in her voice. It sounded like a host at a beauty pageant. She’d seen enough of those with her parents to put a hoof on it.

Dazzle gracefully bowed. Suddenly, her tiara slipped off and she popped back into her tiny filly body.

Dazzle scrambled to put the tiara back on. She cringed. Usually if her tiara fell off after a gesture like that, her mother would lecture her. Instead, she turned to the smiling faces of Coco and Randolph- both amused by her accident.

To pass any leftover awkwardness, Dazzle figured now would be a good time. “Enough about me. How are things going back in Ponyville? I’m dying to know how Silver Spoon is doing.”

Randolph smile faded.

Dazzle heart sunk.

“Trust me, you do not want to know what’s going on back at home.” He cautioned.

After she formulated the right words in her head, Dazzle spoke “I’ve been receiving letters from the Cutie Mark Crusaders, but Silver Spoon hasn’t been returning any my letters.”

“Crusaders?” Coco raised an eyebrow.

“Long Story.” Randolph dismissed. He turned back to Dazzle. “She’s been struggling since you left.” His eyes were cold, as if he locked gaze with a cockatrice. Then his eyes grew lighter, with a kind smile returning to his expression. “Luckily, Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo are keeping her company.”

Dazzle was relieved to hear Silver was doing okay. Although… her heart ached a little. “I wish I could see her again…” Dazzle's ears drooped.

Randolph’s eyebrows hunched over his eyes. “She wishes she could see you too…”

Coco sipped quietly on her soup. Dazzle joined in. Randolph was right, it was a good soup. No wonder soup was craved during wintertime.

“Why did you send me here?” Dazzle asked.

He coughed, almost choking on the soup. He set down his bowl, and wiped his muzzle. “Pardon?”

“Why did you send me here?” Dazzle repeated.

“Coco is the only pony I knew was capable of taking care of you.” Randolph's eyes shifted over to Coco. “Like before, saving me from a falling sewing machine. Now, she is taking care of something I prize more than gold… my friend.”

“Plus, I needed a roommate.” Coco added.

Randolph smiled. “It may seem as a trial now, Mistress Tiara. I know how it feels- to be sent elsewhere… away from the friends and family you knew. To dwell amongst strangers who you’ve barely met, relying on their hospitality. Usually this journey happens later in life, but it comes to all who are worthy to bear its burden. To leap into the great unknown with nothing but faith as their companion is a scary concept, but it also has the greatest reward. You are living proof that you can do hard things and you should continue on to see what this new life has in store.”

Dazzle knew it. He came to her family when she was a foal. With no family or friends to lean on when times got tough. He found a new family. He made a new family. Now it was her turn to sink her roots in different soil.

“So… Mistress Tiara, the real question you should be asking is what will you make of yourself here?” Randolph asked.

“Thanks for saving my rump again, Randolph.” Coco smiled.

“No problem.” He turned toward Dazzle. “I will be heading back to Ponyville before I'm missed. It's good to see you again.”

Dazzle's heart warmed. It was like the feel of the cozy sweater she had back at home. She hugged Randolph. “Thanks… for everything.”

He hugged her back. “Good luck, Mistress Tiara, May Celestia have her watchful eye over you.”

The din of the bustling city continued as he trotted down the streets. He stepped carefully, making sure to avoid the slush.

Looking back, he tipped his hat. With another couple steps, Randolph disappeared behind the curtain of snow.

Chapter 14: Warm Hearts

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December

Cloudsdale had blanketed the city in snow.

Dazzle wanted to play in it, but all that covered the busy streets were slush, mush, and mud. Central park still had some patches of untouched snow, but not enough that Dazzle could make snow-angels and snow-mares.

For countless mornings, she just stood, head on hoof propped against the windowsill, watching countless taxis and ponies bustle by. The city never slept in the winter.

That's why, on Hearth's Warming Eve, Coco wanted to surprise Dazzle.

It started with a knock on the door. That would be the first of many.

“Dazzle, can you please answer that? I'm in the middle of a pattern here.” Coco asked.

She heard the clatter of hoofsteps down the hall. Dazzle appeared out of the corridor, trotting towards the door.

Coco had to try hard to keep the smug look off her face. She felt bad for telling a half-truth, but it was part of her plans.

Dazzle opened the door. “Hey Entry, how's it going?”

“Great, Dazzle, and you?” Entry smiled.

“Good.” Dazzle said.

Entry winked at Coco. Coco finished with “...Aaaaand Done!” Coco flicked the switch off and trotted up to the door.

“Follow me.” Entry Instructed.

Dazzle gave Coco a look of confusion. Coco nudged her and said “Don't worry… go on.”

Coco exited the apartment, and locked the door. She tossed the key under the mat and caught up with Entry and Dazzle.

Coco smiled as Entry led Dazzle to the elevator. Dazzle would occasionally glance back. Her eyebrows raised and her mouth cupped in an ‘o’ shape.

Entry held the elevator door open and allowed her and Dazzle to come in. She clicked the topmost button and the doors closed.

The elevator lurched up.

The Elevator door opened. Another mare with a white coat and magenta-orange striped mane squeezed by and entered as they exited.

“Just a little further.” Entry said as she led the way. She opened a dilapidated door that opened up to a stairwell. The red bricks along the side hugged the sides of the stairs, making the room very small and cold.

Entry started to ascend the grated staircase. Coco rushed ahead to hold the door open for Dazzle.

Dazzle still had the look on her face.

Once they ascended the stairs, they found Entry at the top, mumbling to herself as she fiddled with the keys.

“Horsefeathers! Probably should've replaced the lock, darn thing…” Entry cursed as she tugged at the key.

Finally, the key came loose and Entry wrenched the door open. “Merry Hearth’s Warming, Dazzle.” She said as held the door open.

Dazzle gasped.

Outside, the top of the building had a patio, covered with a layer of untouched snow. In the corner, as Entry set up ahead of time, was a fire pit, alight with a blazing flame.

Coco nudged her to go forward.

As they stepped out, Entry said “The rooftop hasn't been touched since summer. The resident who pays rent on this didn’t mind at all lending it you. Feel free to play in the flower beds. If you need me, I'll be downstairs.”

“You're not… staying?” Coco said. She should’ve told Entry this was a stay-awhile type of deal.

“Sorry I can't join you, I gotta get back to my post.” She propped the door open with a wooden wedge.

“Aw, Entry, can't you join us?” Coco asked. Maybe she could mimic Dazzle's puppy eyes.

“I'd love to, but I have to make sure…”

“C'mon! It's Hearth's Warming!” Dazzle interrupted. She waved her hooves in the air. “Let loose a little!”

After a minute of thinking, Entry sighed. “Fine, I can spare some time for a mallow.”

“Yippee!” Dazzle exclaimed as she dashed towards the flowerbeds, which were covered in inches of snow.

“So, why do they call you Entry?” Dazzle asked.

Entry popped a S’more into her mouth. “I like visiting new places. Especially ones with views. That's why I picked Rosily Hotel.”

“Where you’ve been?” asked Dazzle.

“Los Pegasus, Canterlot, the Crystal Empire… just to name a few…” Entry said with a smile.

“What made you choose Mane-hattan?” Dazzle said as she munched on a S’more, with a freshly burned marshmallow from the fire.

“Come, I got something to show you.” She got up off the lawn chair and waved for Dazzle to follow.

Dazzle followed Entry. Entry leapt up on the wall on the edge of the building, and motioned for Dazzle to hop up also. Coco felt a nick of something- scary- she decided to join them just in case.

“Be careful about the edge there, Dazzle.” Coco reached out to yank Dazzle back, but Dazzle swatted at her hoof.

Coco took a step back. She rubbed her sore hoof.

“So this is how it feels to be a pegasus.” Dazzle said.

Entry chuckled. “Yes it is.” She pointed outward to the rest of the skyscrapers- “We aren’t the tallest building, but we still have a view. Look!”

Dazzle and Coco looked out toward the sea. In the midst of the ocean was the Statue of Liberty, waves pounding on the outcropping of rock.

“WOW!” Dazzle said.

“It’s a fact that I like to visit new places, but of all my favorites is a rapidly changing city with a beautiful view. You should come here at night. The city lights and the ocean surrounding us are mesmerizing and ghostly beautiful.”

Dazzle smiled “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Entry looked back at Coco, and looked at her watch. She nodded slightly.

Coco got up and held a hoof to help Dazzle down. “Let’s get back to the room.”

“Aww!” Dazzle pouted. “The fire is still going!”

“I’ll clean it up.” Entry said. “You go ahead. A little filly needs her rest.”

Dazzle glared at Entry. Entry clicked her tongue as she picked up the bucket of water.

Dazzle rushed into the apartment when she saw the door ajar. Coco couldn’t help but snicker as she casually trotted in.

Dazzle frantically rushed from the kitchen to the living room to check if anything was missing. Her concern seemed to intensify as she zipped back and forth. Who knew that the little filly was such a ball of energy?

Coco thanked Celestia that Dazzle didn’t notice her strange calmness.

“Oh no! The bedroom!” Dazzle ran towards her room.

Coco shook her head. I hope she doesn’t have reflexes like her butler. Coco slowly trotted towards the bedroom.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?” Dazzle shouted.

Coco just entered the room when Monty started talking. “We are giving you a Hearth’s warming present.”

Marigold studied the instructions. She had a stumped look on her face as if she was trying to solve a math problem.

Florin and Monty were on the ground with several screws and several planks of wood. For the most part, the frame was done, what was left was the supporting beams.

“Uhm, start in the middle with that plank… no the other plank.” Marigold instructed as she lifted her eyes above the oversized paper.

“You should’ve seen us, Coco! Who knew beds were that complicated?” Florin chuckled as she hoofed the screwdriver to Monty. He grasped the handle in his mouth and started to fasten the middle beam.

“Almosf dune, Coco.” Monty said with the screwdriver in his mouth.

“I’ll make us some Hot Chocolate while we wait.” Coco said. She patted Dazzle on the back and clicked her tongue. Dazzle seemed to take the hint and followed Coco out.

Coco fastened her apron and took a pot out of the cupboard. She filled it with water and set it on the stove. She reached the dial to turn on the stove, but Dazzle hopped up and turned it on for her.

“Thanks, Dazzle.” Coco said. She started humming ‘You gotta share, you gotta care’ as she opened the pantry and scoured the shelves. “Ah ha!” She exclaimed as she took a canister off the middle shelf and uncapped it.

The strong scent of Chocolate, like a chocolatery’s assortment filled her nostrils as she uncapped the lid. “Dazzle, since you’re already on the counter, can you get five mugs?”

Dazzle nodded and opened a cupboard. She took out a mug with a thread and needle design on it and set it down.

Her mugs were mismatched. It was funny, since each Hearth’s Warming, without fail, she would be gifted a mug with a packet of Hot Chocolate… maybe some peppermint on the side. It probably had to do with the Clever pun of her name- ‘Coco’. However, since she wasn’t really that much of a Cook, most of them would be unused.

Which reminded her…

Coco went back to the cupboard and took out a bag of peppermint candies. She grabbed a plate and laid the bag flat on the countertop. She started to whack the bag and crush the peppermint into powder. It made Dazzle jump a little bit.

Dazzle started to rip open some packets and put them into the mugs.

Coco finished crushing the peppermint and was about to add it to the powder, but got a sudden idea. She smiled as she put the bag down and trotted over to the refrigerator and took out some Whip Cream.

Coco started to hum the tune again as she started to pour the hot water into the cups.

“Coco, may I ask you something?” Dazzle asked.

“Sure.” Coco said as she added the crushed peppermint to the swirling caramel liquid.

“Why are you being so nice to me?”

“I’m just making Cocoa, Dazzle. Nothing special.”

“I’m not dumb, Coco.” Dazzle said. “You don’t have to get a bed for me.”

Coco was caught off guard with her serious tone. She looked Dazzle in the eye, and with all the courage she could muster, she started “You’re a friend. Friends are nice to each other, aren’t they? Besides… it’s Hearth’s Warming.” Coco decided to throw in that last part for good measure.

Coco topped off the mugs with some whip cream then sprinkled some more peppermint atop it.

Dazzle took some of the mugs and set them on the table.

“We’re finished!” Marigold called out as the three ponies filed out of the hallway.

“Just in time too! Cocoa is ready!” Coco snickered “Pun not intended.”

All of them took a seat nearby. Coco slipped into a seat, one right next to Dazzle. She leaned towards her and said “We’ll talk later.”

Monty started off “My, Coco, you’ve outdone yourself!” He gingerly lifted the mug up and took a sip.

“Heh, thanks.” Coco said, she rubbed her sky blue mane nervously. “Excited for the get-together come tomorrow?”

“Yesiree!” Florin said. “Bring your cooking talent with you, I want to teach you how to make our family’s famous green-bean casserole!”

“Ooo.” Coco said. “I’m not sure I should. It’s your family’s best-kept secret after all!”

“Pssh. Coco, you’re like family, and so is Marigold!” Florin waved to the yellow mare. “Now, if only we could get Napoleon and Bling-Bling to talk to each other, that would be great.”

Marigold gave her an irritated snort. “Let’s not get on that subject.”

Monty shook his head. “If it’s no trespass, I think once they meet Dazzle, that will be resolved- just look at her magic between Coco and Yttrium!” He waved to Coco.

Coco blushed. “Well, I wouldn’t jump to conclusions…”

“Excuse me for a minute.” Dazzle set her mug down and trotted over to her room.

Coco waited until the door shut and started to whisper “Sorry, I think I hurt her feelings. Usually when she does that, she is upset. I’ll go see what’s the matter.”

Florin nodded. “Go for it. The poor thing has been through a lot these past few months.”

Coco scootched out and trotted over to the room. She opened it, finding Dazzle sitting on her haunches atop her brand-new bed. Nothing out of the ordinary. Dazzle was just sitting motionless, zoning off as she stared blankly towards the ice-covered window.

“May I come in?” Coco asked.

Dazzle didn’t turn her head. She just nodded.

“I’m sorry for what I said earlier… I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.” Coco addressed immediately. “I just wanted to get you something for Hearth’s-”

“It’s not that.” Dazzle interupted.

Coco took a seat right next to her. “What’s wrong?”

“I… I don’t know.” Dazzle said.

“Don’t know?”

“I feel strange.”

Coco paused. “Can you explain it? In words?”

Dazzle grimaced. “I guess the best word I can use to describe it is… flat.”

“Flat?” Coco said. “Do you feel everything is flat or bland? Or whatever it is?”

“Not the surroundings, just me.” Dazzle sighed. “Back at home, I used to get everything I want without any second glance. Many of my classmates would call me spoiled brat, even Mrs. Cheerilee would say it from time to time. But now…”

“Are you saying you want some more things?” Coco said “I know it’s Hearth’s Warming Eve, but we can still go out, pop in the local toy store and…”

“No, it’s okay.”

“No, I mean it, I can spend a few extra bits… it’s not that big of a deal.”

“I probably sound ungrateful.” Dazzle shed a tear. She looked down at the mattress, now freshly set on the bedframe.

“Nonono.” Coco said. “You’ve been through a rough transition. I can buy you anything you like. Anything to help you during the tough times you’ve been through.”

Suddenly, the door flew open.

“Dazzle, you’re okay. We know that you are still trying to adjust.” Marigold said as she stepped into room

Coco’s eyes widened as she stared at two pairs of ears right around each side of the doorframe. “C’mon, you two, you are foolin’ anypony.” She said. In response, Monty and Florin joined Marigold on the side of the bed.

“No, it’s fine.” Dazzle said. “That’s not really the problem. I feel something, something I’ve never felt before.”

Coco motioned for her to continue.

“It feels… odd, like the type of feeling that I got right before I left Ponyville.” Dazzle started. “It felt sad… leaving everything in the past behind, but at the same time, I felt calm. I knew I did the right thing helping out the school. But now, this time of year brings up memories. Memories of how good it felt to… share with others, to finally feel loved, but at the same time, undeserving.”

Coco smiled. “Oh, Dazzle, you’ve been feeling Nostalgia.”

Dazzle looked at Coco with wonder. “Nostalgia?”

Monty cut in. “I’m not sure if it counts as nostalgia. But, the way it works is that you have a memory, a good memory stored in the back of the mind. Once it resurfaces, it feels great, but sad at the same time- makes you feel… empty.”

“It’s like forgetting about a toy or trinket you’ve had for a while, then rummaging through a junk drawer for it to turn up. You find it… then your mind goes into a special place and reflects- my, those were some good times.” Florin added

Marigold nodded. “Sweetie, I think because you’ve had such a shocking and traumatic experience, it’s made you reflect on how easy life before the experience happened. The key is to acknowledge it happened, smile upon it and treasure it when it turns up, but don’t let those feelings eat you up.”

Coco sighed. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing for them to come in after all.

Dazzle hugged Coco. Tears wet her face, and as Dazzle buried her face into Coco’s barrel, she felt the cold touch of water against her skin.

Coco looked back to the three of them and mouthed “Thank you.”

Dazzle lifted her head up and said. “Thank you. It’s just been so hard with… what’s been going on. It feels good to have… friends.”

“Anytime, Dazzle.” Florin said. She pushed herself off the bed. “Say we finish up Coco’s cocoa? We don’t want it to get cold...”

Dazzle smiled and wiped the stray tears away from her face. “That would be great. I’d love some more cocoa.”

Chapter 15: Starry Dreams

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As soon as they finished dinner, Mr. Rich and Diamond decided to take a walk. Before leaving, he asked the Crusaders if he could have some one-on-one time with his daughter. The Crusaders agreed and bolted off, going anywhere else they could cause trouble.

Diamond and her father trotted on a shimmery path towards the lone hills east of Ponyville. Although it was getting dark, the path underneath their hooves lit the way. It eventually gave in to lush, soft grass.

“That daisy sandwich hit the spot.” Diamond said. She burped, then her cheeks grew rosy.

Her father craned his neck towards her and nudged her playfully. He let out a belch as well.

“EWWWW! Gross, dad!” She complained while covering her nose and waving a hoof in the air.

“What?” he said innocently. “I didn’t do that.”

Diamond growled at him, then tackled him.She reached out to tickle him, but he batted her hooves away.

“You forget! That doesn’t work on me anymore!” He tackled her back and rubbed her stomach playfully.

Diamond squirmed underneath his ruthless tickling. “Stop! Stop!”

Her father pulled away, then looked up at the sky.

She got up and brushed herself off. Like before, no rubble. town apparently workedApparently, the enchantment on the towned all the way out here. Nothing but the quiet grass rustling underneath her hooves.

“Look up at the sky!” Her father lifted her head with his hoof.

Above them, an expanse of glittering stars danced overhead.

“Wow!” Diamond said.

“I gotta show you something...” he instructed. “Follow me up the hill.”

As they ascended up the incline, Diamond asked “Does it have anything to do with what happened with my cutie mark?”

He stopped dead in his tracks. Diamond bumped against his flank.

She looked at him and he looked at her. “Yes and no.” he said with a smile. Without another word he planted a kiss on her forehead. “Even if it has something to do with cutie marks, that is not the matter here. This has to do with something way more important.”

The sun dipped below the distant mountains, leading to Mane-hattan. She found it odd since the sun set on the opposite horizon.

Finally, when they reached the top, she noticed him spin around, carve a couple inscriptions in the dirt, then face her.

“What are you doing?” She asked with a chuckle. It seemed silly for him to do this, especially since he preferred not to get his hooves dirty. His nature was closer to crunching numbers while leaning back in his comfortable chair.

“I’m going to show you something I should’ve told you years ago.” he replied. His said in a serious and gentle tone. Not the scolding tone she was used to.

“There is a story about the stars. They used to be warriors...” he began, “...they are the very ones without a mark, but know who they are- They are who gave their lives for the cause of freedom. For this, they are given a remembrance.

“The light we’ve been given continues on even after we die.” Her father’s eyes started to glow. He pointed skyward to a belt of stars. “Those are the great ones. The ones who followed the princesses.” He pointed towards another cluster near it “Those are their brave wives and children, who trusted their husbands and their fathers. The ones who lived in the land far after their loved ones gave their all, passed the torch, then died.”

His eyes stopped glowing and he took a deep breath. He stepped to the side of Diamond.

Diamond looked up, finding the glittering stars in the expanse overhead. “Is mother up there?”

He sighed. “Yes.”

“Where is she?” She searched the sky and pointed at a constellation. “Is she anywhere near Ursa Major? Oh, I know! It’s Orion’s belt!”

“I…” He started. “I can’t.”

She turned to him. She saw tears falling down the side of his face.

“The darkness of space swallowed up her light long ago.” He choked.

“Oh,” Diamond said, backing away to give him some room to breathe.

He sniffed some more. “Hey, Diamond?”

“Yes Dad?” she replied.

“I need to show you something.” he stood up and walked away from the trail.

She stretched after she got up. Following him up the hill, they came to a singular tree atop the hill. He turned towards the tree, and gently peeled off a piece of bark. “Look.”

She saw it and marveled. Scrawled underneath the bark, rivers of gold sap glittered and glowed. His eyes, reflecting the glittering light, looked fondly at the trunk. “This is mom.”

She trotted carefully and gingerly reached towards the exposed trunk. “May I?”

“You’re family. I don’t think she’ll mind.” he answered.

She placed a hoof on the glittery surface and felt the warmth radiating on her fur. The glitter reached out and wrapped around her. She closed her eyes and hugged the warmth.

When she opened her eyes, a mare made of golden light stood before her. The mare was transparent, as she could see the prints in the grass underneath the hooves. More notable, however, were her features; kind eyes, complimented by a stout stature.

Diamond felt the warmth of the light caress her fur. Then, she noticed the warmth that wasn’t in the glittering light. The light was getting it’s warmth from her mother.

Diamond leaned in and embraced the mare. “Mom…” The words fluttered away like a gentle breeze.

After forever, she let go and drifted towards her father. Her father gave the figure a hug. After they let go, the glitter morphed into a butterfly and fluttered back into the tree. He picked up the bark and pressed it back in place. He whispered, “sleep well.” The bark glowed and faded and they were left into the night.

“This is what happens to us when we die.” he said. “The Body changes shape, gives life to other living things. The Soul, or as we call it, Existence- continues on- as long as we stay true to who we are.”

He took his daughter by the hoof and continued “The soul is a precious thing. It is not meant to be hidden or forgotten. So, to reflect the light that continues on after we are long gone, we erect out of glass and crystal to bask in the light of those who gave their all so we can live.”

That explained why there were so many trees surrounding the town, and the shops and houses were made out of glass.

He took to Diamond’s side and instructed, “walk with me back to the house, I have a story to tell you.”

Diamond found out what he meant. Even in the dark night, the light from the stars illuminated the inside of their mansion. The walls inside the foyer gleamed with a warm light, like a fire.

“Take a seat with me on the couch.” He motioned over.

She hesitated. Usually her parents frowned upon her whenever she sat on the couch. Whenever her mother caught her resting on it, she would shoo her off.

“C’mon!” Her father motioned.

When Diamond took a seat, her father motioned for her to come closer. “Come, rest by my side.”

Suddenly, the lights from the glass dimmed. She looked up at him, noticing his horn gleaming in an icy blue light.

The mansion grew darker. Soon the warm light of the hearth remained the sole source of light. Also crystal. Somepony had obviously put some time in carving to the shape of an open flame. Like a fire, the light flickered. She smiled, admiring the handiwork of very ingenious magic.

“Let me tell you a story, a story that happened when you were young.” her father said.

“Is it the one about the watch?” she asked curiously.

He chuckled. “No, but that is a good one also. I might tell that one later. For now, I’m finally going to tell you about your mother.”

“You were the age of eighteen months when it happened,” he started, “just a toddler, without a care in the world…

“I was working under the Princess’s rule. Your mother was working on a spell that would change the world forever as we know it.

“One quiet blue day- and by blue, the sky a strong blue, the crystals walls of this mansion reflecting the Aether’s great expanse… Your mother discovered the mystery out of the blue- the Aether’s blue. She learned that our marks allowed us to ascend marvelous heights and to access a plane of existence far beyond her own.”

His eyes grew darker. “But with unprecedented power came serious consequences to those who didn’t know how to use it… to control it. As she delved deeper into the secrets, the power of this unseen dimension of existence took over her and used her as its instrument of destruction.”

Diamond shivered.

“War broke out. And with that, the battle between the marked and the markless started. Like a disease, the power took over the minds closer to her. Including me.” he sighed. “Fortunately, Princess Sparkle was able to perform a highly dangerous spell to free me of the enchantment. I realized what I had done and did my best to set things right.”

His eyes grew more sorrowful as the flicker of the flame glowed in his eyes. “The battle was won by the markless. There were many who died to protect the cause of our freedoms. The rest of us were never the same. Many had to say goodbye to close friends and family. Princess Sparkle had to say goodbye to her brother, Applebloom had to say goodbye to Big Mac. But, the most painful thing of all- It forced me to go through something I’ll never forget...”

Diamond leaned in closer. “What?” she asked intently.

“I had to watch your mother die.” he croaked. “Her strong, tenacious spirit, like the one in the tree, fought her way out. At the very end, she broke free of the living nightmare she caused. But, with her strength gone, she collapsed, and faded into the stars with the great ones. I have searched the stars to call her back, so we can be reunited, but with billions of stars in the night sky, I will be spending most of my immortality searching endlessly.”

Tears fell down his eyes. “That’s why earning your mark before it’s time is dangerous. It causes a great abyssal darkness to stir, arousing it from its long slumber. I fear you’ll follow the same path.”

Her father tucked her in “You good?”

“Yes.” She curled up in her blankets. “Thank you.”

He smiled and trotted out the door. “I’ll be downstairs if you need me.”

“Goodnight, daddy.” She yawned.

“Goodnight, my little gemstone.” He shut the door.

Immediately, Diamond turned over to the side of the bed where the moon cast its silver projection on her bedroom floor. With her window ajar, the crisp breeze ran through her room.

She wanted to try something. Closing her eyes, she concentrated. Suddenly, she saw the lights grow from behind her eyelids.

She opened them and looked around her room.

It worked. The cold light of the stars shimmered through the crystal walls like a billion grains of sand on a sunny shore.

She galloped to her window and looked outside. She discovered the windowsill to be a surprisingly comfortable place to rest her head while she gazed into the night sky.

As she stared into the expanse, tears rolled down her face. It was odd, because she only cried when she was feeling lonely or forgotten. But, this was the first time in all of her life, she felt the warmth of her heart and the cold of her tears at the same time. This new feeling, a feeling she had never felt before, she savored every moment it stayed by her side, inside her heart.

She looked out, searching each star. Her father’s story remained fresh in her mind. Being this happy, only one thing could make it even better…

“Mom? Are you out there?”

Chapter 16: Merged Dreams

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Dazzle woke up. A splitting pain trilled through her skull.

“Great... Another headache.” She rolled out of bed. As she did, she felt something smooth and cold rub across her cheek. She looked back to her bed and found a stone in place of her pillow.

She rubbed her eyes to test if her sight deceived her. Nope. Still a rock. A white rock shaped like a pillow.

Maybe Coco had a funny bone and decided to use it.

She got up and stretched. Dazzle could tell she woke up sometime in the dead of night since the half moon still high in the sky. The odd thing, however, is that she saw no passing taxis. Just the lights from street lamps. She shrugged it off and turned back to hop into her bed.

...Only to find her bed frame missing and her mattress on the floor. She could’ve sworn the bed frame was there a minute ago.

She heard a hissing behind her.

She spun around. To her surprise, she found herself face-to-face with a mirror.

The reflection snarled at her “You… you look miserable.” Her eyes glowed blue, revealing her reflection to be monstrous. The pupils shrank to slits, like a cat’s… or like that quirky assistant that Princess Twilight had- dangit, what’s his name?

“Spike the Dragon…” The reflection finished her thought. It drew an unnatural smile, each of its teeth like shiny daggers. “You really never liked that assistant. Too… nerdy… too fat.”

“Who are you? Get out of here!” Dazzle shouted, pulling her posture up and standing her ground.

“I can’t.” The reflection’s voice twisted lower, more pompous, more… something she couldn’t quite put a hoof on- until it matched somepony, a crystal clear echo from a long-forgotten memory. “You spoiled brat. Ungrateful, Unworthy, not even meant to be a mare.”

The voice of her mother.

Dazzle stared helplessly as the reflection split into two, like double vision. It contorted and twisted, changing shape dramatically from her reflection to another mare; the source of the voice.

The mare lifted her snout in the air. “You are worthless, Diamond Dazzle Tiara. I’m ashamed to call you my own.” The reflection reached out of the mirror and raked Dazzle across the face.

“ENOUGH!”

A bolt of silver lightning struck the mirror. The mirror recoiled from the bolt. It started to whine.

“BACK! YOU HOUND OF TARTARUS!” Luna bellowed.

Like a dog, the mirror squealed as it retreated into her open closet.

Dazzle started to stare around her bedroom to find the source.

A little filly materialized from a dark corner of the room, she had a dark blue coat with a lighter blue mane. She smiled as she walked up to Dazzle and looked up at her with eyes of wonder.

“L-Luna?” Dazzle quivered.

The filly replied in the Alicorn’s voice, “Aye.”

“W-What are you doing here? M-My dream…” Dazzle shuddered. “Wait… why are you a filly?”

Filly Luna giggled in her adult voice. “One question at a time, dearest Diamond.” She waved her left forehoof like a wand and laid it on Dazzle’s nose.

“Boop!” Luna giggled again.

“C’mon! Stop playing around!” Dazzle snorted, checking around her. Mist clouded up and materialized into random objects- from needles and thread, to couches, mugs, planks of wood as well as others that Dazzle couldn’t make out.

“Sorry. I just had to.” Luna said as she tilted her head. “All will be explained in a moment. We have to wait for the dream to restabilize, due to your lucidity.”

Luna spread her wings and flew circles around Dazzle. Dazzle noticed another odd something.. Somehow, someway, she was in her grown-up form for some strange reason. No wonder Luna felt smaller than usual.

Luna inspected the Earth pony carefully. Dazzle stayed still, not sure how to react with a little Alicorn princess inspecting her like Coco inspecting a mannequin… but she figured after what she saw in the mirror, she could care less.

“Why are you still a filly?” Dazzle asked.

“This is what thy dream has allowed me to do.” She tapped Dazzle on the temple. “Thy subconscious is a tough one to penetrate.”

“Penetrate? What does that mean?” Dazzle asked.

Luna huffed. “Sorry, I forgot that thou art still in Elementary. Just think of thy mind as a guard. The guard didn’t let me in until I made a deal with them.”

Dazzle nodded. “So, your saying that you have to stay this way?”

The moon princess nodded. “Though I thought it couldn’t hurt getting into character. Sweetie Belle has taught me to boop.”

“Sweetie?” Dazzle asked. “You’ve been to her dreams too?”

“Aye. Tis’ my blessing and my curse- tend to those who are ailing.” Luna said. “Though your mind has been very fussy as of late. What has been on your mind?”

Luna listened closely to every single last word.

“So, I have a question, since you can enter dreams, how come you’ve never visited me before?”

“Very hard question to answer. It requires you the utmost humility to take, but at this point, I don’t think your mind will summon anything malicious in when you get defensive.” Luna took a deep breath as her eyes darted around. “You have a very stubborn personality, that makes it hard to plant ideas in your head. But once you helped the schoolhouse, your mind started to accept more ideas. Part of growing up is learning.”

“So, you couldn’t come in until I learned something?” Dazzle asked.

“Precisely. It’s not a matter of what I can do to help you, but what you can do to help yourself. You just have to be willing to learn.”

“Okay, so I’m supposed to learn something. Let’s do it then.” Dazzle said. All she wanted to do is get out of the nightmare and move forward.

Luna’s form flickered. Her eyes bulged. As the flickering stopped, she took a deep breath “Careful, the more you put your hoof down, the more your subconscious wants to kick me out.”

Dazzle’s frowned. Luna flickered again.

“Stop.” Luna shouted. “I am not a threat, but the more you do that, the more your dream wants to attack me.”

Dazzle sighed. “What are these things flying around?” She thought she might as well cut to the chase since Luna told she was supposed to learn something. She looked around. Her eyes recognized a couple things; an IV for the hospital, A picture that she didn’t recognize, a Zing-Zap...

“Everything you see around here is a fleeting piece of and artifact found from your past, your present, and your future.” She waved out to the random objects flying around. Suddenly, a line of blue magic sprouted from Luna’s stubby horn and latched onto an object. As she reeled it in, Dazzle recognized it. A tiara. “This mean anything to you?”

“You probably know a lot by now.” Dazzle glanced at her own body.

“Ah,” Luna glided the tiara nicely atop her head. Dazzle expected a change, but got none.

“The enchantment from Princess Twilight.” Luna started. “Very advanced and dangerous magic.”

“Dangerous?” Dazzle took off the tiara hastily.

“I’m not going to reveal all that is going to happen.” Luna said. “What suffices though is that the age-alteration has one major side effect- mind alteration, and hence, more nightmares.”

“The tiara is causing this?” Dazzle asked.

“Among other things.” Luna replied. She levitated the tiara back onto Dazzle’s head. “But that’s not important right now. I have a special request.”

Dazzle raised an eyebrow.

“Diamond Dazzle Tiara, I need you accompany me to another dream.” Luna bowed. “Wilt thou accept my request?”

“Uhhh… sure.” Dazzle said.

Luna closed her eyes and a tendril of light sprouted from her horn, it reached for Dazzle. Dazzle backed away cautiously.

“Diamond, if thou art going to transfer with me, you need to give in to the light.” Luna instructed.

Dazzle took a couple steps forward and took a deep breath. The vine of light reached down and touched her forehead.

Dazzle awoke. A bright light shone overhead. As soon as her eyes adjusted, she saw the Moon princess, this time in her towering Alicorn glory with the tip of her horn illuminated. Luna held out a hoof. She accepted it and stood up.

Dazzle glanced around and rubbed her eyes. Suddenly, everything came into focus. Walls made up of neglected stone, and rusty bars and chains to add on it.

“Where are we?” Dazzle asked.

“Canterlot Dungeons.” Luna answered. “Normally I would know the layout, but this isn’t my dream. The dreamer has a different navigation. I was hoping you could lead the way.”

“Why do you think I know?” Dazzle asked. “I have no idea where we are supposed to go to, or why. Besides, if we aren’t in your dream, whose dream are we in?”

“You will receive answers to your questions soon enough. The walls of this labyrinth will tell you all you need to know.” Luna said. “I’ll tell you this though… this type of dream is trying to keep something hidden… we need to find it and free it.”

Dazzle frowned. Why was Princess Luna being so cryptic? What did she mean that the walls-

Suddenly, something strange caught her eye. It seemed to be a relic from her past, a familiar insignia. She galloped towards it. When it came into view, she recognized it. A wooden door with the engraving of three smiling flowers on it. Was this Ms. Cheerilee’s dream?

She opened the door. A scream, faint and airy, broke the silence. It sent chills down Dazzle's spine. From the mark on the door, she knew who it was.

She galloped inside, and found Ms. Cheerilee backed in a corner. In front of her, a timberwolf poised to strike. Dazzle froze.

Luna thundered in and with a beam from her horn, blasted the creature. It snapped a couple logs on it’s timber body. In turn, it sharply spun away from Cheerilee and snarled at Luna.

Luna fired another shot, this time, grazing it’s shoulder. The wolf howled in pain. It started to charge Luna, limping in it’s right leg.

Luna shot at it again, this time, aiming for between the eyes.

The beam shattered like glass across its knotted skull.

Dazzle pounced towards Luna and knocked her out of the way from being rammed.

The timberwolf thudded against the stone wall. Wood cracked and splintered against the wall as random twigs scattered across the room. The glowing magic from the timberwolf blew out and the room was left in complete darkness, save for Luna’s glowing horn, ready for another shot.

All of them waited quietly, stanced to dodge if the broken timberwolf had any tricks left. After a minute passed, Dazzle took a deep breath. Her heart was still pounding.

“Thank you Diamond.” Luna said as she brushed herself off.

“You’re Welcome, Princess.” Dazzle bowed.

Princess Luna’s noble eyes shifted to the other pony in the room. “Greetings, Teacher.”

“Oh my goodness! Your majesty!” Cheerilee bowed from the other side of the room.

Luna approached her and held out her hoof. Cheerilee accepted it.

“Am I dreaming?” Cheerilee asked. “Because, last time I checked, Diamond wasn’t that old.”

Dazzle looked at her hooves. She had been in her adult form all this time and didn’t even notice. She was getting too used to the fact that she could walk around as an adult all day without remembering she was still a filly.

“Aye, all will be explained in due time, Teacher.” Luna reverently affirmed.

“There has been a lot of weird things happening, First Ap- Wait! Applebloom! We need to-!”

A roar thundered through the next corridor, like a demonic howl from the jaws of Tartarus.

“What was that?” Cheerilee asked, backing away slowly from the noise.

“The dream is compensating for the fact that thou art now lucid.” Luna answered. “The labyrinth has shifted.”

“Is that good or bad?” Dazzle asked.

“Some good, some bad.” Luna rocked her head back and forth. “The good part is that there may be shortcuts, the bad part is… more timberwolves for security.”

“Greeaaat.” Dazzle rolled her eyes. She peered into the darkness. “Anyways, Ms. Cheerilee, what were you saying?”

“Yes, I was being chased, and I got seperated from Applebloom, Sweetie, and Scootaloo.” Cheerilee blurted. “We need to help them! They are stuck down there somewhere!” Cheerilee shouted.

“Wait… the Crusaders are here also?” Dazzle raised an eyebrow. What were they doing here? She looked to Luna. If there was anypony with an answer, it would be Luna.

Luna nodded.

“I heard screaming when I first got to the dream. At first I backed away, but I recognized the voices- so I hurried down these hallways and found them.” Cheerilee’s eyes shrunk to pinpricks. “But then, the timberwolf that was chasing them started to chase me, I only got here a couple seconds ago.”

Luna leaned in. “I asked the crusaders to find their Teacher down here and wait for my instructions and to stay out of trouble. But, trouble found them first.” She said.

“You need to help!” Cheerilee's voice was almost like a sob. “The more time we waste, the less likely we are going to find them!"

“Well… what are we waiting for?” Dazzle pounded her hooves to the ground. “Let’s go chop some Timberwolves!”

At every turn, Cheerilee’s eyes would dart around faster. At every sound of groaning of the cavern, she would spin around and check around her. Her heavy breathing echoed on the walls.

Dazzle tried her best to follow Luna in the dim light she beaconed from her horn. Every so often, Luna would whisper to Dazzle, asking which way to go. But, with Cheerilee jumping and panicking every step they took, it was hard for her to have a clear mind. She could’ve been going in circles.

Needless to say, Cheerilee was riding on Dazzle’s nerves.

“Would you quit that?” Dazzle asked. “The Timberwolves will find us first before we find the crusaders!”

“Have you even been near one of those things?” Cheerilee snapped. “Have a wolf come up inches towards your neck, and then tell me I’m not being careful!”

“Careful is inspecting quietly! Not jumping at every shadow on the wall that passes us by!” Dazzle yelled. “If you were honestly scared of being found by Timberwolves, you would shut up!”

“STOP!” Luna halted. Dazzle ran into her rump. She quickly regained her composure, making sure Ms. Cheerilee didn’t have any leverage.

Luna shook her head. “You two need to get along if we are to progress down these corridors. The dream is unstable as it is.” She sighed. “I know both of you are scared and disoriented. But, we need to get past our differences if we are going to find the others.”

“I understand, Princess Luna.” Cheerilee bowed. She turned to Dazzle and held a hoof over her heart. “I’m sorry, Diamond. I’m just rattled from when that Timberwolf was chasing me. But, now I realize I have to put on my brave face. Applebloom and her friends must be even more terrified than I am right now.”

“Geez… do you have to be that mushy?” Dazzle rolled her eyes.

Cheerilee smiled, but had a rather stern look in her eyes, like the way Rainbow Dash brags about a trick before she pulls it off. “Diamond, I know it can be hard for you to show vulnerability, but I know there’s good in you; you proved it when you helped the school. I just want to show you that I’m not afraid of showing how I truly feel, and know I won’t judge you if you do so too.”

“Hmph!” Dazzle stuck her nose up.

Yeah right, she heard this a million times. A pep talk from her teacher to boost her attention, or grades, or whatsoever she found wrong with her. But, from the times that Ms. Cheerilee has called her out in class, she wouldn’t buy it. She would only trust ponies who treated her well. Like Coco.

Suddenly, a shrill scream resounded down the left corridor, then faded again.

“Well, they found us first.” Dazzle said.

“Not until you apologize to your teacher.” Luna glared at Dazzle.

Dazzle rolled her eyes and gave Cheerilee a hug. “I’m doing this for the Crusaders, not you.”

Luna groaned. “Good enough, I guess…” She pointed a hoof towards the screaming. “Proceed.”

As Dazzle charged down the hallway, she saw a faint green light. Timberwolf.

She checked over her shoulder to make sure she didn’t lose Luna nor Cheerilee. Finding that both were tailing her pretty closely, she went back to navigating through the dungeon.

As they chased the screaming down the long and cold hallways, each blood curdling shrill shook their entire being, chilling them to the bone. Dazzle would be lying if it didn’t creep her out one bit. Normally, a pony would stay away from such danger. But, this was an emergency.

Finally, they saw it- a glowing green swamp muck pinning its prey against a dead end. Dazzle could see the faces of terror in the green light. Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo, backed against the wall, with tears in their eyes, and their mouths shut to keep the stench of the swamp from entering into their airways.

Luna fired a bolt of Silver light.

The timberwolf spun around. It growled, fangs dripping with swamp bog. It stretched back, positioning itself to charge them. When it leapt, Luna’s horn lit.

Then it faded.

“Out of the way!” Luna cried as she kicked Dazzle and Cheerilee into a nearby alcove.

Both of them just inches away from the jagged claws of the beast.

It turned towards Luna first, who regained her footing. Her horn glowed. She looked up at her horn with frustration and growled “Horsefeathers!”

“What are you doing? Blast them!” Dazzle shouted.

“I can’t! The dream disabled it!” Luna cried. She ducked out of the way as the timberwolf gnashed its teeth at her.

Dazzle grabbed a nearby rock and hurled it at the creature.

It bounced off it’s shoulder. It turned towards Dazzle, now staring her down with those pair of cold green eyes.

A ghostly blue magic enveloped Cheerilee. Suddenly, she was yanked towards Luna, where Luna set her back on the floor.

The timberwolf swiped at Dazzle.

Dazzle barrel rolled out of the way, towards the Crusaders.

“Go towards Luna!” Dazzle said. “Make it to safety!”

A blue light enveloped each one of the fillies as the levitation spell carried them over the Timberwolf and towards Luna.

Dazzle smiled, then started to duck and jump, each dodging the Timberwolf’s movements. Suddenly, she felt something sharp rake her across the face. She closed her eyes and clenched her teeth. It felt like somepony took a hot candle and ran it across her cheek. Her teeth ached from the impact.

“Diamond!” She heard Applebloom cry out.

Everything went blurry, the shaky motion of the green glow accompanied her sudden muffled hearing. Suddenly, she saw some blue light envelope her and carry her over the wolf and towards the others.

When she got on her feet, she tapped on her cheek. A glob of blood stained her hoof.

“Run!” Luna shouted.

With it, Dazzle booked it down the hallway. She didn’t know where this energy came from, or whether the pain was real. It seared in some places, felt numb at others. But, all she cared about was getting away from it.

Something about the pain. It hurt, it stung, it made her tear up a bit. But, for some reason, she found it exhilarating… something powerful. It filled her entire being and shook her core. The numbness of going through the motions fell away.

And for the first time in her life… she felt alive.

Down the hall she charged, following the end of the light luna lit with her horn. Suddenly, They turned the corner and met another dead end.

“No! No! Let us out! Let us out!” Applebloom pounded on the wall.

The Timberwolves slowly inched up, snarling at their prey. Closer and closer they came as their claws scratched the cobblestone underneath.

Cheerilee squeezed her eyes shut.

Applebloom screamed as she pounded one last time, her hooves aching from the previous raps on the wall.

“It’s over.” Luna cried. “The Nightmare has taken over this dream. It will only be a matter of seconds before we wake up!”

Diamond felt something twist inside her, something that told her; pound on the wall. She tapped the wall, and then...

Stones flew inward. The light from Luna’s horn blew out like a wick of a candle.

She heard somepony cough, and then Cheerilee’s voice “What was that?”

Luna relit her horn. The dust in the air fogged the light up, so they could only see a few inches in front of them. Luna spoke, though Dazzle could only see the top of her head and the bridge of her nose; “The subconscious has allowed Diamond to edit.”

Luna took a couple steps towards where the timberwolf was, only to find a mound of rocks. “Diamond’s lucidity has caused the dream to shift its walls and open to another section of the dungeons.” She glanced back at them, the dusty air settling to the point where her neck could be seen.

“Wait… so you mean I can move walls?” Dazzle asked.

“Oh no… you can do way more than move walls." Luna said. “You have a powerful subconscious that needs to be harnessed. Such power can be very dangerous.” She sighed. “As I learned, an unbridled subconscious can be your doom.”

“Can’t you move walls too?” Applebloom asked. “You certainly could change the dream since you took down the tantabus.”

“I’m unauthorized.”

“Unauthorized? Whatever do you mean?” Cheerilee asked.

“Your mixing the idea of skill and power versus permission.” Luna explained. “You see, I barely was able to trick the subconscious in letting you in. If it was my subconscious, I could, but it isn’t.” Luna answered. “The fact of the matter is that you can be the most skilled in your art, but without permission or freedom, you can’t use it.”

Sweetie Belle lit her horn with a green light. It was rather dimmer than Luna’s, but still there, nonetheless.

“How do I allow you to edit my dream then?” Cheerilee asked.

“It’s not yours, teacher.” Luna said.

“So if it isn’t mine, then whose is it?” Cheerilee asked, switching sides from the Crusaders to Luna.

"One of your students, teacher.” Luna glanced at each of them. “Think. You are unable to edit, so are Applebloom and her friends, and I just lost my privileges.” Luna looked to Sweetie Belle, who was clinging to her hind hoof. “Somehow, the dreamer has bestowed Diamond with powers. This requires a lot of trust. She is the only one who has kept her edited adult form, as well as move a whole wall out of the way. The dreamer is one that trusts Diamond more than anything."

"Wait… then that must mean…" Dazzle covered her mouth.

"Aye. Your dearest friend, Silver Spoon." Luna nodded as she closed her eyes. Her horn grew brighter.

“Well,” Sweetie Belle cut in. “Why didn’t you say that to begin with, Princess?”

“Well, I can’t give you answers to the test, can I?” Luna cast a wary look at the unicorn filly. “I can hint at the answers, but I cannot tell you. If I gave away the ending, then nopony would learn anything.” She glanced to Cheerilee. “As you know, Teacher.”

Cheerilee frowned. “Unfortunately, she’s right. You cannot get angry at the teacher if you don’t know an answer on the test.”

“Uh, but what if the teacher made no mention of the material before?” Scootaloo asked.

“You should've studied then.” Cheerilee growled. “That is the point where you make your best judgement and learn from your mistakes if you get it wrong.”

Dazzle shook her head. With this news that her friend was in trouble, then she couldn’t sit around, bickering with the other five. “Stop fighting and let’s go!” she shouted. “The more time we waste, the longer we remain in nightmare!”

Chapter 17: Argentum Dreams

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"Ehm, so I haven't seen you in a while." Cheerilee broke the silence. "How are you?"

"Fine." Dazzle put her ear to the wall.

"Quite a Nightmare this is, thank you for helping me through it." Cheerilee continued.

"No problem." Dazzle answered. She didn't want Cheerilee distracting her, she had to find an exit.

"So… how are things going in Mane-hattan?" Cheerilee asked.

Dazzle's ear perked up. She slowly lifted her head off the side of the wall. "News travels fast, doesn't it?" She squinted at the Crusaders. In response, the Crusaders stopped in their tracks and backed away. Sweetie Belle took the liberty of hiding behind Luna.

"I guess so." Cheerilee shrugged.

"Okay, how much do you know?" Dazzle asked.

"Only the part that you left town and staying with Coco. Also, a little bit about her play went."

"That's about it." Dazzle inspected the next section of wall and put her ear to it. She tapped. Hearing nothing of interest, she continued up another meter.

Cheerilee jogged back to Dazzle. "I received a couple paper request for a file transfer. Are you signed up for Mane-hatten North Elementary?”

Dazzle halted. “You know about that?”

“Only the part that a Ms. Paprika is requesting records of what subjects you’ve been taught.” Cheerilee answered. “Seems to me, more is going on Mane-hattan than meets the eye.”

“Indeed it does.” Dazzle resumed her task.

“By the way, that scratch on your face is clotted up.” Cheerilee added.

Dazzle completely forgot about it. She licked her hoof and wiped some of the blood off. “Normally, I would be afraid about my appearance, but now, since this is a nightmare, I don’t really care.”

“You know, usually I would think a nightmare is having a dream about you.” Cheerilee nudged Dazzle.

Dazzle whipped her head back and glared at Cheerilee.

Cheerilee smiled. “I see you are still the same you, a sassy Tiara. But I’m glad to have crossed paths… or technically dreams with you."

“I don’t care much about what is happening now.” Dazzle said. “I just want to find Silver Spoon now.”

Silence penetrated the corridors, only the sound of hoofsteps from the others as they searched for openings in the wall echoed across the empty stone hallways.

"How are things going back at Elementary?" Dazzle asked finally. She figured that Ms. Cheerilee would keep persisting untill she had a decent conversation with her.

"Good. Things are a lot calmer since you've been gone." Cheerilee snickered.

"Hmm." Dazzle grunted.

"Although I feel bad for Silver Spoon."

"What's been going on?" Dazzle asked, stopping in her tracks.

Cheerilee prodded her to continue walking.

"She's been quiet as of late. Neglected, I daresay." Cheerilee frowned. "She sits alone at lunch, plays alone at recess… I've tried to play with her since the other foals are too scared to make the first move. But she seems… out of it. She just sits on the swingsets, away from everypony else. When I try to push her, she gets up and trots away and goes somewhere else.”

“Don’t the Crusaders keep her company?” Dazzle asked.

“We do, but when we come near her at the swingsets, she doesn’t say a thang.” Applebloom replied.

“Yeah.” Scootaloo added. “Also, other ponies come up to us, requesting help, and Silver Spoon says something like ‘It’s okay guys, go ahead, I’ll be fine’.”

Dazzle came up to Luna. "I understand why you've taken me into this dream, Princess."

The maze protected Silver Spoon and she needed her help. That was the end goal now, even if didn't seem clear at the beginning.

"Aye, Diamond." Luna waved out to the others. "But do you know why I chose your teacher, followed by Applebloom and her friends?"

Dazzle shook her head.

"It is because each of them have influenced her life for good, we needed not just help her out of a Nightmare, but to plant an idea. An idea that just might save her life…"

Dazzle's heart pounded. Was Luna implying that Silver’s life was at stake?

Suddenly, they heard a rumbling down the hallway. From the faint light from Luna’s horn, they saw it kicked up dust. They ran towards it.

Dazzle, getting there first found in the midst of the rubble, found a couple loose stones that fell from the ceiling.

“Hey! Everypony! I found something!” Scootaloo shouted.

Dazzle rushed over to Sweetie Belle, who held up the light for Scootaloo.

“What is it?” Applebloom asked.

“Seems like a cloth of some sort.” Scootaloo held it up to Sweetie’s light.

Dazzle’s heart raced. “I know what that is!” She trotted up to it.

Scootaloo’s held a pearl-white scarf in her hooves. The scarf had magenta accents around the border. She swiped it out of Scootaloo’s hooves, and held it gently in her hooves. Tears fell out of her eyes. “Silver Spoon’s Scarf. I recognize it from the time she lent it to me when one cold winter morning.” She hugged the cloth. “Oh, Silver Spoon, please.”

“Mah question is why is it so clean?” Applebloom asked.

Dazzle took another gander at it. She was right.

“Uh, ponies!” They heard Cheerilee say. “We’re not alone.”

They saw Cheerilee back away from a branch of the dungeon, her eyes wide with fear.

Lunging from the shadows emerged a timberwolf. Only, it had a coat made out of shiny metal and an eerie purple glow coming from the cracks and seams of its body.

Instantly, Luna picked up a hunk of fallen stone and hurled it at the Iron-wolf. The crusaders did the same with smaller pieces of debris.

Each attempt made the wolf run from the rocks. Seemily it did not enjoy it. So, Dazzle wrapped the scarf around her neck and tried to remember how she could edit.

Suddenly, a barrage of stones sailed out of the wall and landed on the wolf.

It spun around in confusion.

“Princess! What is this thing? An elite of Timberwolf?!” she shouted.

“No, worse!” Luna retorted back. “I heard this frightening rumor from towns near the Everfree. They call this creature Argentum.”

“Argentum?” Sweetie asked.

“Old Ponish for Silver.” Luna continued. “I thought it was a myth since only wild magic conducts through organic material. Rarely metal.”

The wolf circled them, prowling at a safe distance away from the stones. Dazzle held her channeled edit, waiting until the wolf came into range.

“Organic?” Applebloom asked, keeping her eyes steadily on the wolf. “Like an apple?”

“Yes, as well as gemstones, old wood, unicorn horns, just to name a few.” Luna blurted quickly. “The only known wild magic I studied in depth that conducts through precious metals is that of King Sombra.” she explained, parrying a swipe from the creature with a levitating stone. “Which makes this creature dangerous. Only the Elements of Harmony can defend against such magic.”

“Well, that’s not an option on the test, is it?” Cheerilee shouted as she hucked a stone at it. Without invitation, the others joined. It charged for Luna, who lifted up another mass of rock and plunged it under it’s jaw and sent it flying.

The creature dove for her. She ducked again, not wanting to repeat the claw mark on her face.

When the creature passed overhead, she caught a glimpse of something that chilled her to the core...

“Wait!” she shouted.

The creature pivoted away from the others, and bounded down the hallway, disappearing into the darkness.

“Good Riddance.” Cheerilee growled, dropping her stone. She rushed over the Crusaders. “Are any of you hurt?”

Luna rushed to Dazzle’s aid. “That was a close one.”

“We need to go after it!” Dazzle pointed down the corridor

“What?” Sweetie Belle squeaked in disbelief.

“Go after it?” Scootaloo yelled. “That’s suicide!”

Cheerilee cast a wary look at Scootaloo, who then smiled nervously.

“No, you don’t understand!” Dazzle reasoned. “Silver Spoon was buried in its neck!”

As they hurried down the tunnels, Sweetie shouted “I see light!”

It came into view. A small, white light marked the end of the tunnel. Freedom awaited.

Dazzle pulled forward.

“Wuh-Wait! Duh-Diamond! I-I can’t run that fast!” Scootaloo panted.

Dazzle didn’t care. Her lungs burned, and her legs screamed for her to stop. As she got closer, she could feel a cold gust of wind.

When she came to the edge, she found a bit of snow drifting in. Inspecting closer, she could make out the faint tracks of the wolf. She paused as she looked out.

The others caught up, as it took their breath away also.

Nothing but blizzard as far as the eye could see. At least they weren’t stuck in small hallways anymore.

Luna looked out. “Wasteland.” She stuck a hoof out, and immediately, a block of ice formed around her hoof.

“Look! The tracks are still fresh!” Cheerilee pointed to the trail.“How do we cross?”

“Diamond, you go on.” Luna instructed.

“What?” Sweetie squeaked. “And send her out to freeze?”

“She’s the only one that can edit, so she’s the best chance we’ve got.” Luna looked at Dazzle. “Only if you want to.”

“I will do whatever it takes, Princess.” Dazzle answered.

“Go.” Luna pointed.

As Dazzle ran into the storm, she felt the shock of cold penetrate her. The icy blast sharpened her conciousness, sobering her to the reality of this task. She heard Luna call out "As soon as you edit out the storm, we'll cross!" But, because of the blizzard, the fog of the drifts shrouded anything two feet in front of her with a white haze.

"I will!" Dazzle promised as she followed the pawprints.

Dazzle waded through the snow, the scarf around her neck billowed in the icy wind. Thank Celestia for the layers that protected her from the storm. She wouldn’t have gotten this far without them. But in this moment, she started to doubt her decisions.

The blizzard raged, blowing the mounds of snow like sand of the Saddle Arabia desert. It constantly shifted. She hoped she wasn’t going in circles. If only she could find an oasis, safe from the snow.

As soon as she thought that, the blizzard subsided. Then, everything became clear. She hadn't even noticed the beauty all around her because of the storm. She stepped upon the ridge of a snow-covered mountain, looking out at the view of an old sight- her old home.

Ponyville.

The lights from the houses and shops scattered around the valley. Surrounded by the blue aura of winter night after a storm. It took her breath away as she looked at it upon the height. It looked so peaceful with no ponies out, just the gentle steam and smoke coming from stacks and chimneys.

She started to descend carefully. The starlit night and crescent moon gave way to illuminating her path. The night gave her just enough light to follow a snow covered gravel walkway that weaved through the trees.

It winded down the slope, going past trees and forgotten trails alongside wooden posts laced with barbed wire.

As she came to the base of the mountain, she slowly approached a familiar building in the distance, as she recognized it, her old Elementary school, but covered in snow.

Dazzle wondered if she made and ‘edit’, but didn’t think too much of it. Altogether, it was better than wandering through the snow.

When she got close, she could hear two ponies shouting from inside.

She crept forward to make sure they didn't know of her presence.

From the voices, she could tell it wasn’t Silver nor Ms. Cheerilee… it was a mare and a stallion. Unfortunately, she couldn't make out any of the conversation because the siding of the schoolhouse muffled it.

She peeked in, then immediately ducked.

Silver Spoon’s parents. She recognized them, but what threw her off is that their settled composure was utterly lost. It made it hard to believe it was actually them. They had frazzled manes, crazed eyes, like the time Twilight forgot to turn her letter to Princess Celestia.

She wondered what they were fighting about.

She looked around for any sign of the wolf. The tracks came back. She followed them and then more things came into view.

A swingset. A hunk of metal, and…

An orange filly.

She ran towards the swingset, keeping an eye on the metal. She recognized it. Argentum. Only… it was an empty shell. Like a suit of armor. Missing the ghostly purple light.

A rattle shook the swingset. Dazzle looked over to the orange filly.

Only to find the orange filly to be Silver Spoon. She had an orange jumpsuit on, matched with a chain around her neck. Silver shivered violently in her soaked-through clothing.

Dazzle left the empty Silver Timberwolf behind to help the filly in the orange jumpsuit ahead. She took off the scarf and wrapped it around the filly’s neck. She then gave her a big hug, hoping her leftover body heat would keep her from freezing.

“Diamond?” The filly called out weakly.

Dazzle’s eyes looked to the filly, and then met with those magenta eyes. “Silver Spoon.” She sighed in relief. "You're alive."

“Diamond, why are you a mare?” Silver Spoon chuckled.

“Even better question, what are you doing here?”

Silver Spoon hauled in the chain. Slowly, a silver clock dragged across the slush. She picked it up and pointed to the minute hand. “Recess isn’t over yet.”

“Let’s get you to someplace warm.” Dazzle picked up her friend and walked towards the school. Noticing the chain and clock weighing Silver down, she lifted a hoof over it. Praying that the dream would cooperate, she chopped it with a “Hiya!”.

The chain disintegrated.

Silver Spoon’s eyes widened. “We are in a dream, aren’t we?”

Dazzle chuckled. She fixed her hold on her friend and walked towards the schoolhouse, Silver asked again. “So, why are you a mare?”

Dazzle chuckled. “I’ve got stories to tell.” She approached the back door of the school, where they printed the newspaper. Dazzle figured this to be the best option since she didn’t want to cross paths with Silver’s parents. Especially with how crazed and frenzied they appeared. She pounded on the lock with her hoof and it shattered. “Let’s just say that Princess Twilight gave me a boost.”

She lifted her cold friend down the stairs and into the room. She set her down on the table and turned on the heat lamp they used to dry the ink to prevent smearing. “There.” Dazzle chirped “So you can warm up.”

Dazzle pulled up a chair, then met eyes with her friend. “Please don’t do that again. If Cheerilee kicks you out of the schoolhouse in the winter like that, I’ll personally come back from Mane-hattan and give her a piece of my mind.”

Silver Spoon laughed. She coughed. “Thank you.”

“So, what’s been going on?” Dazzle asked. “You haven’t been returning any of my letters.”

“Letters? What letters?” Silver spoon looked up with wonder.

Dazzle's mind reeled back to the many letters she sent. Then to the two arguing ponies upstairs. She figured she wouldn't ask again.

“Something terrible is going on, I just know it.” Dazzle sat upright “What is going on back at Ponyville? I want to know everything."

Silver Spoon gave her a weary look.

Dazzle stared at her intently.

Silver sighed. “Well, since you’ve left, everything has been falling apart.” Silver Spoon started. “I don’t even know where to start. The night you left, I was enjoying dinner until my parents received a letter from your parents. When they broke the news to me, I ran upstairs to my room and cried.” Her eyes were frozen in place. “That’s when the bad stuff started happening.

“The next day, I didn’t want to get up.” Silver Spoon continued. “I don’t know why, but I laid there until the sun went down. I didn’t want to go to school, and when my parents came in, they figured I needed some time. The days passed. I only got up when absolutely needed."

“One day, Ms. Cheerilee came in, and talked with my parents. She told them that I needed to be back at school, or else I would have to repeat the fifth grade. So, like any parent would react, they told me that I had to go to school or else. When I went back to school, the class welcomed me back with open hooves. Many ponies that I teased before smiled at me and said things like ‘welcome back’.” She smiled for a split second. “After all I had done, why were they being nice to me? Even Ms. Cheerilee wanted to help. She told me to go outside and be social.” Tears flooded her eyes. “I had everything… friends everywhere. But, why did I still feel so… numb?

"As soon as I went out to recess, smiling faces turned into frowns and glares. Nopony wanted to play with me." Tears flooded her eyes. "Then, came the bullies. They saw that nopony would stick up for me so they started to hit me and push me."

"Didn't you tell Cheerilee?" Dazzle asked. "What about the Crusaders?"

“Crusaders told Cheerilee first.” She sniffled. “Ms. Cheerilee told my parents, and then… my parents got angry at me. They told me I was stronger than this and I was being dramatic. They told me that I was being a crybaby and should grow a backbone and stand up for myself.

"It was like that for the past two months. Luckily, Cheerilee looked out for me, knowing my parents wouldn't take action. The Crusaders hung around me, but I didn't want to keep them from helping others earn their cutie marks.

"Then… one day, we were doing a group project, cutting out snowflakes. Then, I accidentally got a cut on my hoof." Her eyes went dark. "When recess came, I took a pair of scissors, and…” She shook her head. "After that initial one, I felt like I could keep going. Felt that numbness wear away. I felt... I deserved every bit of what I was feeling."

Silver Spoon held out her forelegs. They were covered with thick red lines. “I finally felt something. The numbness fled away, and then I could keep going.”

Dazzle got up and hugged her friend. She had no idea. “Silver Spoon. Please. You don't deserve any of this. Talk to me. Write to me.”

Silver Spoon hugged her back. “How?”

“Talk to Randolph.” She said. “He’s been helping me.”

“I will. I hope you don’t mind me questions, but what’s been going on with you?” Silver Spoon asked.

“It’s a long story.” Dazzle asked. “First, I met Coco…”

“Thank you for helping me.” Silver hugged Dazzle.

“Actually, I think you helped me too.” Dazzle embraced her friend. “Coco enrolled me in school, Ugh, because it is the law. I’m nervous about my first day and the impression I’m going to make, but thanks to you, I know I can do it.”

“That’s good.” Silver Spoon looked at her with puppy eyes. She smiled and lifted a hoof bashfully. “Mind?”

Dazzle immediately knew what her friend wanted.

“Bump!” Sliver pounded Dazzle’s hoof.

“Bump!” Dazzle completed the next motion, bumping her side.

“Sugar Lump!” Dazzle pushed both forehooves against Silver’s.

“Rump!” The met flank to flank.

Despite her awkward mare body, she still moved through their best friend hoofshake with ease.

“I guess I’ll be writing to you later?” Dazzle asked.

“Sure thing! You gotta tell me about whatever else happens!”

“I will!” Dazzle walked out of the room and met face to face with Luna. Dozing softly, nearby, were the Crusaders and Cheerilee. They were all gathered in one huge pony-pile. Cheerilee had her back to the wall while Applebloom and her friends curled up around Cheerilee’s lap.

Dazzle smiled. She wondered if they caught onto any of her and Silver’s conversation.

“I’m really impressed with your tenacity, Diamond.” Luna stood stoutly. "You're learning how to be kinder quicker than most I talk to."

“It’s all nothing.” Dazzle looked back at the printing room. She wondered how her friend was doing now. “If anything, I just want to make sure Silver Spoon is okay."

“That’s what probably makes it easier.” Luna waved over to a shimmery image shining on the window like a projector. Dazzle spotted herself hopping up on the counter to help Coco with the Hot Chocolate.

“You’ve learned a lot, your mind is open to act in kindness, and for that, I’m proud.” Luna said. "You're true nature hasn't disappeared and become subjugated to Kindness, but you've learned that both can coexist."

Dazzle smiled and nodded. She looked back to the doorway to the press room. "It's funny… you brought me here to plant an idea, to help Silver Spoon for reasons I know why. But, you know what happened also? I think this whole ordeal has taught me strength to go forward and to stand up for others who are suffering as well."

Luna chuckled. "Indeed."

Her horn started to glow. "It's time to go, Diamond Dazzle Tiara. The nightmare has dissipated.”

A bright light shone from her horn, and bathed the dream in white light. The light grew brighter, until Dazzle woke up with the sun in her eyes.

The smell of hot chocolate and the warmth of the apartment greeted her as she woke up. It felt like a warm blanket she could snuggle up in.

She turned her eyes away from the window to find Coco standing overhead.

"Morning, Sweetie, how did you sleep?" Coco asked.

Author's Notes:

Second time writing this. Ugh. Mobile Data stinks.

Anyways, sorry for the dark chapter. I was half tempted to throw it out, but it will be nessecary to move the plot forward.

As for future darker things, I will keep it to a minimum, if possible. I will only add in darkness as absolutely necessary. Since the action is still rising, there will be a touch of darkness (Self-harm and Violence) as we go along. We are not out of the woods yet.

As for the next chapter, it will be released in the evening (about six extra hours from usual upload time give or take.) Right now, I'm using mobile data to post this chapter. Ugh. In order to avoid it next time, I will delay next time (since I know I always have wifi in the evenings.)

TLDR: Darkness falls as we continue in the story. Upload time will be delayed on Thursday.

'til next time! Thanks for reading!

-Pinoypony

Chapter 18: Napoleon and Vertigo

View Online

-January-

Coco and Dazzle followed the secretary down the hall.

“You nervous?” Coco asked.

“Yeah,” Dazzle said, “But I think I can handle it.”

“Wait here,” the secretary instructed before she walked into the other room.

After a moment, the secretary came back out, and held the door open. “The class is ready for you.”

Dazzle felt a knot in her stomach as she passed through the door.

“We have a new student coming in today. She just barely moved from Ponyville. Please make her feel welcome,” the teacher announced.

Dazzle stood at the front of the class.

“Her name is Dazzle,” the teacher introduced, laying her tan hoof on her back. She looked up to her teacher and noticed a horn poking through her long, pinned back, black hair.

“Hi.” Dazzle waved a hoof. In front of her was an arrangement of fillies and colts with varying races from earth pony, pegasai, and unicorn. She recognized one face though; an orange filly with a sharp red mane.

“Dazzle, there is an empty rack over there and an open seat there,” she instructed, first pointing to a coat rack that ran across the wall, then to an empty seat. “Please hang your coat up and have a seat.”

“Oh! Before you do that!” Coco trotted towards Dazzle and pulled a lunch sack out of her saddlebags. Dazzle bit down on the brown paper bag and set it in her saddlebags. She trotted over to the coat rack, took off her jacket and scarf, and set it on the hook. Then, she trotted towards her desk.

Dazzle took a seat in the second row, somewhere in the middle of the room. In a placeholder, in nice, curvy letters, it read ‘Dazzle Tiara’ She put her bag right next of her seat and the lunch sack next to it.

When she lifted her head up towards the front to face the teacher, she saw Coco peeking through the door. Coco mouthed the words ‘I’m going to go. Okay?’

Dazzle nodded. She repeated a mantra in her head that Silver Spoon was going through harder things… today was a different day, and she had a fresh start.

As Coco left, Dazzle took a few deep breaths. She was going to be okay.

She looked to her right, and a colt was right next to her. He had a white coat with a scarlet and gray striped mane, a stick of dynamite cutie mark with a lit fuse. He held out a hoof. “Napoleon.”

“Dazzle,” she replied, shaking it. “Say, isn’t your mother Florin?”

His eyes widened. “How did you know that?”

She giggled. “Coco Pommel, my guardian, works with her.”

“GOOD MORNING CLASS!” the teacher greeted.

“Good morning, Ms. Paprika!” the class answered back in unison.

“Thank you, class! Today we are going to continue the unit we started before winter break!” Ms. Paprika popped a piece of chalk in her mouth and started to write on the chalkboard: Fractions and Decimals

Dazzle could hear a bunch of audible sighs.

The teacher dismissed the for Lunch. Dazzle found it weird that they combined recess with Lunch.

Right before she stepped out of the room, Dazzle heard her name called behind her.

Dazzle spun around, to see her teacher looking at her. “May I speak with you?”

“Sure.” Dazzle trotted back towards the Teacher’s desk.

Ms. Paprika tapped on the file atop her desk and sighed. “So, I reviewed the records that Ms. Cheerilee sent over.” She licked her hoof and flipped the page in the file. “You’re a troublemaker… aren’t you?” Her eyes narrowed on Dazzle.

Dazzle’s smile faded. She fixed her posture and answered, “I am... but I-”

“Gotcha!” Ms. Paprika sprung to life. “I have no worries about you, Dazzle!”

“Wait… so my file doesn’t say I’m a troubled filly?”

“Well yes, but no,” Ms. Paprika started, “There are countless incidents, from a school newspaper mishap, to making fun of countless students.” Her teacher shook her head. She lifted her eyes from the paper, and looked Dazzle in the eye. “But Ms. Cheerilee has met with me in pony to tell me what happened almost overnight.”

This seemed odd. Why would her former teacher care about her reputation? Let alone look out for her in the first place?

“Knowing you are in Ms. Pommel’s capable hooves; I can trust you.” Ms. Paprika winked. “Heh, so call it friendship. Coco and I are friends from high school.”

Dazzle nodded. Coco seemed to make a lot of friends for being a shy pony. Maybe she could ask Coco when she got home.

“Just tell me if you need help with anything, I’d be happy to lend a hoof,” Ms. Paprika offered.

“I have a question, actually,” Dazzle said.

“Shoot,” Ms. Paprika said before taking a swig from her water bottle.

“Why is Lunch combined with recess?”

“Oh, so you can transition from Elementary School to Middle School. Next year, you’ll be in middle school. You will get used to class periods instead of all-day class.” Ms. Paprika snuck a glance at the clock. “Why don’t you go an enjoy lunch! I’m sorry for holding you up.”

Dazzle smiled. “Thank you.”

“Oh! And don’t forget your coat!” Ms. Paprika added. “It’s still chilly out there!”

Dazzle went to her desk and picked up the lunch sack that Coco gave her. The bottom of the bag slowly getting darker from the grease inside the bag. She wondered what Coco made her, though anything narrowly healthy was out of the picture.

Following Ms. Paprika’s instruction, she swiped her jacket and scarf off the rack and trotted down towards the lunchroom. She didn’t have to follow the signs to know where to go, her nose led the way. Something definitely smelled good.

When she came in through the doors, she immediately thanked Coco for packing her a lunch. The lunch line roped around to the other side of the room.

Dazzle glanced around, searching for a place to sit. She found an oddly empty table, in comparison to the other tables, who even had some ponies standing and some stealing chairs from nearby tables. The empty table had a familiar face- or more likely, a familiar personality. From behind a book, a unicorn colt’s stubby horn poked out of his crimson mane. Just like she heard from his parents, he always had his muzzle stuck in a book.

She slid into a seat at the table. It was her best bet, since all the other tables were filled with other groups.

“Whatcha reading?” Dazzle asked as she took a seat near him.

Napoleon popped his cherry red mane up from his book to take a look at Dazzle. “An Introduction to the Periodic Table,” he replied. Napoleon didn’t spare a second more before he went back to reading.

“I forgot to ask, but may I sit here?” Dazzle gestured to her seat. She figured etiquette couldn’t hurt.

“Oh no, go ahead.” he waved, not bothering to put down his book.

“So, is it a good book?” Dazzle grit her teeth. She realized how she treated Cheerilee in the dream state, and now she wished he would talk a little more. After all, she needed a friend like Silver Spoon here; Napoleon was as best of chance she had.

“Yeah! Did you know they use silver in film developing?” he shut the book.

“Wow! I didn’t know that!” Dazzle replied. She took that as a good sign if he put down the book.

“That’s why they call it the Silver Screen!” he said as he opened up his Power Ponies lunch box. He took out a sandwich and started to munch on it.

Dazzle took a deep breath and unrolled her lunch sack. She peered inside and found a grilled cheese sandwich with some tomato soup. That’s probably where all the grease came from; the sandwich. She took it and took a bite out of it. Suddenly, a vat full of flavor soaked through her taste buds. She tasted a little smokiness, and a little spice here and there she couldn’t quite make out.

Coco was getting good at her hobby. At this rate, Dazzle wouldn’t be surprised if she reached the level of gourmet chef before the school year passed.

As if Napoleon read her mind, he asked, “So, if I got what you said correct earlier, you are Coco’s daughter?”

“Not quite.” Dazzle smiled. “Adopted, actually.”

“Heh,” Napoleon chuckled in between bites. “Mom and Dad swears I’m adopted.” He rolled his eyes. “I know they are teasing. I guess two extroverts have an introvert child, they think something is wrong.”

“What’s an extrovert?” Dazzle asked, propelling the conversation further.

“Oh, it’s an outgoing pony, just one that likes to yibber-yabber,” he explained. “Pinkie Pie is an extreme example.”

“Oh,” Dazzle said. “I guess I’m an Extrovert.”

“I don’t doubt it. You came up to me first.” He tapped his hoof against the book. “Almost done with this puppy.”

“How many books do read?” Dazzle asked.

“Eh, Depends on a variety of factors.” He rocked his head from side to side. “How much do I want to read said book, how much homework I have, how much my mom and dad are pestering me to go out and make some friends.”

“Wanna be friends?” Dazzle offered, taking the opportunity. As she learned from her father, when a golden opportunity presents itself, take it, no matter the cost.

He balked. “You sure?”

“Yeah!” Dazzle said. “I don’t know anypony else here, so that makes two of us!” she said to spice up the deal. Hopefully that shipped the sale.

“Sounds good!” he replied, extending his hoof. Dazzle reached out with her free hoof and shook it. With her other hoof, she rummaged through the paper bag and took out the tomato soup. She opened up the plastic container and dipped her sandwich in the soup. She took a bite, and immediately, Coco’s cooking took another tier. The soup had the properly sweet and sharp taste as the cheese, yet garnished with veggies to make it taste fresher, like the smell of a garden in spring.

“You know, when you came to class, I thought you would hang out with the fashionistas over there.” He pointed to a group of giggling fillies. She recognized the filly in class before, with a pair of scissors as her cutie mark.

“I’d just moved here, so I want to take things slowly,” she answered carefully, “one friend at a time.”

Napoleon carried his book in his magic. Dazzle often dodged the book when it dipped and threatened to clonk her in the head. She didn’t mind though. Napoleon said that he was still trying to master keeping magic steady.

Dazzle looked overhead and found many Pegasai swirling about like crows. Many of them just fillies and colts trying to learn their flight technique. Oh, Scootaloo would love this. She shivered as the gust of wind coming from their flying brushed upon her coat like a blizzard drift.

“Want to play on the swing sets?” Napoleon asked.

“Sure.” Dazzle quickened her pace towards the playground. As she did, she glanced around her. The schoolyard, far from quaint, contained a massive courtyard. A roundabout sidewalk circled a bed of woodchips surrounding a playground. The playground rivaled the size of Ponyville’s playset, with a ton of swings attached to the side to sweeten the deal. Many fillies and colts milled about, giggling and chasing each other.

“You want to get on first?” Napoleon waved towards the swings.

Dazzle nodded and hopped onto the swing. She felt airy and light as she felt Napoleon pushing her forward. A ping of worry crossed her mind as the swing set reminded her of Silver Spoon. She would write her when she got home. Probably get Randolph to deliver it.

“Want to hear a chemistry fun fact?” Napoleon said.

“Sure,” Dazzle lightly replied, letting the motion of the swing calm her nerves.

“A Cookie has more energy than a stick of dynamite. The reason being is that we digest it a little over time, but a stick of dynamite is instantaneous,” he spouted proudly.

“Wow… that’s cool!” Dazzle said.

“Incoming!” Dazzle heard. She looked around her, and found nopony.

“Uh! Above you!” Napoleon pointed overhead.

Dazzle dove out of the way just in time before a Pegasus filly spiraled towards the ground. Suddenly, a cushion appeared under the falling Pegasus, in which she landed softly.

The Pegasus filly then shook herself off like a dog and then brushed herself tan coat off. She hopped off the cushion, and then the cushion disappeared back into nothing.

“What was that?” Dazzle asked, wondering if the yellow cushion she saw was a trick of her mind. Maybe she hit her head when she tumbled off the swing…

“Huh?” The Pegasus looked to Dazzle and smiled, sporting a set of braces. “Afternoon, miss! Vertigo Heart!” She held out her hoof.

“Dazzle. Dazzle Tiara.” She accepted the invitation. One more friend couldn’t hurt.

“Sorry I about crash landed on you.” Vertigo Heart scratched the back of her neck while averting her eyes. “The protective spell doesn’t cover when ponies run into each other. If that were the case, I’d practically be covered in a cushion suit of armor!”

Dazzle chuckled. “I’m new here. You mentioned protective spell?”

“Well, it would be cruel and unusual punishment to have any Pegasai be pinned to the ground.” Vertigo Heart pointed up at the random cloud of Pegasai flying about. Some diving, some gliding, some climbing the height. “So, they have allowed us to fly. In which, they cover for it by every time they sense a Pegasai is about to crash, a cushion appears so they won’t hurt themselves.” Vertigo giggled and flashed her braces again. “Without cushions, then I would be facing more medical problems than dental.” She pointed to her teeth. Braces again.

Dazzle couldn’t help but chuckle again. “Pleased to meet you.”

“I apologize again.” She bobbed her head up to look over Dazzle’s shoulder. “Your friend over there hasn’t budged since I crashed.”

Dazzle looked over to find Napoleon lounging around with his book again, obviously captivated. That didn’t last long.

“No worries.” Dazzle waved a hoof out. “We were just playing on the swings.”

“Say, as apology, can I push the both of you?” Vertigo offered. “I can make you go up very high!”

“I wouldn’t mind,” Dazzle said. “But for Napoleon, you gotta ask him first.”

They approached Napoleon, in which Dazzle tapped the book. “Hey Napoleon, I want you to meet Vertigo.”

He lowered his book and then stared at the filly. Dazzle could see blush marks come across his face. “Uhh… hi!” He waved nervously.

“Terribly sorry, sir. I was wondering as an apology, if I could push both of you on the swings?” Vertigo offered, smiling at the end.

“Uh, sure…” Napoleon said. He joined Dazzle and walked over to the swings. As Dazzle walked, she noticed Napoleon’s cutie mark; a stick of dynamite with a lit fuse. Then she turned over to Vertigo, she tried her best no to gasp.

Blank Flank.

She bit her tongue, and carefully thought of the words in her head. She didn’t want to insult her new friend.

Napoleon set his book down below him and grasped the ropes of the swing. Dazzle joined to his right side. He glanced at Dazzle with a mad blush. His face as surprised as if he had seen a ghost.

“So, Dazzle, where are you from?” Vertigo asked. Dazzle felt herself being propelled in the air.

“Ponyville,” she answered, swinging her hindlegs back.

“OOOHHH.” Vertigo whistled. “Do you know the Apples?”

Sure. Business partner with her parents. Not to mention Element of Honesty. Very hard to forget. “Yeah, I was classmates with Applebloom.”

“Even better!” Vertigo cheered. “I’d bet you know Babs Seed?”

Dazzle shuddered. The orange filly in her class that scared her. “Yes.”

“Oh, that’s good! She’s one of my friends.” Vertigo said. Dazzle noticed Vertigo’s speech slowed down. “Although she doesn’t talk to me anymore.”

Dazzle looked back, finding Vertigo changed from her jolly demeanor. Her wings dragged against the ground. Her ears laid flat against her head.

Dazzle hopped off the swing. She trotted up to her friend. “What happened?”

Napoleon hopped off the swing and picked up his book along the way. Napoleon looked to Vertigo. “I don’t want to hurt you, mind if I speak for you?”

Vertigo nodded.

“The Cutie Mark Crusaders of Mane-hattan disbanded a couple months ago.” Napoleon answered with a solemn tone.

“What?” Dazzle’s jaw dropped. How could a group like that be torn apart?

“I know. Everypony is still trying to get used to it.” Napoleon said. “It was in October… a month or two after Babs got her cutie mark.”

Dazzle didn’t know what to say. How could something small like a cutie mark disband a team?

“Once she got her cutie mark, the fashionistas started sniffing.” Vertigo continued. “It started out as something harmless like hanging out with them. They stopped teasing her and started treating her lovey-dovey. Then, they gave her a choice, stop hanging out with Blank-flanks or stop hanging out with them.”

Dazzle frowned. Babs. The one that joined her and Silver Spoon to avoid bullying. She basically repeated that action here when she got the chance.

“And then there was the big fight.” Napoleon added.

“I’d rather not talk about it.” Vertigo kicked a pebble back and forth between her hooves.

“Wow.” Dazzle said. “I’m sorry! I had no idea!”

Vertigo sniffled. “It’s okay. Mom and Dad told me friends change, and life moves on.”

“You want to be my friend?” Dazzle asked.

“Really?” Vertigo tapped her hooves from side-to-side.

“Sure.” Dazzle beamed. “I’d love to be your friend!”

“Woohoo!” Vertigo leapt into the air and flew. She dove for the ground, and glided right by Dazzle.

The bell rang, and everypony flew or trotted into the doors.

“Well, gotta go join my class!” Vertigo cheered. “Seeya later, friends!”

Just like that, she zipped away, down a different hallway.

Napoleon smiled. “Did she just say, ‘friends’?”

Dazzle could see that there was a little something going on with him. “Do you like Vertigo, Napoleon?”

“Uh… no. I mean, yes!” Napoleon looked back at Dazzle.

“Woah! Napoleon! I’m just asking if you two can get along- I can’t have my new friends fight because they don’t like each other…” Dazzle decided to throw a sly ball at him, to see if he would react.

“Sorry…” Napoleon muttered.

A teacher looked at Napoleon, and then to the book suspended in midair. “Napoleon, please be careful. You’ll risk exposure.”

“Yes, Mrs. Lagoon.” He wrapped the book in one foreleg, and then walked awkwardly with the remaining three.

“What was that about?” Dazzle asked.

“Haven’t you heard?” Napoleon knotted his eyebrows. “Corrosion is going around.”

Dazzle’s memories reeled back. She remembered Mrs. Avocado in the hospital room and the picture it burned into her mind. Blank, blind eyes, crusty horn that was being eaten away by… yuck. It must’ve hit pretty bad at the school.

“The School has put precautions up.” Napoleon’s magic flickered in front of them. An aura of green light came in front of her. “My magic is supposed to be goldenrod.” he explained. “Instead, I have a protective spell, minimizing exposure to the Corrosion.”

Dazzle wanted to mention her volunteer work with Yttrium. But she decided against it. Too much for her first day at school. Besides, class resumed in a couple minutes- she wouldn’t have time to go through every itty-bitty detail.

The magic disappeared. Napoleon continued, “In order to be able to use magic at school, you have to have the spell. Even then, your use is very limited. They had to put the CSGU program on hold until they can find a solution.”

“What is CSGU?” Dazzle asked.

“What? Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns of course!” Napoleon huffed. “Every Unicorn dreams of being able to go there! Like Princess Twilight Sparkle!” He grit his teeth. “Although the rotten disease is messing up my chances.”

“Geez…” Dazzle said. “That must be hard.”

“It is.” Napoleon sighed. “Thanks for listening, Dazzle. I haven’t shared how I feel about it with anypony before except my parents.”

“No problem.” Dazzle answered. “That what friends do right?”

“Right.” Napoleon smiled.

The end of the day came quicker than she thought. Inside the classroom they waited. Every so often, a pair of parents would come by and collect their foal. Dazzle’s heart warmed as each one of the family smiled, even going as far as giving a piggy-back ride.

“Want to hear another Chemistry fact?” Napoleon leaned towards Dazzle.

“Sure.” She smiled.

“Vanadium changes color with each different oxidation state. Some Yellow, Blue, Green, and Violet.” He pointed to a couple pictures in his book. Inside, she saw beakers filled with colored liquid inside.

“Wow.” Dazzle’s eyes wandered. She couldn’t help but notice his Cutie mark. “By the way, how did you get your cutie mark?”

He smiled a little too wide. His eyes darted about nervously. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Napoleon!” Dazzle heard ahead of her. In front of her, were two familiar ponies. One with a white coat and yellow mane, and the other with a gray coat.

“Mom! Dad!” Napoleon gave his parents a big hug. “I made a friend! Her name’s Dazzle!”

Florin looked to Dazzle and smiled. “You beat me to it, Napoleon. I see you’ve met our friend first. This is Coco’s little filly.”

“She already told me!” Napoleon responded. “Adopted, actually.”

Dazzle chuckled. He copied that phrase from her.

“Can I hang out with Dazzle sometime?” Napoleon begged. “She likes chemistry too!”

Montresor smiled. “As long as Coco and Dazzle are okay with it.”

“Yay!” Napoleon cheered.

“Well, let’s get you home! I’d bet you have a lot of homework!” Montresor walked towards the door.

“Decimals and Fractions.” Napoleon sighed.

“Oh boy…” Montresor said, about to step into the hallway. “Maybe I can help with that.”

“Go on, Monty, I’ll catch up.” Florin waved a hoof to shoo them away. “I need to talk to Dazzle first.”

Montresor nodded as he disappeared down the hallway.

“How did you do that?” Florin asked. “I’d figure he go through the entire sixth grade without making a friend! You do it, and on your first day too!”

“I have my ways.” Dazzle smirked. “All I did was talk to him about chemistry. He couldn’t shut up for the rest of the day.”

“Maybe I’ll try that.” Florin tapped a hoof against her chin. “I don’t remember a lick of chemistry though.”

“Just get him talking, and he’ll do the rest.” Dazzle explained. “I hardly said anything at all.”

“Dazzle, you are one magical filly.” Florin pat Dazzle on the shoulder. She trotted towards the door. “I’d better catch up with them before they drive off in the taxi without me!”

“Seeya!” Dazzle waved.

Dazzle slumped back against a desk. Why was Napoleon so lucky? He was born into a family that encouraged him to be social and make more friends. In stark contrast, she was born into a family who constantly bought their way into trust so deals could be made. She couldn’t help but want to be in Napoleon’s place.

“Hey,” she heard next to her.

She spun around and locked eye contact with a colt and a filly. The colt had a white coat and a primed black mane, like Rumble’s. The filly had a lighter shade of blue coat, like the tropical ocean. Her braided blue mane shined in the light.

The colt spoke, “New girl, right?”

“Yeah.” Dazzle nodded.

“We saw Coco Pommel drop you off.” the filly started. “What’s your relationship with her?”

“Daughter.” Dazzle said.

Their eyes widened as they exchanged glances. “Coco has a daughter? Who is your father?”

Dazzle shook her head. “I’m adopted.”

“Oh, that explains a lot.” The filly lifted out a hoof. “The name’s Fancy Gem. Anybody related to Coco is a friend of ours.”

Dazzle shook it.

“Anyways, we were wondering if you can give us an inside on the fashion trends for the upcoming summer?” The colt leaned towards her, as if expecting a surprise.

Dazzle shrugged. “Unfortunately, Coco keeps the styles to herself. I have no idea.”

Fancy Gem scoffed. “C’mon, you gotta know something.”

“Fancy Gem, Dark Style, what are you doing talking to her?” An Orange filly with a red mane approached. Her hair was styled to the point where it almost copied Coloratura’s.

“Getting the newest trends, what else?” Fancy Gem scoffed.

“You’re wasting your time.” The orange filly said. “I know this mule.”

“Quite a nerve you got.” Fancy Gem raised an eyebrow and turned to her. “Coco’s adoptee. Who would she be to you, Babs?”

“She is the bully I talked about during my visit to Ponyville.” Babs sneered. “Can barely stand for herself. I doubt her and her ‘new mom’ will be able to keep up with the community.” Babs waved her hooves in quotations.

“Don’t you dare say talk about Coco that way!” Dazzle growled. If they attacked her, fine. But, Coco? Coco was innocent!

“It’s a free Equestria. I can say anything about anypony, whenever I want.” Babs smirked. “You're just a nobody now. Stripped of your power back in Ponyville, and now planning to torment ponies here.”

Fancy Gem gasped. Dark style pursed his lips in a ‘o’.

Dazzle clenched her teeth. She wanted to pound Babs in the Muzzle, but she held back. As long as she didn't insult Coco again, she would hold her peace. As she always done...

“She’s an actress. She’ll try to make friends with you, then stab you in the back. She belongs with Underdog and his band of misfits.” She shifted her posture away from Dazzle. “Let’s get out of here.”

Babs smirked as she trotted away.

Dazzle could only sit there. Tears came into her eyes. But a voice came to her mind; ‘Don’t cry in public, you spoiled brat! Only foals cry.’

Dazzle took a deep breath and closed her eyes. With each deep breath, she swallowed poisonous feelings. Was Babs right? Was she a misfit?

No! She thought as she pushed them back down. She just made two friends! She was better than this!

“Hey Dazzle!” Coco chimed in.

Dazzle looked up to the mare who she could called her new parent. She smiled as she accepted a hug.

“How was school today?” Coco asked.

“Fine.” Dazzle responded quickly, pushing back tears. To keep Coco from worrying, she added a little cherry on top. “I made friends with Napoleon!”

“Ah! That’s great!” Coco said. She picked up Dazzle’s saddlebags and led the way out “We’d better be going; I have a Hearts and Hooves line to finish.”

Dazzle followed her out. Just as she passed the doorway, she blew a raspberry at those three jerks.

As Dazzle followed Coco down the hall, Coco looked back and offered, “It seems customary that a parent and foal have a piggy-back ride. Would you like one?”

“Sure.” Dazzle said.

Coco sat on her haunches for a second while Dazzle climbed on and wrapped her forelegs around Coco’s neck. Coco lifted up and started to walk towards the exit.

“I hope I’m not too heavy.” Dazzle mumbled.

“Oh, not at all!” Coco glanced around. “It’s nice to see you are transitioning into your new school well!”

Dazzle couldn’t help but feel calm as she rode on Coco’s back.

Then… she spotted a couple on-lookers who exchanged looks of surprise.

“Everypony is looking at us weird.” Dazzle observed.

“Oh, it’s just me, Dazzle. They’re surprised to see such a young fashionista with a filly your age.” Coco glanced back at her. “I know you don’t take kindly to this, but part of what Berry Ice said was true- some of my newfound fame will rub off on you.”

Dazzle matched eyes with a Gray Unicorn Colt. He had a couple scrapes on him, a black ring of fur around both his eyes. It made him look like a robber. A mare, presumably his mother, dragged him along. As he paused, he gave her a hard to forget look. Before he could say anything, though, the mare growled. “C’mon. We’re going to be late for Mr. Cookie.”

That look, she knew as something she’d seen before. Something she’d seen in the mirror. Envy.

“You okay Dazzle? You’re kinda choking me.” Coco wheezed as she pushed the door open.

“Yeah… I’m fine.” Dazzle loosened her grip. “Just need to get used to being stared at.”

“Just imagine you are on a stage.” Coco said. “It’s not much different than that.”

“Coco?”

“Hmm?”

“Do you get nervous when ponies stare at you?”

“All the time!” Coco said. “That’s why I don’t go out as often as I’d like. But right now, we can work together. Sound good?”

“Sounds good.” Dazzle replied. She had a faint idea to wave to the onlookers. Who knows? Maybe she’d have fun with it.

Chapter 19: Belonging

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Dazzle took a deep breath and stepped into Yttrium’s office.

“Aftern’n Dazzle!” Yttrium greeted with a smile. He spit out his pencil and brushed his paperwork to the side. “What can I do for you today?”

Dazzle waved towards the seat in front of his desk, a plastic stool with a padded seat.

“Go ahead.” he said. “What’s on your mind?”

Dazzle didn’t want to let it out all at once. She wanted to stall as much as she could since she was in no hurry to get back to that nasty Nurse Transfusion. “I just wanted to pop in and take your offer for lunch.”

“Sure thing!” He crouched towards a small refrigerator by his desk. Dazzle heard a lot of glasses and jars clinking against each other as Yttrium rummaged through.

Dazzle glanced about, seeing the items he had on display in his office. A cross-section model of a unicorn skull, charts of front and side views of pony anatomy, even a couple plaques of random clippings.

“What would you like? Daisy sandwich or Minestrone soup?” he asked, holding out a sandwich in one hoof and a bowl of soup in his other.

“Eh, Daisy Sandwich.” Dazzle answered.

“Good choice! Minestrone soup for me!” He set the daisy sandwich on a plate and slid it over to Dazzle.

“Thank you.” Dazzle said. She noticed a couple things on his desk, from a couple holsters for pens (obviously stuffed to the max with oddball pens) to pictures. They were obviously pictures of him and his family, by what she could tell, Yttrium had no shortage of brothers.

The pictures even sprawled onto the corkboard on the wall, pictures of various patients and hospital staff. Then, a picture caught her eye. A feeling of odd Deja vu washed over her. She’d never seen the picture before in her life, but why was it so… familiar?

It was a picture of two foals- a filly and a colt. The filly she recognized, a tan coat, white and blue mane, straight and sharp, calm and original. Coco. Next to her, is a colt with gray coat, and a crimson mane. Yttrium. Coco had a bright yellow cast on her hindleg. Yttrium had a hoof over his shoulder. Both of them were beaming with glee, sporting a piece-wise smiles with missing teeth. Something you would see on the yearbooks of previous years in elementary.

Over the bottom of the picture, she barely made out the scratchy hoof-writing. ‘Thanks for taking care of me!’

“What’s that?” Dazzle asked, pointing out that particular picture.

“Oh that?” he smiled politely. “That’s my memory wall!” He stirred his soup. Dazzle stared more at the wall, this time, making it so he wasn’t nervous. He was avoiding the question, after all. She noticed a lot of faces, some smiling, some not. However, she couldn’t shake the thought that none of the smiles were as wide as filly Coco’s.

Dazzle’s eyes wandered. Suddenly, a newspaper clipping caught her attention. It read ‘Coco Pommel, Rising Star?’ The subtitle below it said ‘Mare-ison Bergeron: After the Fact’

Dazzle chose to keep it quiet. Just in this sitting alone, she uncovered more than enough proof to tell Yttrium had a crush on Coco. Whether it was creepy or cute, she didn’t know. Part of her wanted to tell Coco, but she couldn’t disclose that information because of the agreement she signed in her volunteer contract. She was a previous patient of his, not hers, after all.

“So, how goes school?” he asked. He took a spoonful of soup, blew on it, and slurped it.

“Great! I’m making new friends!” Dazzle tapped her hoof against the edge of his desk. Her ears perked up as she got an idea. “I might even have a pony who could tutor me in Chemistry.” she added.

“That’s great!”

Dazzle felt the nagging feeling to tell him what happened earlier in her shift. She wanted to hop onto some other conversation to distract him, but all her advances gone nowhere.

“Can I ask you something though, Doctor?” Dazzle leaned in closer and whispered. “I’m having problems in the workplace.”

He sat upright; attention focused on Dazzle.

“Can you help me get Nurse Transfusion off my case?” Dazzle asked. “I have six patients to care for today, and if I’m going to review any lab results, I need to get my rounds done.”

“I see.” he said. “I’m sure you can get what you need to done. Six patients is usually a moderate load.”

“But Nurse Transfusion keeps pulling me aside for inconsequential things!” Dazzle clenched her teeth. “I do admit, I was being a klutz this morning! I accidentally dropped something running into Nurse Transfusion but she railed on me for not being careful and I should always do accuracy before speed. So, I did things carefully.”

“That’s good.” Doctor Fuse said.

“But that’s not the end of it!” Dazzle threw her hooves up in the air. “After a million call lights went off, Nurse Transfusion has at me again for going too slow.” Dazzle took a deep breath. “That’s why I came in here, to catch a little air during my lunch hour.”

“Hmm.” Yttrium began. “I do agree with Nurse Transfusion, if you are going to help me in the labs, you need to be careful. Don’t want to spread the Corrosion anywhere else.” He put his hoof to his chin. “And I can’t lie and say your help is not needed.” He said in a serious and direct tone. “We have had a massive influx of patients lately. Corrosion is spreading faster than ever before.”

“How much?”

“We have twice as many sick from when you were in the labs last time.” Yttrium explained. “We had gathered only a hoof-ful over the past two years. Now, it has doubled the past six months.”

“All the more reason to ditch the Cardiac Department.” Dazzle said.

“I wouldn’t say that.” Yttrium scrunched his eyebrows. “Both are important.”

“Isn’t the cure more important?” Dazzle frowned.

“As much as I want to say it is, I have to say ‘no’.” he said sternly. “You know Dazzle, I think you are judging too much off of first impressions. Nurse Transfusion is more like you than you think.”

“What?” Dazzle asked. “But Nurse Transfusion is mean!”

His mouth twisted. “Nurse Transfusion has been through a lot, Dazzle.”

“Like what?” Dazzle folded her hooves. It took a little bit, since she had to consciously fold them because she hadn’t done it before in her adult form.

“Well, if you should know, you’ll be going through the same things that she had gone through.” Yttrium said. “Being an Earth Pony is hard in a hospital environment, especially when it’s this competitive. She had to say things how they are and be bossy from time to time to make sure she wasn’t getting kicked out. But, if you really get to know her, she has a heart of gold.”

“It’s too often that we treat the workplace like wash, rinse, and repeat.” Yttrium explained. “I see it a whole new different way. We should treat our job like a support group.” He sighed. “Everypony has their weaknesses, and tough times bring those flaws to the forefront. But what matters is that we learn from our mistakes and move on.”

Yttrium leaned back in his chair and crossed his legs. “Dazzle, I know how you are, and you are a great addition to the research team. But I need to say something directly, and I want you to really think about it and not brush it off.”

Dazzle nodded. Yttrium expected her to listen, so she decided to listen. “Shoot.”

“There is a time to stand, and a time to take things with grace.” Yttrium said. “I know you are good at one of those, but you require wisdom to know which one to use.”

“How will I know the difference?” Dazzle asked.

“Ready for me to blow your mind?” Doctor Fuse smirked. “The trick is that there is no difference!”

Dazzle balked. “What?”

“You heard me!” Yttrium laughed. “There is no difference!”

Dazzle thought about it for a bit. How could defending yourself and staying silent the same thing?

“Let me explain it in more simple terms.” Yttrium said. “I learned this lesson very late in life. My example is, do you have a best friend?”

Dazzle nodded.

“Okay, imagine somepony picking on you, what does this best friend do?”

Dazzle thought back to Ponyville. Whenever ponies would accuse Dazzle of being a bully, Silver would back her up. She didn’t realize that until now.

“Now, imagine that best friend, being picked on. What do you do?”

Dazzle nodded. All those times Silver Spoon got flack for her actions, Dazzle would just sit and stare.

“If you are sticking your neck out for another pony, nine times out of ten, you are in the right,” Yttrium said, “and at the same time, you are taking things with grace.”

“So, you are saying, treat Nurse Transfusion with kindness?” Dazzle asked.

“Yep!” Yttrium looked at the clock. “Looks like your lunch hour is almost up. I know you still have a mess to clean up, but if you come by, I’ll let you into the lab before you go home.”

Dazzle smiled. “Thank you, Doctor!”

Dazzle waved to him as she passed through the door. She narrowed her eyes and smirked. She had a Nurse to help.

“Can you make yourself useful and go check Wild Card’s call light?” Nurse Transfusion growled as she struggled to put the new sheet over the hospital bed.

Dazzle shook her head and helped with the other side. “Don’t be afraid to ask for help.” she said as she trotted out the door.

“Geez… what has gotten into you?” Nurse Transfusion barked. “Can you drop the jolly act?”

Dazzle peeked her head in and smiled devilishly. “Never!” Dazzle then speed walked over to Wild Card’s room.

The journey to Wild Card’s room required a little bit of a trek. The staff tucked him into a far room at the end of the hallway. For obvious reasons. He had been waiting for a long time, so they gave him a room with a view of the city.

She approached the end of the hallway. A glass window refracted the last light as Celestia’s sun dipped below the city’s skyscrapers. She took this as a good sign since the time of day marked only half an hour until her shift ended. Then… Yttrium would come and get her.

She slipped into the last door on the right. Once she stepped into the room, she met eye contact with a colt in a hospital bed. Countless tubes roped and lassoed around him. Dazzle could only begin to name a couple of them amongst the several other machines she didn’t recognize.

All through the tangle of tubes, she found his red coat with a golden mane to still have a healthy luster. He turned to Dazzle and asked, “Can I get a glass of water?”

“Sure thing, honey!” Dazzle said. She cringed, asking herself why she said ‘honey’ in the first place. Probably Nurse Transfusion’s mannerisms. She grabbed his water bottle and filled it up in the sink. To pass the time, she asked, “So, what is your name?”

“Wild Card.” he replied. “Are you that mean nurse from before?”

Dazzle sighed. “I’m sorry, I was in a bad mood earlier. Pretty stressed.”

“It’s okay.” he replied weakly. “Did you know that stressed is desserts backwards?”

“You’re funny!” Dazzle glanced at the a pile of papers on his table. “Are you good at writing?”

“Yeah,” he said.

“Do you also like to read?” Dazzle shut the faucet off.

“Oh yes!” He nodded vigorously.

“What’s your favorite book?” She brought the water bottle over to his desk, and found a tiny spot to set it. She didn’t want to ruin his work.

“”Wait for Me!’ said Filly McHoovington.” He answered. “It’s about this filly who is the youngest of her siblings. Wants to grow up so she can reach the cookie jar and do the stuff her older siblings are able to do. Most of all, she wants to get her cutie mark. In the end, all her wishes are fulfilled as her older siblings help her, but she gets her cutie mark all by herself!”

“Sounds wonderful!” Dazzle said. “I need to check it out sometime!”

“You should!” he said.

“I’d bet your special talent is to read and write!” Dazzle pointed out. She made that wild guess because the blankets were covering his flank.

“I think it is, but I don’t have my cutie mark yet. I wish I could get it.” His ears drooped.

Dazzle looked at his current state. His weak body prohibited him but his mind wanted to be able to do everything. She remembered that feeling- to be searching for a purpose, and have dreams of reaching it, but being unable to grasp it due to your circumstances. She knew what to do. “You know, I think that if you believe you can achieve something with all of your heart, then it will come true.”

“You think so?” he asked with a smile.

“I know so.” Dazzle set the bottle down on his table. “It has happened for me. I know it can happen for you.”

“Thank you, Nurse Dazzle.” he said, leaning forward. He must’ve had good eyes to read her name tag.

“Actually, I’m not a nurse, I’m just a volunteer.” Dazzle smiled.

“Thank you, Volunteer Dazzle.” Wild Card corrected himself.

“Need anything else?” Dazzle asked.

“Nope.” he answered.

Dazzle quietly left the room. Once she was outside, she pressed her back against the wall. She never felt this way in a long time. It was a remnant of the first time she came to this big and cold town. She looked out the window and saw the sun threading its rays of light through the distant towers. Sunset in Mane-hattan.

Winter was coming to an end… and for once in a long time…

Her life felt complete.

She belonged in Mane-hattan in all of its craziness.

“Hey, you okay?” She heard Yttrium say as he galloped up to her. “Did Nurse Transfusion yell at you again?”

“No…” Dazzle turned to Yttrium. “I’m just happy.”

Chapter 20: Bling

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“So, what is the mean?” the teacher asked.

While all the other classmates were scribbling ferociously on the paper, trying to do the math, Dazzle’s hoof shot straight up.

“Dazzle?” Ms. Paprika asked.

“It’s five.” Dazzle replied. “It just so happens that seventy three is the variance, making eight point five something the standard deviation, but that just an approximation.”

The teacher looked back at the board. After mouthing through the equations in her head, she smiled. “Well done, Dazzle, I didn’t catch that.” She turned back to the board and started to write more with her mouth. She spit the chalk back out. “What Dazzle just calculated was the standard deviation. We’ll be studying that later.”

Dazzle watched closely. Although Ms. Paprika’s scratchy writing hindered her comprehension, she still blazed through the examples in her worksheet. In the data sets, seven looked like ones, fours looked like nines, and vice versa. She couldn’t blame her teacher though. Ms. Paprika consciously tried to write legibly. She’d probably do better with her horn holding the chalk instead of taking an extra 5-10 minutes writing on the board. However, school policy stated otherwise because they didn’t want anypony contracting Corrosion.

“So, the next one is actually pretty easy.” Ms. Paprika said. “It’s called the mode. It is the number with the most common occurrence.” She looked to the orange filly on the opposite side of the room. “Yes, Babs?”

“I know the Core is insistent that we learn this, but when will we ever use this?” Babs asked.

Dazzle raised her hoof.

“I think Dazzle has an answer.” Ms. Paprika smiled. “Yes, Dazzle?”

“It is useful when taking recordings and finding out probability for business or for experiments.” Dazzle recalled. “That way, you can find your most likely option and take necessary risk.”

“Thank you Dazzle.” Ms. Paprika started going back to the board and writing.

Out of the corner of her eye, Dazzle could see a glare from Babs. Dazzle stuck her out her tongue at Babs.

“Dazzle?” Ms. Paprika asked before Dazzle left the room.

Dazzle popped her head back around the door. “Yes, Ms. Paprika?”

“Thank you again for helping me.” She took a bottle of water and swished it in her mouth. She spit it out in a nearby bucket. “Ugh… never going to get used to that chalk taste.” She turned back to Dazzle. “By the way, how did you do that so quickly?”

“My father taught me.” Dazzle said. “Back in Ponyville, he knew that I would inherit the business someday, so I needed to know how to do statistics quickly.”

“Oh, that’s right!” Ms. Paprika tapped on the door of her filing cabinet. “Cheerilee had it recorded that your father’s Mr. Rich. That explains a lot actually…” She hacked out another wad of spit into the bucket. “Well, go enjoy your lunch. I’m certainly not going to enjoy mine.” She chuckled.

Dazzle smiled as she picked up her lunch sack and coat. She bounded towards the lunchroom. Who knew her father’s overbearing-ness could come in useful?

As soon as she entered the lunchroom, she trotted towards her usual haunt. She balked.

A group of foals flooded the table. Some sitting, some standing, some sitting on the tabletop, alongside Napoleon and Vertigo. As soon as Napoleon’s eyes met Dazzles, he sprung out of his seat and ran towards Dazzle. Noticing his speedy jog towards Dazzle, the crowd followed close behind him.

“I tried to stop them! Word got out that- Agh!” Napoleon got trampled by a filly.

Dazzle recognized some of these ponies. Some of them she did not.

“Hey, Dazzle, can you help me with Ms. Paprika’s homework?” A filly from her class asked. Dazzle knew her name to be Little Cookie.

Another filly, not from her class, came up to her. She had a lavender coat with a red tail. Cutie mark of a triangle flag from an airfield. “Can you help me too, Dazzle?”

“Woah, woah, one at a time.” Dazzle waved her hooves for everypony to calm down. Although the commotion flustered her, she knew what she had to do first. “I can help you, but I’d appreciate you not stepping on my friend there.” She pointed to Napoleon, who whimpered on the ground as he displayed a couple hoof-prints on his coat.

Some of the fillies and colts blushed as they stepped aside. Dazzle trotted towards the crumpled pile and held out a hoof. “You okay, Napoleon?”

“Yeah,” Napoleon accepted her hoof and stood up. He inspected his coat and shook his head. “Mom is not going to believe this. She’s going to think Underdog got me again.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll tell her together.” Dazzle nudged him. She turned back to the crowd and instructed, “Come to the table. I will help you. Just let Napoleon sit next to me.”

Dazzle’s mouth cramped from the amount of writing she had to do. Not to mention Vertigo kept asking questions about how she did the homework so quickly. She looked at her half-eaten bagel from time to time. Oh, Coco would be so upset. The bagel wasn’t bad, in actually, it was quite delicious. However, if Coco found that Dazzle didn’t eat it, she would stop cooking for a long while, moping over what she did wrong.

“Remember that anything divided by two is either a point five or a whole number.” She pointed to the colt’s arithmetic. She snuck a bite in from her bagel. Oh, the cheesy goodness, crisp and sharp, toasted to perfection.

“Seriously, how do you do this so fast?” Vertigo asked from across the table

“And you’re done!” Dazzle held up a hoof.

“Thank you Dazzle,” The colt brohoofed her. He snatched his paper and trotted away.

“My pleasure, Steel Bit.” Dazzle said before she motioned for the next foal to come up. The next colt had a purple coat with a yellow mane. Kinda reminded her of somepony.

She turned to Vertigo. “Like I told you, it has to do with being able to do speedy multiplication and division in your head.”

“How would I learn th-” Vertigo’s eyes darted to Dazzle’s left, then towards the table. She started to eat her lunch that she neglected since she couldn’t quit chattering.

Strange. Vertigo stopped mid-sentence.

“Bling?” What are YOU doing here?” Napoleon shouted to her right.

Dazzle turned to her friend, who had his book flat against the table, open to a page about a random chemical, ‘Magnesium: highly volatile’ she read. For once in his life, Napoleon had broken free of the book’s captivation. She saw him leaning back and looking directly at the colt.

“Do not mention this to Underdog, or else!” the colt named Bling-Bling growled.

Dazzle turned back to the colt. “Wait… is your mother Marigold?”

“Who’s asking?” Bling-Bling frowned.

“Dazzle Tiara.” Dazzle said. “I’m Coco’s filly.”

His face turned from a scowl to a smile in an instant. “Wait… you are the filly that my mom’s been raving about. She calls you a ‘hoot’ all the time!”

“I don’t know what a ‘hoot’ is, but it sounds good.” Dazzle held out a hoof. “Pleasure to meet you Bling-Bling.”

“Aw, you don’t have to call me twice, one Bling does the trick.” He shook her hoof.

“Dazzle, you don’t want to get tangled up with him.” Napoleon muttered lowly.

Dazzle turned to her friend. “Why not?”

“Because he picks on me all the time...” Napoleon scoffed, “him and his buddies!”

“I don’t mean it…” Bling mumbled. “It’s just a joke…”

“Yeah, pushing me into the snow is a funny joke.” Napoleon scoffed.

“Stop it you two.” Dazzle said. Those phrases unearth memories. For Bling, it matched when Silver Spoon made up an excuse to Cheerilee for teasing the crusaders Bling was just a follower. His tone and mannerisms gave it away. And now, she had the chance to break that cycle.

“I did nothing.” Napoleon said before she could respond. He folded his hooves. “Dazzle, you can’t be my friend and his at the same time.”

Dazzle shivered. she heard that same exact phrase from her mouth- when she threatened to break up with Silver Spoon for not doing what she said. Dazzle found herself in the interesting position. She understood both sides now.

She didn’t want another pony end up as Silver Spoon. Punished for loyalty. Now she had to act quick before the moment passed.

“You two are being idiotic.” Dazzle stated the first thing that came to mind. She made use of the tone her… previous parents taught her. She turned to Napoleon and scowled. “It’s really really mature of you making the threat of cutting off a flourishing relationship because you don’t get along with a friend of a friend.”

Napoleon balked. “Some friend you are!” He scrunched his nose, slammed his book shut, and stomped off towards the courtyard.

Dazzle’s heart broke to see him choose poorly. For a slight second, she doubted her decision, but inside, she felt warm. It was odd since she usually felt empty when she had to take charge. The only time she felt warm inside before was when she rebuilt the playground at Ponyville.

Vertigo’s eyes shifted nervously back and forth, “I’ll… uh… I’ll…”

Dazzle forced herself to speak in a calm voice. “Sorry for scaring you, Vertigo. It’s just I’ve seen this play out before, and I don’t want to choose the wrong way again.” She pointed to the outside doors. “Could you please talk to Napoleon?”

Vertigo took that invitation and surged up out of her seat. “What should I say?” she asked.

“Just… distract him.” Dazzle pointed again.

Vertigo started to flap her wings.

Dazzle turned back to the line. Three foals left.

“Dazzle?” Vertigo asked in a quivering tone.

“Yes?” Dazzle turned to Vertigo, still flapping in midair.

“Can we be still friends?” She asked. Her ears flat against her skull.

“It’s your choice.” Dazzle said. “It’s yours to keep or to give away. Nopony can make you not friends anymore except the other.” Dazzle smiled. “For me to you, I will be your friend.”

Vertigo smiled before she zipped away.

“T-Thank you.” Bling stuttered.

“Oh, you’re not out of the loop yet. I still got a bone to pick with you.” Dazzle smirked. “But, first, I got to know officially, are you my friend?”

Bling nodded.

“Okay, so I am yours too.” Dazzle said.

Bling was hard to teach. He learned from his mistakes- at least mathematically- very slowly. Dazzle kept apologizing to the last two foals in line for the wait. They didn't mind though. They understood she was trying her best to help.

Dazzle looked at the clock. The long hand inched closer to the end of Lunchtime. She looked back to the three ponies in line. “I know I have Ms. Paprika with you and you.” She pointed to two of them. “So, I can help you after class when I’m waiting for Co- I mean, my mom.” She looked at Bling. “Talk with your mom. Convince her that you need to go visit Coco. I can help you then.”

All three of them nodded as they got up and scurried towards class.

The lunchroom slowly emptied. Dazzle took her bagel and chomped down on it, trying to finish it up. She wanted to savor it, but right now, that couldn’t be helped.

Before she could take a bite, she spotted Bling dragging his hooves back to class. Typical. Been there, done that.

“Bling!” Dazzle hollered.

Bling turned back to Dazzle, with a look of worry. “Yeah?”

She smirked. She knew how to deal with this. Just like commanding Silver Spoon. “Get your rump to class!”

Bling’s eyes widened as he bolted with a quicker pace out of the lunchroom.

Dazzle figured she should hurry back. As she did, at long last, she finally enjoyed her gourmet chef Coco’ bagel.

Napoleon wouldn’t speak to her for the rest of class. Well, even more than usual. Any other day, and he would be passing notes about random chemistry facts to Dazzle, smiling and snickering as he did so- sometime Ms. Paprika would catch him red-hoofed, but now, he was just… silent.

That was his problem. Dazzle knew that this was a manipulative gesture she had done in the past to keep Silver Spoon wrapped around her hoof, but it only worked so far, and it was the fact when Silver Spoon showed she didn’t care for her ‘fake friendship, A.K.A. follower’ that kick-started Dazzle’s awakening.

Probably the same story here. She had the chance to go a different route and experiment. Only one way to find out.

“Okay, so that is on your homework, due next week.” Ms. Paprika said as she pulled out another paper. “That is all for class. While we wait, I’ll make some announcements. The science fair is at the end of March, if you want to get in, now is the time to do so. Just recently, there is a vacancy in the school choir since some had to go away on medical leave.” Ms. Paprika turned the page. “Reminder of all unicorns to only use magic when absolutely necessary. The Corrosion has no place in our school.”

The filly and colt before had come up to Dazzle, holding their papers full of math homework eagerly up to Dazzle. Dazzle motioned for one to sit at her desk, and then turned to Napoleon. “Uhm, can Bulk Buster sit at your desk, Napoleon?” She asked.

His eyes darted towards her, then back to the front.

“Please?” Bulk Buster asked.

Napoleon groaned and rolled his eyes. He got out of his seat and then sat at Bulk Buster’s seat towards the front.

“What got his goat?” Bulk asked. “Was it that thing that happened at lunch?”

“Long story.” Dazzle said as an excuse. “Anyways, let’s get started, both of you. We don’t have much time.”

Florin and Montresor came in not long after. They traded the usual conversation with Napoleon, but Napoleon waved them off and asked them, “Can we talk later?”

His parents, of course, knew something was amiss. Without another word, they slipped out the door quickly.

Dazzle got back to the assignment. “Be careful there. The data points are not in order.” She pointed to a row of ten numbers.

“Thank you.” Jade Tail started to place the numbers in ascending order.

“You’re welcome.”

“Hey Sis! I’m finished!” Bulk Buster lifted his paper up for his sibling to see. “You want some help?”

“Sure!” Jade skootched to her brother’s side.

Dazzle smiled as she backed away. So, this is what it felt to have a job well done. Her dad talked about it all the time, but each time she would roll her eyes. One dumb assignment after another. Perhaps she should’ve changed her perspective earlier.

“Dazzle?” Ms. Paprika said, snapping Dazzle out of her daze.

Dazzle looked over to her teacher.

Ms. Paprika gargled a mouthful of water and pointed a hoof towards the door. Marigold and Bling-Bling peeked around the corner of the door.

Dazzle nodded. She tried hard to hold back a laugh since Ms. Paprika looked so funny with puffy cheeks full of water.

Marigold spoke first as soon as Dazzle came up. “I heard a lot about what you did today.” Marigold tousled her son’s hair. “I thank you.”

“It’s not over yet.” Dazzle faked a glare towards Bling. “I still have to teach him a lesson.”

Bling gulped.

Marigold chuckled. “Tough love! I like it!”

“Let me get my pack.” Dazzle rushed back to her desk. She looked up at the fraternal twins and asked. “Will you be fine without me?”

“Yeah, I got it!” Bulk nodded before nudging his sister.

Dazzle hoisted the pack on her flank and proceeded out the door. “We’ll wait for Coco.”

“Sounds good to me!” Marigold said.

As they waited, Dazzle popped the question. “So, you mentioned Underdog. Who is he? Why are you scared of him?”

“Oh, he is one of my only friends.” Bling’s ears drooped. “He was the only pony willing to take me under his wing when I began school here.”

“Little known fact about us, Dazzle, but we actually moved from Los Pegasus about two years ago.” Marigold added. She turned back to her son. “But now you’ve made a new friend, and she’ll keep you out of trouble!”

Dazzle tilted her head. She turned back to Bling “Did your mom tell you where I’m from?”

Bling shook his head.

“She actually came from Ponyville about six months ago, sweetie.” Marigold tousled her son’s feathers. “If anypony would understand having to move, it would be her.”

Suddenly, a filly and a colt came up to him. “Heya Bling! How’s it going! Didn’t see you at lunch!” the filly said.

Dazzle recognized one of them: the scratched-up colt with the raccoon eyes.

Suddenly, the filly, dark magenta coat and dark blue mane, noticed her. “Who is this?”

Marigold’s voice flattened to monotone. “This is Dazzle, Candy.”

Dazzle found wanted to ask Bling about his mother’s sudden mood swing, but before she could say anything, Candy held out a hoof lined from joint to hoof with rubber bracelets.

Dazzle shook her hoof.

The colt turned towards her and then his smile turned into wonder. “Wait! You are the filly riding on Coco’s back!”

“Yep!” Marigold said. “This is Dazzle, Coco’s new filly.”

“Adopted, actually.” Dazzle clarified.

“Oh, gosh, Dazzle.” Marigold slapped her on the back playfully. “No need to be modest.”

“Oh! This is cool! This is cool! Having another foal of a fashionista in our group!” The colt hopped up and down. As he hopped around, Dazzle noticed his flank. No cutie mark. She zipped her mouth shut, as bringing it up now wasn’t exactly the best idea.

Suddenly, Marigold pointed down the hall. “Oh, speaking of which! There is Coco!”

Dazzle looked back and saw Coco weaving through the crowds of fillies, colts, and their parents. Coco waved a hoof, almost tripping in the process.

“Hey Marigold, what are you doing here? I thought you were busy stitching something together!” Coco asked.

The colt and Candy just sat in awe.

“I was, but Bling here needs some tutoring from Dazzle.” Marigold she glared at her son. “If he is going to pass, he needs to bring his grade up. Don’t want to be held back again, now do we?”

Dazzle looked to Bling. His face burned red as a beet. His eyes widened and darted back and forth between ponies. From the looks of it, he was holding his breath.

“Sure then,” Coco itched her foreleg. Dazzle recognized that idiosyncrasy; Coco’s anxious tick.

“Marigold, can you help Coco with her line?” Dazzle asked. “She’s been behind lately.” She winked at Coco.

Coco shook her head and smiled.

“Sure, I don’t see why not.” Marigold glanced behind her. “But we better get a move-on, we a blocking the hallway.”

The colt and Candy shifted to the side to let the flood of ponies go through.

Coco sat on her haunches.

“Not today, if that’s okay.” Dazzle glanced at the colt. She didn’t want to incite any jealousy again.

“Okay.” Coco stood up and walked alongside Marigold.

“Goodbye, Bling!” Candy waved as they walked away.

“Seeya, Candy!” Bling said, waving back.

The colt rushed up to Bling and cupped a hoof to whisper in his ear. Dazzle just so happened to hear it. “Don’t forget about our meetup tomorrow!”

Bling nodded and scuttled off. Dazzle looked back and then galloped towards Bling.

Dazzle raised an eyebrow. “Meetup?”

Bling smiled nervously. “Oh, just something we do. It’s a secret though…” his pupils shrank.

While Coco and Marigold were busy, trading conversations about their projects, Dazzle figured now would be a good time to ask a couple questions. “What is his name?”

“Underdog.” Bling said.

“Oh! So that’s him!” Dazzle realized. She lifted an eyebrow “Why are you so scared of him?”

“Because he has ties to Babs, which has ties to Fancy Gem, the niece of Suri Polomare.” Bling explained.

Dazzle’s jaw dropped. “What? You mean you are affiliated with Babs?”

“Forget I said anything.” Bling quickly answered.

Dazzle was about to scream at him to spill the beans, but she stopped herself. She understood the predicament. She would feel uncomfortable too if anypony pried at her to get Silver Spoon’s secret. As much as she wanted to know what Babs was doing with them, she couldn’t just extort a newfound friend for information. She would have to get that information through another source. She had theories though. From what Napoleon had said, Vertigo’s mannerism in his presence, and also the new information about their ties to Babs, this meetup couldn’t be good.

“Sorry I got you into a pickle.” Dazzle’s ears drooped. “I understand that you need to keep a secret.”

“It’s okay.” He wiped a hoof across the bridge of his nose. “Besides, I want to ask you, why did you choose me over Napoleon?”

“I’m still his friend, as much as he doesn’t want to be right now. He’s just being a dummy right now.” Dazzle facehooved. “Besides… It’s a long story. Let’s just say I had a friend just like you in Ponyville.”

“Can you tell me about him?”

“It’s a she.” Dazzle corrected. “I met her back in first grade…”

Chapter 21: The Ex-Crusader

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It wasn’t a day until Napoleon came back up to talk to Dazzle. At lunch she sat quietly with Vertigo, until Napoleon took a set across the table. He set his Power Ponies lunch box down and started to eat. Dazzle found it strange that he didn’t have a book with him.

He grumbled. “Mom and dad told me to apologize to you for not being a good friend.”

“Apology accepted.” Dazzle nodded and took a bite of her celery.

“Can you tell your mom that I apologized to you?” Napoleon asked, twirling a hoof across the table. “They said no library books until they hear from Coco that I apologized to you.”

Dazzle frowned. “So, this is why you came up to me?”

“And the science fair.” Napoleon added. “I can’t go there either until I do this.”

“I will tell C- I mean, my mom,” Dazzle began, “but I don’t think you will have learned your lesson.”

“He’s a bully!” Napoleon shouted. “Why are you taking his side?”

“I’m am on your side and his.” Dazzle said. “A true friend will not stand by while their friend lets their emotions or mistakes get the better of them.”

“You don’t understand- he doesn’t change.” Napoleon reasoned. “You’ll get hurt.”

“I’d rather have the pain now rather than later.” Dazzle turned her nose up. “Because the other road leads to greater consequences.”

Vertigo’s mouth popped open. “Can I?-”

“Not now.” Dazzle gestured her hoof.

“Why are you doing this?” Napoleon threw his hooves up in the air.

“Because, I used to be in those shoes.” Dazzle sighed, as she didn’t want the secret to get out. Right now, that couldn’t be helped. She started calmly. “Napoleon, I am asking this sincerely, who do you think I am?”

“You’re Dazzle! This amazing filly that befriended me! That befriended Vertigo! She would never turn on me to join a group of bullies!” Napoleon said.

“I am not who you think I am.” Dazzle continued. “Do you know why I came from Ponyville?”

“No.” Napoleon shook his head. “Why did you?”

“It is because I bullied other foals.” Dazzle shuddered as memories of her previous mistakes came flowing back. “The effects of my wrong choices forced me to leave home and take a leap of faith for a new start in Mane-hattan.”

“You? A bully? I don’t believe it.” Napoleon scoffed.

“It’s true. Ask Coco, Ms. Paprika, or even Babs for that matter- even though they have different viewpoints of me, they know everything about my ruses and tricks back in Ponyville.”

Napoleon raised an eyebrow. “I will do that.”

“You know why I am doing this?” Dazzle rolled up her lunch sack. “Because Bling reminds me of the only friend I had back in Ponyville. The type I would share my deepest secrets to… Now, I’m choosing to be more open. Yes. I did wrong. But I’m trying to learn the magic of friendship as much as any other pony in this school. I’m paying the price for all my wrongdoings. But you know what makes me feel worse? My friend, Silver Spoon, is paying tons more for my mistakes than I am. All because she didn’t know any better.”

Napoleon’s scowl melted into a frown.

“That’s why I want to befriend Bling. I fear him and his friends will be in a very dark place when their mistakes come back to haunt them.” Dazzle said. “That’s why I take the high road. I won’t care what anypony thinks- what you think. I’m trying to help any way I can.”

“What happened, then, Dazzle?” Vertigo interjected “To your friend?”

“It’s not my place to say.” Dazzle flinched every time a wispy ghost of a recollection of her dream came back. She only could remember a couple details. Unfortunately, she only could remember how Silver Spoon revealed the insides of her forelegs. Like a labyrinth of red lines.

“What about you? How come you don’t pick on others now?” Vertigo asked.

“It happened on a summer day.” Dazzle said. “It began when I ran for class president...”

“So, thanks to Silver Spoon and standing up for herself, she was able to give me the strength necessary to break out of the iron grip of my parents.”

“Wow… So that’s the reason why you are doing this.” Napoleon said.

“I feel bad because my friend is paying dearly for what I’ve done.” Dazzle finished. “She stood up for herself, because of that, I’m a better pony. If not for her, I’d be only getting worse and worse. She deserves none of what she is getting.”

Napoleon nodded. “Now I know.”

Dazzle got up and started to trot towards the doors, putting on her coat and scarf as she proceeded out. She felt oddly cold in that warm lunchroom, but gentle at the same time. Maybe this is what the Elements of Harmony felt like after they made a tough decision.
She put on her jacket and tugged on it to keep the wrinkles out.

Vertigo buzzed right by her, and Napoleon trotted by her side.

“I’m sorry for not being a good friend.” Napoleon nudged her. “For real this time.”

“Apology always accepted.” Dazzle said.

As soon as they burst through the doors, Vertigo took to the sky. Napoleon hugged the book as he gazed at her form. “She’s getting better.” He observed.

“Mmmhmm.” Dazzle agreed.

“Hey Napoleon!”

Dazzle turned around as a colt she recognized shoved him into the snow.

Napoleon’s horn glowed. He pried the earth pony off of him.

Napoleon quickly scuttled off the snow and towards Dazzle. He shook his head at her. “I’d bet right now wouldn’t be a good time for ‘I told you so…?’”

Dazzle nodded. All his anger made sense. To forget it was easier said than done. Although, she wanted to try something. Something crazy.

Underdog got up and brushed the rubble off his coat. When he noticed Dazzle, he smiled. “Hey, how’s it going Dazzle?”

“Not good.” Dazzle scowled. “What are you doing here?”

“Enjoying the day.” Underdog shrugged.
“So, you call pushing Napoleon enjoying the day?” Dazzle found Underdog’s vagueness irritating. If she’d known this before… she would’ve-

Vertigo landed right next to Dazzle. Vertigo stiffened. “Leave my friends alone!”

“Friends?” Underdog chuckled. “You’re cute, Vertigo.”

“Where’s Bling?” Vertigo scanned her surroundings.

“Using the little’ colt’s room.” He answered. “He’ll be back in a minute to help us out.”

Dazzle recalled her conversation with Bling the other day. He mentioned that Babs hired Underdog to do something. She figured that this had to do with something now. She glared at Candy and Underdog “So this is what Babs had in mind?” She spilled out.

Candy glared at her “Who told you?”

“Not important.” Dazzle cut off quickly. She didn’t want to risk Bling’s safety. “A better question is, why are you doing it for Babs?”

“Ugh.” Candy groaned. “Napoleon insulted Babs by not accepting a kind gesture from her. It seems he has decided where he wants to be in the pecking order.”

Dazzle looked back at Napoleon.

“It was an accident! I just wanted to get back to reading my book!” Napoleon’s shouted.

“You and I need to talk later.” She rolled her eyes and turned back to Underdog. She would deal with this later.

“You still haven’t answered why yet.” Dazzle redirected. “You told me why Babs wanted you to do this, but why are you following orders?”

“You’re not actually defending this retard, are you?” Underdog chuckled.

Dazzle frowned and cocked an eyebrow.

“Oh, so you’re being serious.” Underdog shook his head. He paced back and forth “So, I guess you had a rough start… how in the world did you get Egghead and Blank Flank to be your friend? He acts like he is too good for the Fashionistas…”

“I spoke his language, and offered.” Dazzle retorted. “Besides, aren’t you a Blank Flank also?” Once she realized what she said, she covered her mouth. She didn’t expect that to come out. It was a force of habit.

Underdog balked as he glanced at his flank. His tail swished to cover it. “I think you should rethink your decision, Dazzle.” Underdog said. Dazzle picked up on the small detail that his legs were shaking. “The fashionistas run this school. You have a way in. You don’t need to waste time on these losers…”

Dazzle glared at him. “Do not call them losers.” She twisted her mouth to one side. “Besides, I don’t think Babs will accept me anytime soon.”

“Why is that?”

“I- I bullied her back in Ponyville.” Dazzle figured that the secret was out by now, so there was no use in hiding it.

Underdog raised an eyebrow. “You?”

“Ask Babs, she can tell you.” Dazzle said. “She can tell you all the times I teased others from being Blank Flanks.”

Underdog paused.
Out of the corner of her eye, Dazzle saw Vertigo covering her flank with her tail.

“You are one strange filly, Dazzle.” Underdog said. “We will resolve this matter later, for now, we need to do our job. Bling or no Bling.” He started to march towards Napoleon.

Dazzle held out a hoof to block them. “I got a better idea.”

“What?” Underdog barked, flashing his chipped teeth. Dazzle caught a whiff of his stale breath. Not bad, but not a good smell either.

“You rough me up, then report it to Babs. She will then take that as more than pleasing.” When Dazzle actually spoke her mind, it sounded crazy. Why in the world would she volunteer to get punched?

“We don’t beat up fillies.” Underdog said. “Against our code. Babs usually prepares gossip about fillies instead.”

“Babs will certainly make the exception.” Dazzle locked eyes with Underdog and braced herself. No going back now. “Just think of me as a substitute Napoleon.”

He paused. “I don’t think-”

“You know what? DEAL!” Candy smirked. Her horn glowed. She pushed Dazzle over. Dazzle hit the ground, knocking the wind out of her. After stomping on her, she then took her by the foreleg, and dragged her towards the wall. She placed a hoof over Dazzle’s neck and pinned her against the wall in a choke-hold.

“CANDY NO! STOP IT! LEAVE HER ALONE! IT’S ME YOU WANT!” Napoleon shouted. “UNDERDOG! DON’T JUST STAND THERE!”

Dazzle now understood what Candy was doing. She was casting a spell to hold back Vertigo and Napoleon. Underdog just stood in shock while Candy kicked Dazzle.

“LET GO OF MY TAIL!” Vertigo roared. “CANDY! LET GO! YOU’RE GOING TO KILL HER!”

Meanwhile, she saw Candy lower her head. She rammed Dazzle square in the stomach. It didn’t help that Candy was a Unicorn. The horn was like landing on a keychain after slipping.

A green magic was tugging on each of her friends’ tails.

Another back-hoof from Candy, and it felt like nothing she ever felt before. Her eyes watered. Her stomach felt as if somepony was tearing it apart. She coughed as her lungs felt like they been filled with liquid fire. The pain coursed through her veins. At last, she never felt more alive… more present. Her numbness flowed away and emptied like a storm released from Cloudsdale. It invigorated her… It empowered her.

Suddenly, a book sailed across her vision and smacked Candy in the face.

“You picked the wrong day to mess with my friend!” Napoleon shouted somewhere out of her vision. “I just happened to be studying my Calculus textbook today!” Napoleon pulled Candy away from Dazzle and shoved her into the snow. Candy got up, and punched Napoleon in the face.

Candy’s magic dropped Dazzle from the wall. Weakened from the blows, Dazzle fell towards the ground, limp as a ragdoll.

“STOP!” she heard another voice shout faintly over the commotion.

Vertigo froze. Napoleon must’ve not heard it because he took another swipe at Candy.

A green magic, not from Candy, nor from Napoleon surrounded both of them. A teacher stomped through the crowd and peeled Napoleon off of Candy. “YOU TWO ARE IN SERIOUS TROUBLE!”

Dazzle noticed a large group of ponies had gathered around the incident.

“A-gain?!” The teacher shouted. “Well, I can’t complain, at least there is only two of you this time!”

“Bling claimed he was using the restroom, Ms. Lagoon.” Underdog said, glancing back at Dazzle. “Now I know why.”

Ms. Lagoon sighed as she rubbed a hoof over her eyes. “You know the drill, go to the principal’s office, squat!” She pointed towards the doors. Underdog and Candy marched off out of view.

Vertigo came towards her injured friend and picked her up. “Dazzle, we need to get you to the nurse.”

Dazzle nodded.

Ms. Lagoon Grumbled. “I need to see you three in the principal’s office too!” She singled out Napoleon. “Especially you!”

Vertigo nodded solemnly “Yes, Ms. Lagoon.”

Napoleon slowly came up to her side.

“And all the rest of you! Go to class!” Ms. Lagoon barked at the crowd.

As they trotted back inside, Napoleon came by the other side of Dazzle and helped her limp towards the principal’s office.

“Thank you, Dazzle.” Napoleon said.

“No problem,” She smiled, wincing at every step.

“I know you are trying to protect your friends, Dazzle,” Vertigo started. “But that was stupid. I thought they were going to kill you.”

“They weren’t.” Dazzle winked. Her eyes burned. “I know how they work.”

Vertigo shook her head. “You didn’t beat up anypony in Ponyville, did you?”

“Nope!” Dazzle realized. She felt a little pride in that. She never went as far as physical abuse. Although it didn’t dismiss her verbal abuse. She chose not to think of it and resorted to passing the time. “Did they draw any blood, by the way?”

“Nope.” Vertigo inspected Dazzle’s barrel. “Though your winter coat has a lot of dirt on it. And your tummy has a bruise.”

“I’d better clean it up then.” Dazzle noted. “I really don’t want Coco to see this.”

“Chances are, she will. Those thr- I mean two will be suspended for a good month.” Vertigo said.

“I take it that’s not their first offence?” Dazzle presumed.

“Uhn-Uh.” Napoleon shook his head. “That’s actually number five since the school year began.”

“What were the first four?”

Vertigo pointed to Napoleon. “Ever since Babs turned her back, they been making examples out of us.”

“I think Dazzle got it the worse actually.” Napoleon traded looks with Vertigo. “I got a barrage of snowballs, Arctic Arrow got a swirly, Stone Fury got thrown by Candy across the courtyard”- He grimaced –“thank goodness he’s a Pegasus…”

“Not to mention at the beginning, they gossiped about Blueberry because she’s…” Vertigo paused. “A little chubby.”

Dazzle gasped.

“Yeah, but worse is that nopony saw it coming.” Napoleon’s ears went down. His eyes widened. “Wait… that was meant for me! They were going to do that to me!” He looked back at Dazzle. “Thanks again for taking the hits for me, but I wonder… why did you do that for me?” Napoleon asked.

“I wanted to Understand what you were going through.” Dazzle said. “I played bully before, I wanted to play bullied this time.” She chuckled. “Kinda fun, actually.”

Napoleon raised an eyebrow and his mouth twisted. “You are one weird filly, Dazzle.”

The nurse tended to Dazzle silently in the other room adjacent to the Principal’s office. Napoleon sat to the right of Dazzle and Vertigo on her left. They did so just in case she needed to get up and walk. Across the room, Underdog and Candy sat quietly, staring Dazzle down like predator and prey.

Above them, a clock ticked away. By now, ten minutes had passed since lunch ended.

The nurse shined a light into Dazzle’s eyes. After doing one eye, and the other, she noted “Good. No concussions.”

“Just a question of curiosity, but how can you tell if somepony had a concussion?” Dazzle asked.

“If your eyes dilate separately instead of together, then you have a concussion.” The nurse explained. She started to pack up her stuff “No major injuries- just scratches and bruises. No broken bones.” She hoisted her pack onto her back. “Just make sure you get plenty of rest, Miss Tiara.”

Dazzle nodded.

Right as the Nurse slipped out, Ms. Lagoon stepped in with a familiar pony. Purple mane, golden coat.

“So, you finally got caught!” Napoleon clapped. “You’re lucky Dazzle took the hits, otherwise, I would’ve punched back!”

Ms. Lagoon glared at Napoleon. “Enough. I know you two are the most disagreeable. But, Once Principal Bellows meets with you two, then we can get this whole ordeal overwith.”

The Principal’s door swung open. “Dazzle Tiara, I need to speak with you.”

Napoleon and Vertigo helped Dazzle stand up.

“You okay going without us?” Vertigo asked.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine.” Dazzle waved as she limped towards the office.

When she stepped inside, she saw Ms. Paprika sitting in a chair with a look of worry on her face.

The Principal took a seat on his desk. He rubbed the bridge of his nose and started. “Okay, Dazzle Tiara, So, I also have reviewed your track record from Ponyville Elementary. Ms. Paprika has explained your history, but she’s convinced you are innocent. But, for the record, we want to hear your side of the story.”

“I was playing with my friends until Underdog…” Dazzle paused. “With instructions from Babs Seed, pushed Napoleon. I told them to take it out on me, and they agreed.”

“I see.” The principal said. “From what we heard from the nurse in the other room, you are just fine. But, for the paperwork, we need a detailed description of what they did to you. We’ll have your friends verify.”

“Let’s see, so Candy pushed me, jumped on me, pinned me against the wall, then headbutted me in the stomach…”

“That should be enough.” Ms. Paprika cringed. A look of worry came across her face. Dazzle found it unsettling since most of the time, her teachers would be angry, not concerned about her. “You know, you are lucky Bling-Bling told Ms. Lagoon, otherwise you’d be facing worse injuries.”

Dazzle’s jaw hung open. “You mean that’s the reason why he is in here?”

“Yep, normally I’d rule it ‘guilty by association’, but this time, he reported the incident to Ms. Lagoon before it happened. However, because of his reputation, Ms. Lagoon thought he was playing another trick, but realized he was being serious.” Principal Bellows explained. “That’s why she noticed so late.”

“Glad he reported it then.” Dazzle smiled.

“You’re very lucky.” Ms. Paprika repeated. “However, this is still a serious matter. We are going to tell your parent about this.”

“WHAT? NO!” Dazzle tried to get up from her seat, but the pain flared in her stomach and lungs.

“We will.” Ms. Paprika said. “I’m instructed to make sure I’m lenient on your homework load.”

“You can’t tell Coco!” Dazzle begged. “She’ll freak out! I’ll do anything! I’ll do the homework!”

“Dazzle, if we don’t tell her the truth of what happened, then the consequences are worse.” Principal Bellows quickly spoke. Without wasting another second, he instructed “You’re excused.”

“BUT-!”

“Dazzle, please. We need to talk to the other foals to make sure we get the facts right.” Ms. Paprika held out a hoof.

Dazzle closed her mouth and held a hoof up. Ms. Paprika tugged on her hoof, and helped her out of the seat.

“Thank you for being mature about this, Dazzle.” Ms. Paprika opened the door. “It is appreciated.”

The door opened. Napoleon trotted slowly out of the office. “You’re excused. Underdog! In my office!” The Principal commanded.

Dazzle was expected Napoleon to take a seat right next to her, so she removed her pack from the chair next to her. Instead, he passed right by and walked up to Bling-Bling.

In a low tone, he whispered as he rubbed his hoof against the floor. “I’m sorry. I thought you were avoiding the situation. I didn’t realize-”

Bling set down his homework and held out a hoof. “A wise filly once told me that being friends is a decision that only I could make.” He glanced at Dazzle “So, what do you say? Let’s leave our past mistakes behind? Can we be friends?”

Napoleon glanced at Dazzle. With a fire in his eyes, he nodded. He turned back to Bling and accepted. “Friends.”

Dazzle smiled. She looked to Vertigo. Vertigo’s wings were hanging off the sides of the seat. Her ears drooped.

“What’s wrong, Vertigo?” Dazzle asked.

“How did I get caught up in this mess? I should’ve been the one who got beat up.” She answered.

“Vertigo, It’s okay.” Bling said from the other side of the room. Napoleon had taken a seat next to him. “I feel the same way too, felt like I could do more. But from what Principal Bellows told me is that I did right by letting a responsible adult know.”

Napoleon chipped in. “And he told me that next time I could run and get somepony if my friend is getting hurt. He understood I hit back because I was defending. You couldn’t do that because you had your tail yanked.”

“That’s not the p-point.” Vertigo hiccupped. “I should’ve stayed by Underdog’s side.”

“No, he wouldn’t allow you.” Candy cut in. “Your dead to him, personally. If you volunteered instead, then he would’ve done his worst.”

Dazzle raised an eyebrow “So… wait. You an Underdog were friends?”

“He’s the final Crusader.” Napoleon cut in. “Ever wonder why his flank is still blank?”

Dazzle recalled that small detail. It all made sense now. Underdog’s flank marked him as a previous Crusader. An Ex-Crusader. He also had copied some mannerisms from Babs: covering his flank with his tail. But now, the real question; “What happened?”

“The big fight.” Bling said. “After Babs left Underdog and Vertigo, both of them had to figure out what to do. But once Babs told them that she wouldn’t spread gossip about us if only they would do favors for her. Beat up ponies. Spread gossip.” He turned to Vertigo. “Vertigo did the right thing and declined.”

“You’re pretty brave.” Dazzle hugged Vertigo. “Why do you worry about doing more? You’ve already done what is right.”

“Thank you.” Vertigo sniffled.

“Underdog told me if I was going to stay his friend, I needed to join him in his… crusades.” Bling’s mouth twisted.

“So, now you know our story.” Candy said, lounging back in the chair. “I hope your happy. Bling is now a traitor to both Underdog and Babs. To me, treachery is worse than cruelty. Loyalty is more important that Kindness.”

Bling shook his head. “The true cruelty is letting your friend do stupid things. That’s treachery in and of itself.”

“Yeah, letting your friend join the colt who has everything right in his life!” Candy rolled her eyes. “You haven’t faced hard things in your life, Napoleon!”
“You’re just upset I clocked you with a calculus book.” Napoleon said.

“Look, I know your mother has taught you to hate anypony famous, but you need to stop for a second and realize that fame isn’t all evil.” Bling added. “Look at the Elements of Harmony! They are far from perfect, but they do their best!”

“I know, but I know what Dazzle is. She’s a manipulator!” Candy said.

“She’s not!” Napoleon said. “That has nothing to do with her mother either!”

“Who’s her mother?” Dazzle asked.

“Berry Ice.” Candy glared at Dazzle. “Just last night she told me the truth about you. She told me Coco’s guardianship landed into your lap! You deserve none such kindness!” She scoffed. “She also says you bullied the little sisters of the Elements of Harmony and were getting away with it. I was told to make sure you don’t brainwash the school- but you’ve already brainwashed these three, including my friend!” She folded her hooves.

Dazzle closed her mouth.

“Yeah, it hurts because it is true! You’re Manipulative! I hope your ‘friends’ know what they are getting into.” Candy waved her hooves in quotations. “Reality hurts! I hope you realize that once you fall off your pedestal of fame and are left living paycheck to paycheck!”

Principal Bellows’ office door flew open “Enough! I can’t hear anything because of you foals!” Principal Bellows barked. Underdog stepped out of the office with a downtrodden expression.

“Candy! In my office now!” Principal Bellows gestured for her to come into the office.

She stepped away and swished her tail at them before closing the door to the office.

“Strange, he usually keeps his cool.” Napoleon observed.

“He’s stressed out.” Bling pointed out. “Mom gets that way sometimes when she is busy with something. So, I just leave her alone.”

“This is going to be a long day.” Dazzle gulped.

The end of the day came and Coco stepped into the main office. Ms. Paprika guided her in.

“Oh my gosh! Are you okay?” Coco rushed to Dazzle and hugged her.

“Youch! Yeah… I’m okay.” Dazzle wheezed. “Can you stop hugging me? It’s kinda painful.”

“Oh sorry!” Coco let go.

Not a second later, and Florin, Montresor, and Marigold stepped into the room. Each went to their foal and traded conversations of concern and worry. Dazzle overheard Florin “You are in so much trouble!”

“Whadidi do?” Napoleon said.

Montresor chuckled. “Florin, I think it’s a good sign that he’s getting into trouble now. At least he’s socializing. I’d rather have that than him loafing in his room reading a comic book.”

Dazzle caught a stallion and a mare coming in. Two that she didn't recognize. Immediately, they started for Vertigo. They picked her up and hugged her. She trotted towards them. "Are you Vertigo's parents?"

"Yes we are!" The mare waved to the stallion "This is Iron Heart, and I'm Ocean Heart."

Dazzle made a mental note. Vertigo's mother had a blue mane with a white froth-white coat. Ironheart had a build like iron, his coat the color of rust, and his mane a lighter shade of red, almost a pink.

"Thank you for being friends with our daughter." Ironheart said. "We were starting to get worried."

Meanwhile, Marigold hugged her son. “I’m so proud of you!”

“I couldn’t do it without Dazzle.” He waved out.

Marigold approached Coco and Dazzle. She smiled at Dazzle “How did you do it? I thought he’d never have good friends!”

“He did it on his own.” Dazzle explained. “Surprised me to figure out that he is the one who reported it to a teacher before it got too ugly.”

Coco looked at the scrapes and bruises riddled across Dazzle’s body. “I guess you aren’t modeling for my spring line anytime soon…”

Dazzle turned to her mother and chuckled. “You aren’t freaking out?”

“I am freaking out!” Coco shuffled her hooves against the carpet. Her eyes widened. She took a deep breath. “I’m also relieved that you’re okay. Ms. Paprika told me everything along the way.” She leaned towards Dazzle’s ear. “To be quite honest, she told me I cannot see you until my emotions were under control. She also told me that you were afraid I was going to go berserk.”

Dazzle looked back at her teacher. By her expression, Dazzle could tell she got tangled in a heated conversation with two other mares. Both mares she recognized: Berry Ice and the mare who tugged Underdog along.

Marigold whistled. “My Bling-Bling here just told me that the two foals responsible are getting two month’s suspension.”

“Mmmhmmm.” Dazzle nodded. She waved for Marigold to come closer. Marigold lent an ear. In it, Dazzle whispered. “Tell Bling he is welcome to sit at our table at lunch.”

Marigold smiled. “Will do, Dazzle.”

Coco looked at the time on the wall. “Well, if you are out of commission, I’m going to have to make up for lost time.”

Dazzle smiled nervously. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay, Dazzle, you were protecting your friend.” Coco turned around to sit on her haunches. “But I’m carrying you back home. You are in no shape, way, or form able to walk.”

“I’m fine.” Dazzle stepped forward towards the exit and winced.

“Nuh-uh.” Coco said. “You are going to get a piggy-back home, missy. No questions asked.”

“Fine…” Dazzle sighed as she clambered on.

She caught a glimpse of Underdog as she did so. Also, Candy had the same expression. Jealousy.

Coco stood up and exited the room.

Dazzle took a glimpse behind her. Three friends smiled and waved as she left, and two enemies glared and stared.

What a complicated mess of events.

Chapter 22: Hearts and Hooves

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-February-

Dazzle couldn’t help but snicker at how flustered Napoleon got every time Vertigo talked.

They were at lunch, where Dazzle enjoyed a little bit of stir-fry, a standard dish from Coco, but still, very good.

It seemed as that horrible event was just a nightmare now. Dazzle had no sign of any scar nor scratch left from the incident. The only relic left of it was Bling. Bling had joined their table for a week or two now. It took Napoleon a while to get used to, but after a couple days of silence, he finally went back to normal. To them, Bling was a sign that things were changing. A sign that ponies could change. He occasionally would disappear, but when he showed up, he always sat at their table. Marigold must've been having a hard time keeping up with her career, that usually explained the toll it took on her son.

“Hey Napoleon! Do you wanna see me fly?” Vertigo was obviously giddy to get outside and fly to her heart’s content.

Napoleon stayed silent. His snout stayed glued to a book. One hoof stuck in his lunchbox, and the other flipped the page.

Dazzle facehoofed. Why did he do this today of all days? Today she planned to pass out Zap-Zang candies to the whole class. Hearts and Hooves day.

“Hey Napoleon?” Dazzle asked, trying to get his attention.

“What? Huh?” He snapped out of his daze and pulled his hoof out of his lunch box. Immediately, the book he levitated in his magic clonked him in the head. “Youch! I mean Sorry! I mean, yes Dazzle?”

“Will you to continue your talk about Carbon Monoxide you started yesterday?” Dazzle asked. It might’ve come off as an odd fascination, but she wanted out out-of-the-box ideas to give Yttrium.

“Oh yes! Carbon Monoxide is so dangerous is that you have to introduce a load of oxygen to break the bond between it and your hemoglobin…” he started.

Dazzle noticed that Napoleon was acting strange. Usually, he could talk your ear off about Chemistry if you asked the right question. Instead, his enthusiasm for the subject was missing from the picture.

“How does it bind your hemoglobin?” Dazzle asked.

“Oh, there is an iron center in your hemoglobin. and the shape of the molecule, the oxygen being bigger and stronger because it has more electrons, the iron doesn’t let go until you tip the scales toward the oxygen side!”

“I know iron turns red in water… what about gold?” Bling asked.

“I need to check my sources on this, but it actually turns purple, depending on the oxidation.” Napoleon said, scratching his chin.

While Bling had Napoleon distracted, Dazzle finished up her stir fry.

“Hey, do you guys want to see a new trick I learned?” Vertigo asked, now trying again.

Vertigo took this as the prime opportunity since Napoleon had snapped out of his book. Dazzle knew that when an opportunity arose, Vertigo would be the first to snatch it. At least she thought she caught Vertigo squirming in her seat, ready to leap into action when she got the chance.

Dazzle chuckled. Normally, Vertigo’s tricks only consisted of basic loops and corkscrews. However, Dazzle wouldn’t pass up a good show. Dazzle wanted to see what she came up with. However, she looked to Napoleon, who seemed to call the shots when it came to Vertigo.

Napoleon closed his book and put his-half-eaten sandwich in his lunchbox and popped the latches back in place. “I can finish lunch later.” He sighed and closed the book “I should stop reading this for now.” He stuffed it in his pack.

They proceeded out the doors and into the courtyard. Dazzle couldn’t help but chuckle. She struggled past recesses to get him to put down whatever book he had for the day, but now, he was acting strange- strange in a good way. Something about his demeanor today made him more sociable, and talk less about his interests.

…Of course, it could’ve been all Vertigo.

Dazzle slipped on her coat.

Not waiting any second more, Vertigo zipped into the air, and shouted. “Watch closely!”

Dazzle, Bling, and Napoleon looked up as she climbed in altitude towards the barrier. Dazzle learned that they put a barrier at the very top to keep Pegasai from climbing onto the roof or even ditching school. Although invisible and impenetrable, it contained an extra enchantment to let snow and rain in.

They watched Vertigo do the usual tricks, a loop following a corkscrew, and then vice-versa. Dazzle’s tension skyrocketed as she saw her friend about to pancake into the wall.

Napoleon called out. “Look out!”

Dazzle felt the tension in her shoulders loosen as Vertigo ricocheted off the wall, then skyrocket towards the sky faster than she did with flapping her wings.

…Only to crash into the barrier, then freefall to the ground.

“Sweet Celestia!” Napoleon cried as he ran towards where she was falling.

Suddenly, Vertigo’s wings fluttered open, and she glided back down. On her way down, a cushion appeared. She landed and did a somersault on the cushion before it disappeared.

Dazzle caught up with Napoleon. His pace slowed down as he slowly approached Vertigo.

“How was that?” She asked excitedly.

“You scared me half to death!” Napoleon shouted.

“Where did the other half go?” Vertigo said, tilting her head slightly

“Wh-Wh- that’s not how it works!” Napoleon stuttered.

Vertigo playfully stuck her tongue out at Napoleon.

“I’m impressed.” Dazzle said. “How did you not get your cutie mark from that?” She asked. She could’ve sworn she seen a light thread out of Vertigo’s flank as she flew upward.

“If that happened, I would’ve got it a week ago.” Vertigo giggled. She looked to her flank and shook her head. “I’m in no hurry to get it though. Showing off what I can do in front of my new friends is fun too!”

Bling raised his wings up. “Can you teach me how to do that?”

“Sure!” Vertigo chirped. “Who knows? I might get my cutie mark in teaching!”

Vertigo took to the sky and Bling started flapping upward slowly.

Dazzle tilted her head. “First time he asked…”

Napoleon sighed.

Dazzle turned towards him “You okay?”

“Yeah… just…” He started. “Sometimes I wish I could join her.”

“I feel like that too, wondering how it is to fly.” Dazzle said. “But I’m okay here on the ground.”

Napoleon sighed again. He pulled out a book from his pack and started to read.

Dazzle snickered. Some things never change.

Dazzle rolled up her jacket, the snow she got on it was melting.

Napoleon cleared his throat loudly.

“You need something, Napoleon?” Dazzle asked.

Napoleon shifted his eyes and sighed. “Hey Vertigo, I want to give you this.” Napoleon said, reaching into his lunchbox. He pulled out a huge chocolate heart and gave it to Vertigo.

Vertigo accepted it with a smile. “Thank you.”

“It’s about time I do something brave.” Napoleon scratched the back of his head. “Besides, I heard chocolate boosts endorphins, which means you can have a flyer’s high when practicing your tricks.”

“I’ll make sure I eat it before I fly then!” Vertigo leaped into the air. “Thanks a lot!” She wrapped her wings around Napoleon, who froze as stiff as a board.

Vertigo flew off to class.

Still frozen in place, Napoleon could only blink his eyes.

“Well, gotta go… with… er… her!” Bling scooted away. He waved back as soon as he started to trot away. He glanced back quickly at Napoleon, bobbing his eyebrows up and down after gesturing to Vertigo’s… hindquarters.

Napoleon squinted. “Stop that. Be mature.”

“Always gotta give you a hard time, Napoleon.” Bling chuckled.

The end of the day came quickly. Now was the time to start passing candy and cards, then get picked up by parents after.

“Okay, we are going to pass out candy now.” Ms. Paprika took a seat on her desk. “Get ready. I will take a couple seconds to make announcements.” She picked up a paper on her desk

“The Science Fair is at the End of March. Entries are due by the 15^th.” Ms. Paprika read aloud. “If anypony wants to join choir, there is still a vacancy.”

Dazzle got out her bag of goodies and started putting them on respective desks. Each Candy was wrapped nicely with a design Coco picked out. Together, they were able to package the Zap-Zangs nicely.

She made a special effort to get one to her teacher, and then one to Napoleon. As she passed more out, she caught a colt popping it into his mouth. Suddenly, his eyes went wide. “Little Cookie!” He called out to one of his friends. “Eat the Rainbow Candy, they are amazing!”

The friend from the corner popped one into her mouth and she nodded in delight. “You’re right!”

The classmates next to her gave into their curiosity.

Then, before she knew it… the whole class had their first introductions to Zap-Zangs. Napoleon came up to Dazzle and smiled. “Can I, uh, have one more? I want to save one for Vertigo…”

Dazzle chuckled and gave him a hoof-ful.

“Wow, Dazzle! Really?” Napoleon asked.

“I have plenty.” Dazzle said. “Besides. Coco doesn’t want me to get a cavity.” She added with a giggle.

Some of the classmates overheard her and came up to her. “Can I have some more?” Jade Tail asked.

Dazzle held her Saddlebags open. “Just don’t eat too much of it.” She instructed.

More and more classmates gathered around her. Good thing she brought a surplus of it! She looked around. Her teacher sat on her desk, swinging her legs hanging off the edge. She thanked every student who passed by to drop a candy into her pouch.

Out of the corner of her eye, Dazzle noticed Babs, Dark Style, and Fancy Gem sitting quietly at their desks. Babs just frowned, with folded hooves. Dark Style looked from Babs, then back to Fancy Gem. Dazzle noticed candy wrappers littering his desk. It seemed that he wanted more, but when he tried to get up, Babs and Fancy Gem shook their heads and told him to sit back down. Dazzle made a note to herself to toss a couple to Dark Style on her way out.

Ms. Paprika snickered. “What type of candy is that, Dazzle?”

“It’s a special from Ponyville.” Dazzle said. “The Apples harvested a surplus of zap-apples, and then gave them to Pinkie’s Bakery. After experimenting, they made these.” She held one out to her teacher. “I really like them. However, Coco suggested I share some, and now I see why.”

After trying it, Ms. Paprika hopped off her desk. “May I have a couple more? Those are good!”

Dazzle nodded. “Take a hoof-ful.”

Ms. Paprika turned back to her desk and popped another Zap-Zang in her mouth.

The whole room smelled sweet, like that of an apple, but sharper, like the whole air was tingling with electricity. Must’ve been the particular scent of Zap apples. She wondered if the apples ever got dizzy from the sweetness in the air.

Soon, the first parents started to show up. Luckily, the candy had been passed out and the wave of ponies begging Dazzle for more candy died down. Just in the nick of time too, her supply was running low.

The filly named Little Cookie was picked up first. The colt that told her to eat the candy earlier waved goodbye.

Dazzle took another glance into her saddlebags, only about a dozen remained. She smiled as an idea came to mind. She took her saddlebags up to the teacher and whispered. “Ms. Paprika? Can you do me a favor?”

“Yes. What do you need?” Ms. Paprika asked in a smile.

Dazzle motioned for Ms. Paprika to lend an ear. Ms. Paprika bent down and Dazzle whispered in her ear. “Can you give the rest of the candy to Dark Style? In private? He’s seems a little too shy to come up to me.”

“I can do that.” Ms. Paprika winked. Dazzle held out the bag wide open where Ms. Paprika scooped up the rest of the Zap-Zangs. Dazzle then put her saddlebags back on and trotted back to her seat.

Out of the corner of her eye, Montresor and Florin came into the classroom.

“You’re a little early.” Dazzle stated. They usually came when most of the kids in the room had gone home.

“We are going to linger for a little bit.” Florin pulled up a chair and took a seat next to Napoleon. “How was your Heart and Hooves to-day, Napoleon?” Dazzle noticed Florin’s eyes dart toward her for a split second.

“Very good.” Napoleon replied.

Dazzle watched closely as each filly and colt got picked up and went home. As she looked, half tempted to pass the time with chatter, she noticed everypony busy doing homework, or already engaged in conversation. She learned the hard way that it was rude to interrupt both.

In a moment of pure boredom, Coco trotted in. She smiled and mouthed ‘hello’ to Dazzle as she approached. “How was Hearts and Hooves day?” Coco asked, holding out a foreleg for a hug.

Dazzle embraced her. “Great. I hardly could keep the Zap-Zangs to myself!”

“That’s good.” Coco said.

“Hey, Coco! So, Florin and I wanted to go somewhere with you and Dazzle.” Montresor interjected.

“Where?” Coco asked. “I still have a pattern to finish. That’s why I was late picking up Dazzle.” She turned to Dazzle. “Sorry for keeping you waiting.”

“Mare-pire state building?” Montresor suggested. “Marigold will be joining us.”

“I’m not entirely sure about that, Montresor.” Coco patted Dazzle’s head. “I’m very busy with the line right now, and I need to help Dazzle with homework.”

“Napoleon told us that the homework isn’t too bad.” Florin insisted. “C’mon! those things can wait! You probably need a breather anyways… Live Transparent!”

“Okay then…” Coco sighed.

Chapter 23: Surprises

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Coco had no idea why Montresor and Florin were doing this. They knew she needed some time to start her summer clothing line. Not to mention the questions from the press she needed to answer about the Hearts and Hooves day line that was released a couple days ago. All atop that, she needed to cook dinner for Dazzle. The poor thing must be starving since her lunch was hastily prepared the other day. She needed to do something to make sure Dazzle knew she was appreciated. She helped a bunch with the previous lines, even when she had all those bruises.

Instead of being home, though, she was in a taxi with Montresor, Florin, Napoleon, and Dazzle, heading for a busy part of town- especially at this time of year.

Maybe she should’ve put her hoof down. Why didn’t she learn the first time from Suri Polomare? Oh, she knew better than letting others, even her friends, take advantage of her. Dazzle is probably disappointed.

She looked to the filly to her right, who was sitting quietly while the taxi rushed through bustling traffic. Slush and ice covered the streets. Dazzle had her head propped with her foreleg, watching as the city moved to and fro. Perhaps she was thinking about home. She found Dazzle most of the time daydreaming.

When Dazzle noticed Coco staring at her, she turned to her and smiled.

Coco couldn’t help but smile back. Perhaps a meal wasn’t enough. Maybe she could sew Dazzle another coat. The one she was wearing was torn from the time that mean filly and colt injured her.

“Alright, this is your stop.” The taxi stallion said. “That’ll be fourteen bits.”

Coco reached for her saddlebags, but Florin laid a hoof on hers. “Don’t worry sweetheart, we got it.”

Montresor tossed a couple bits into the bag next to the stallion.

“Thank you.” The taxi stallion tipped his hat then galloped away.

Coco sighed. She stared at the flood of ponies entering and exiting the building. As she predicted, it was busier than usual.

Montresor trotted towards the doors and held it open for them. Coco held her breath as she squeezed inside the doors with the crowds.

It was fine. She was doing fine. The fact that she hadn’t freaked out yet meant that she was doing fine. Great. Just one more step.

Florin motioned over to Coco to come with. “I’m so glad that you could spare the time to come out with us!” Florin laid a foreleg over Coco’s back.

“Heh, no problem.” Coco said, trying her best to smile.

In her mind, Coco reprimanded herself for not telling Florin she was uncomfortable.

They slowly made their way towards the elevators. Coco noticed Dazzle hugging to her side, ducking and scooting every so often to avoid ponies.

“You want to ride on my back?” Coco asked. How did she manage that? To speak for Dazzle, but not for herself.

Dazzle nodded.

Coco lowered her back and let Dazzle climb on.

Again, there were onlookers every so often, but not as often as a month ago. The hullabaloo had died down since the tabloids stopped spreading the news and moved onto whatsoever scandal or gossip it could get its hooves on.

They filed into an elevator. Posted at the doors was an attendant. Ponies would tell her which floor to go to and she would click the buttons.

“View, please.” Montresor said to the attendant as he let his wife and son file in.

As the elevator rushed to the top, she thought of some small talk that would make the situation less awkward. Each time, a pony or two would get off at a mid-floor. Then, came the long haul towards the top.

Once the doors opened, and ponies started filing out. Coco decided now was the best time to pop the question. “So, how are your lines going, Florin?”

Florin smiled. “Not bad. I’m just taking a break since Hearts and Hooves day was taxing.”

Coco knew it. All of them had been stuck in separate rooms, talking about their lines to production. In any other words, it was exhausting. Period.

“Where’s Marigold?” Coco asked.

“She’ll be here in a minute.” Florin leaned towards her. “She still needs to get somepony.” Florin put emphasis on the last word. She bobbed her eyebrows up and down.

Of course. She had to get Underdog from school. Coco had one concern though. “Are you sure? Your son and him are not a good mix in public.”

The elevator dinged and the doors slid open. A rush of cold wind blew into the elevator.

“I’m sure.” Florin replied. “Why don’t you go take a look at the view with Dazzle? I’d bet she hasn’t seen this before.”

Coco nodded and trotted towards the glass panes. From there, Dazzle hopped off and took a look at the view. “Wow! I feel like a bird up here!” Dazzle spoke with airy tone of wonder.

“Just a piece of how a Pegasus feels.” Coco made note of her surroundings and pointed to the location of a familiar building “Look! That’s our apartment complex!”

Dazzle looked out to the building. She hopped up and down. “Oh yeah!”

Coco couldn’t help but smile at Dazzle. Still a little filly. How could’ve she’d have been so blind? What Dazzle needed was some time to enjoy her stay here in Mane-hattan. See the sights, eat at restaurants, enjoy time together. Of course, Montresor and Florin knew just the thing. Why did she do so much to resist a good deed?

Coco felt a tear roll down her cheek. She rushed up to the reflective surface of the binocular stand, checking to see if any of her makeup washed out.

Luckily, there was no sign of it. Gosh, why did she have to be this way? To worry about every little detail?

“Hey Coco, are you okay?” She heard Dazzle say.

Coco wiped the tear away. “Yeah, just got a little makeup in my eye.” She lied.

Dazzle tilted her head and looked at the device Coco was using the reflective surface of. “Can I have a try at that?”

Coco nodded and reached into her bag. She pulled out a bit and inserted it into the stand. She looked through, and saw the waves on the distant horizon. It kinda made her a bit dizzy. She motioned over for Dazzle to have a look.

Dazzle leaned up on her tippy-hooves. Once her eyes met the binoculars, she gasped. “Wow! You can see even further now!”

“May I have a try?” She heard nearby.

She swiveled about, finding Napoleon nearby Dazzle.

“Sure.” Dazzle responded as she stepped away. Napoleon brushed away any dirt on the lenses and followed Dazzle’s stance.

“You can sure have a good look at Filly Liberty.” Napoleon oriented the binoculars eastward.

Coco jumped when she felt a tap on her shoulder. When she turned to see who it was, her cheeks burned. “W-what are you doing here?” She asked, trying to cover up any stuttering. Usually she was more composed.

Yttrium chuckled. “Marigold came and kidnapped me from work. I was in the middle of a sample.”

In the distance, she saw Marigold toting around a very stubborn Bling-Bling. She was talking with Florin, and by the looks of it, she was having a great time. Sometimes a smile -maybe an eye roll or two here and there- came across during the conversation.

“Hey Yttrium!” Dazzle said as she hug-tackled Yttrium’s leg. “So good to see you! What are you doing here?”

“Marigold came to the hospital and picked me up for the occasion.” Yttrium explained.

Napoleon came right by Dazzle’s side. “She tells me that she goes to the hospital to volunteer.” Napoleon started. “Is that true?”

Yttrium nodded. “She’s a huge help.”

“Wow!” Napoleon gasped. “Say, Mr. Fuse, do you know any great projects I can do at the science fair?” Napoleon asked.

“Oh, still trying for CSGU?” Yttrium smiled. “I suggest you look into the book ‘Introductory Meadowbrookian Magic’. I used it when I was your age.”

Napoleon smiled as he giddily raced over back to his mom and dad. Although that colt became more social as a result of Dazzle, he still kept his nerdy interests.

Dazzle tugged on Coco’s saddlebags. Coco turned towards the filly.

“I’m going with Napoleon.” Dazzle said.

“Go for it.” Coco giggled. She wondered if her presumptions were correct. Was Dazzle crushing on Napoleon?

Once Dazzle came to Napoleon’s side, Coco found it safe to talk to Yttrium. “So, Florin and Monty pull another one on us?”

“Yep.” Yttrium chuckled.

“So, how are things going at the hospital?” Coco asked. “Got any better prospects?” She teased. Hopefully he was going to pick up what she was hinting at.

“Nope.” Yttrium said. “Too busy trying to find a cure.” He sighed. “Progress is slow. But, Dazzle suggested the other day that I overload the system with Corrosion to force the equilibrium towards the cure side.”

Coco only understood a portion of his words. She decided to take the common ground. “Is Dazzle causing trouble?”

“You’d bet!” Yttrium answered. “She is a ferocious filly that is threatening our top volunteer’s pace. I think she is a little too excited to get into the lab.”

“How long has she got before she is allowed in?”

“Two weeks.” Yttrium stated. He looked over to the group of ponies gathered near the doors. Coco took a look with him. Napoleon and Dazzle seemed to be laughing and talking. What was odd is that Bling-Bling was nearby, normally aloof from the conversation, but for some strange reason, he seemed to have a good time trading conversation with Napoleon and Dazzle.

“Never I thought that Bling-Bling would be mildly interested in what Napoleon was talking about.” Coco observed.

“Dazzle has a heckuva charisma.” Yttrium said. “Sharp too. She can extract information from others around her. She was in my office the other day and…” His cheeks started to grow a darker red than his coat

“What are you thinking about?” Coco asked with a raised eyebrow and a smile.

“It’s nothing.” He waved off.

“How are you two doing?” Coco heard Florin say as she approached. Right by her side, Montresor and Napoleon followed.

“Great.” Yttrium smiled.

“That’s good.” Montresor nodded. “I think we’ll start to head downstairs. Filly and colts starting to get hungry and you know what that means.”

Coco nodded as she followed Florin and Montresor towards the doors.

“Ah, it’s so good to be back up here, honey.” Florin spoke in an awestruck tone. It sounded like a yawn, yet was as gentle as a ‘goodnight’.

Coco knew what she was hinting about. Talk about subtlety. When she and Montresor were dating for the umpteenth time, Montresor decided to seal the deal. He proposed to Florin on this very rooftop.

…Now they were trying to coax Yttrium to do the same.

As they trotted for the doors, she heard another familiar voice. “Coco? Dearie, is that you?”

Coco shook off her shock and turned toward her former employer. Her legs started to quiver. “Hi, Suri.”

Suri Polomare smirked. “Fancy meeting you up here.”

“Quite.” Coco said in a low tone.

“Pardon?” Suri cupped a hoof to her ear. “I can’t hear you when you are mumbling.”

“Quite.” Coco said a little louder. Coco started scooting towards the doors.

“I recently saw your Hearts and Hooves day line.” Suri continued. “Quite Original.”

Coco knew that as a jab. She knew that Suri was still furious about how Rarity exposed her later on about stealing her work.

“Thank you.” That statement took all the grace Coco could muster. Her stomach started to churn and cold sweat started running down her back. “I gotta- err- got to go join my friends.” She inched her way towards the door. She could see Florin, Yttrium, and Montresor, obviously with their hooves full rounding up the foals.

“Oh! But you haven’t met my coltfriend yet!” Suri took advantage of the opening. She held her hoof out. A face that Coco recognized only from magazines came into her hoof. A white coated stallion with pink hair. “I believe you’re familiar with Sven Hooves?”

“Yes.” Coco gazed at the floor. She didn’t want to make eye contact now. Too painful.

“After he was recently booted out of Ponyville…” Suri made a hacking sound, like a cat throwing up a hairball to illustrate her thought of the subject. “He came here to take up another project.”

“It’s a wonder how we’ve met.” Sven added. “We have so much in common.”

They rubbed noses and kissed briefly.

“Hey Coco, who are you talking to? The others are wait-” Yttrium came up and stopped in his tracks.

“Oh hey, Mr. Fuse- good to see you.” Suri greeted. “Have you met my new coltfriend?”

Yttrium wrinkled his nose. Coco could see it in his eyes- the same tension she was feeling. He looked to Coco and in a serious tone said, “We need to go, Coco.”

“Oh Coco...” Suri shook her head. “Why didn’t you tell me you really needed to go?”

Coco wanted to cry, but she stood, frozen in place. Paralyzed. Petrified. Suri was right. Coco just let things slide too often. That’s what got Suri and her in trouble with Rarity. Luckily, Celestia’s mercy looked at her out of the corner of it’s eye. If only that could happen again…

Dazzle came up to Coco and took her hoof. “Come on, Coco. I’ll help you to the elevator.”

Coco smiled, thankful that Dazzle was giving her just the slightest opening to get out of a terrible situation. She accepted and turned around.

As she took a couple deep breaths, she slowly came out of that feeling- but somehow- it still felt robotic.

“Go on! Run away like you did before!” Suri said, finally delivering the blow.

Coco knew that is how she worked. Test the waters with passive-aggressiveness, then when the moment was right, go for the jugular.

Suddenly, Coco felt Dazzle’s hoof leave hers. She spun around in horror as Dazzle marched up to Suri and shouted. “BACK OFF!”

“Mind your own business! You don’t know us- we have history!” Suri barked back.

Coco’s heart was beating out of her chest. Her breathing raced, and her vision started to shake.

“History or not, you have no right to treat Coco that way!” Dazzle shouted back.

“Oh, you think you can just march in her because you are wrapped around Coco’s hoof?” Suri shouted, her. “The Mane-hattan Gazette was all over your ‘courtroom incident’! I know how you act!”

“Oh yeah?” Dazzle said. “You don’t give one bit about how others feel!”

“You don’t either! You came from Ponyville after spending your father’s fortune! You ran away from your problems, just like your new ‘mom’ over there!” She pointed a hoof at Coco. Coco felt the atmosphere shift towards her as looks of disgust or uncertainty converged on her.

“You got that right!” Dazzle strung out. Coco hadn’t heard that amount of sarcasm since her teenage years. “I did run away from home! I did spend my father’s fortune! But, you know what? I did what was right even with abusive, negligent parents! I did what I thought was justice!” Dazzle twisted her frown into a smile. “I didn’t know whether what I did was right for a while- I still have questions from time to time. But, how I know I did something right is that I changed- changed to own up to the consequences when I usually wanted to blame somepony else!” Dazzle sneered at her “Unlike you.”

“HOW DARE YOU!” Suri’s eyes widened. The shift in attention towards the rooftop was towards Dazzle and Suri now.

Coco didn’t believe it. Suri was just shown up.

Suddenly, Yttrium took Coco by the hoof and waded through the crowds, taking the opportunity while the crowd was distracted. Everypony was standing still, in shock of what had occurred. Nopony dared move or talk. They just watched.

While weaving through in a scene frozen in time, Coco could hear Dazzle’s voice continue. “I know you are going to attack Coco and me again. But do me a favor next time, when you want to say something, be direct.”

He met up with Montresor. After whispering into his ear, he nodded at his wife and then started towards Dazzle. Coco and Yttrium filed into the elevator.

“I’m going to be direct right now, Ms. Polomare.” Dazzle said in a firm tone. “I do not play victim. That is one of the things I was taught not to do. I know there are others out there who are paying worse from me because of the consequences of my actions. I’m doing all I can to repair them. But, if there is any pony that is least deserving of your actions, it is Coco Pommel.”

She listened to the last words as the doors closed. “MARK MY WORDS. DO NOT attack Coco again.”

Silence enveloped the Elevator. A cough or two came out, but for the most part, everypony averted their eyes.

“You okay Coco?” Yttrium asked.

“Yeah. I’m fine.” Coco replied. “Thank you for helping me. I couldn’t have done it without you or Dazzle.”

“Dazzle is one magical filly.” Florin said. “You have a great daughter.”

Coco smiled. She pondered on that statement for a little while. Even if she wasn’t biological, she felt warm and tender when having Dazzle around. She was learning many different things. Sweet Celestia. She was lucky. Fate kicked in when she needed it most, and all she could do was stand and take the blows while her friend stood up her.

…While her daughter stood up for her.

“Is she going to be okay up there?” Coco asked.

“Don’t worry about it, Montresor has a fair share of breaking up fights between Napoleon and Bling.” Florin said. “We just got to take care of you. You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

As they descended in the elevator, Coco wanted to let out tears. Why was she like this? Why did she always take the hits instead of standing up for herself?

She locked eye contact with Yttrium, who silently put a hoof over her shoulders.

In that moment, Coco realized something. She had friends all around who knew of what struggles she had, that were willing to support her when the going got very tough. Suddenly, a phrase from before stuck in her mind as she thought about what Dazzle said. ‘I do not play victim.’

Then, Coco made a promise. A promise to herself that she wanted to keep with all of her heart. A promise to stand up for her friends and herself when the opportunity arose. She promised to help them in time of need.

Cross her heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in her eye.

Chapter 24: Preparation

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“So, after that, we’ll test the soap on some of the enchanted clothing your mom got from the store.” Napoleon explained, waving out the second to last box on his flow chart. “From there, we collect results and finish with a conclusion.”

Dazzle snickered. “Okay.”

“You’ll handle creating the charts on our poster board, since you are great at statistics.” Napoleon said.

“Right.” Dazzle made a mental note of that. Who knew the statistics that her father taught her about business could be so useful in a science project?

Coco came to the table with some quiche. Something about potatoes, cheese, flour, milk as well as other ingredients.

Coco took out the plates from under the pan and a butter knife to cut the quiche. She served Dazzle and Napoleon a plate. After she finished the setup, she retreated back into the kitchen and started washing her mixing bowls.

Not sparing another minute, Napoleon sunk his snout in the dish. His eyes lit up. “Wow! THIS IS AMAZING!” he exclaimed.

“She does have that touch.” Dazzle commented.

Napoleon looked over to Coco. “Thank you for lunch, Ms. Pommel!”

“You’re very welcome, Napoleon.” Coco said.

“So, when do start mixing the lye with fat?” Dazzle asked.

“Tomorrow sound good?” Napoleon asked with his mouthful. He swallowed and stood up over the table, “Can I hang out with Dazzle tomorrow, Miss Pommel?”

Coco chuckled. “Sure.”

Napoleon sat back down and pulled his balled his hoof towards his chest and closed his eyes. “YESSS.” He celebrated.

“Who knew soap making was so much fun?” Dazzle said.

“Meadowbrook, Obviously.” Napoleon tapped on the book he borrowed from the library. “She took the first steps in learning that some soap has magical properties.”

“Ooh, what magical properties?” Dazzle asked. “Can we create them for the project?”

“There are so many.” Napoleon opened the book to a table filled with effects with corresponding spells.

Suddenly, one caught her eye. “Tingling Mint sounds cool.”

“I agree.” Napoleon said. “But it requires lye from the Permafrost microbes from up north of the Crystal Empire.” He grimaced. “It’s expensive.”

She had another glance, and found one that she had to read twice to make sure her mind wasn’t playing tricks on her. “One that turns your rubber ducky into an actual duck?”

“Only just a cousin of Poison Joke.” Napoleon recalled. “Inversion Acacia, from the Savanna in the Zebra Lands. Also expensive.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.” Dazzle shuddered. “Ducks can be very feisty creatures.”

Napoleon chuckled. “For this project, we’ll only do one spell- an ab-staining spell. Meadowbrook coined the pun.” He turned to another table in the book. “Meadowbrook experimented with the percentages of lye and fat. Because of their properties, both can store magic, but not all percentages are equal.” He snapped the book shut. “We are re-creating the experiment, only with an ab-staining spell instead of bug repellant.”

Dazzle nodded. “Why bug repellant?”

“Flash Bees as well as other nasty insects.” Napoleon said. “She had to create a soap that acted as a natural bug repellant.”

“So, how did you get your cutie mark?” Dazzle asked.

“Oh, uhm.” Napoleon smiled nervously. “You really want to know?”

Dazzle shook her head. “It can’t be that bad!”

“Okay then…” Napoleon took a deep breath. “So, I was playing with chemicals in my house while mom and dad were gone. Mistake number one. Supposed to be doing homework. Mistake number two. So, after mixing a couple chemicals in a bottle, something exploded.”

Dazzle’s eyes widened.

“Turns out Platinum reacts hydrogen you get after using a spell to dissociate water. Mistake number three.” He sighed. “When my parents came home, it was a huge mix of emotions. They started yelling at me for destroying their linoleum. It took months to replace. But in the middle of their lecture, my mother stopped suddenly and asked me to turn my flank.

“I thought I was about to be spanked.” Napoleon said. “But instead, my mom cleaned off the soot from my flank and shouted ‘Napoleon! You got your cutie mark!’” He mocked his mother’s tone in a squeaky high-pitched voice.

“So, we had a party later on that weekend- hole in the floor and all.” He continued. “It made for a good conversation starter if anything.”

“That’s funny!” Dazzle chuckled. “I wish I got my mark that way!”

“By the way, how did you get your mark?” Napoleon asked.

“Oh, in a not so exciting way.” Dazzle sighed. “I got it when I pick out my tiara… which reminds me…” She turned backwards in her seat. “Hey Coco, do you think I should show Napoleon my secret tiara?”

Coco let out a nervous chuckle. “I suppose.”

Dazzle hopped out of her chair and to her room. When she walked in, she dodged the mess around her room with spare spools of thread and rolls of fabric. She came to her desk and snagged the tiara from atop her journal. On her way out, Yttrium’s lab coat caught her attention. She pulled it off the rack and put in on. It couldn’t hurt, right?

She came back to the dining table and showed Napoleon. Napoleon covered his mouth with his hooves. Dazzle could tell Napoleon hid a smile behind those hooves. “That lab coat is a little too big for you.”

“It’s Yttrium’s, actually.” She said. “You’ll see why I have it on in a minute. Here.” She held out the tiara to Napoleon.

“Wow!” He weighed the tiara in his hooves and inspected it. “How intricate. What metal is it made out of?”

“I… I have no idea.” Dazzle shrugged. She held out a hoof. “Can I have it back? I’ll show you the best part.”

He hoofed the tiara back to Dazzle. Dazzle then placed the tiara on her head. A familiar dizziness came over her. Her vision blurred and then settled.

“Ta-da!” She waved her hooves outward.

Napoleon gasped. “So it’s true! I thought my parents were joking when they talked about you as Mare-ison!”

“Exactly.” Coco cut in. Without facing them, she kept her focus on scrubbing the glassware. “It is also hard to believe, but Princess Twilight enchanted it for her.”

Napoleon still had his jaw hanging open. “We should show Vertigo!”

“Who is Vertigo?” Coco asked.

“A filly at school.” Dazzle answered quickly, as she already saw a blush on Napoleon’s cheeks.

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea.” Coco spun around with frothy hooves. She wiped them off on a dish rag. “We don’t want the secret getting out. Princess Twilight is already busy with duties of her own. If word got out that she has successfully created aging spell enchanted items, she would be hounded to no end.”

Napoleon nodded. “I understand.”

“You need to promise to keep this a secret.” Dazzle insisted.

“Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” He mimed the actions, and almost poked himself in the eye.

Dazzle snuck a bite in of the quiche. Better while it was hot.

“I hate to ask, but can I try?” Napoleon motioned to the tiara on top of her head.

“Sure, I don’t think it will hurt.” Dazzle gingerly took the tiara off. She knew to keep a grip on it since he got dizzy every time she popped back into her filly form. She felt a little woozy this time, but when her vision focused, she held it out to.

Dazzle snickered at how funny Napoleon looked with a tiara on. However, instead of a stallion, he stayed a colt.

“Didn’t work.” He sighed.

“Huh, must only do it for me.” Dazzle figured that Princess Twilight only enchanted it for her, so it wouldn’t cause problems. She thought if Coco put it on, then she would be an older mare. Celestia only knew what it would do to ponies like Randolph or Jasmine Tea.

Napoleon set the tiara down on the table, next to his book.

“Thank you for helping me with my project, Dazzle.” Napoleon tapped on the library book.

“No problem.” Dazzle glanced outside the window. Although the frost on the windows remained from last night, the sun was still shining. The icy feel fled away as the warm, golden glow of the sun bathed the city in light. It looked like a good day to go outside. “So, should we go out and play?”

“Sure!” Napoleon said.

“Wait until I’m finished with the dishes, sweetie.” Coco interjected, rubbing a plate with a dish cloth.

Dazzle smiled. She though it wouldn’t hurt to ask. “Want me to help?”

Dazzle’s hooves quaked. Her coat was musty from all the sweat she got while playing with Napoleon. She let out a yawn.

“Napoleon has quite the energy.” Coco snickered.

“Quite.” Dazzle tried shaking off her sleepy haze, but she still struggled to keep her eyes open.

When Coco opened the door, she saw a letter on the ground. “Oh, look at that! Post came in!” She picked it up and inspected it. After she read the address, she held it out to Dazzle. “It’s for you.”

Dazzle picked it up and read it. The weariness wore off instantly. “Oh boy! It’s from Silver Spoon!”

Coco hung her overcoat on the rack. Dazzle tossed her scarf and coat aside.

“Hey! Pick up after yourself!” Coco shouted.

Dazzle rushed back to the crumpled pile and picked up the coat and scarf from off the ground. She hung it up on the rack. Without another word more, she rushed to her room and just about destroyed the envelope trying to open it.

She read to herself.

Dear Dazzle, I finally started getting your letters. Sending them to Randolph was a great idea. I have put off writing a letter back since I haven’t been feeling too well as of late. But I’m okay though. Applebloom and her friends have invited me to countless outings to help those who do not have their cutie mark yet. I’ve declined their offer, but I appreciate their gesture.
I’ve been a month clean of my- issues. Still have hard times from time to time due to the fact that my parents are still on my case. But I’ll be fine though. Cheerilee has been helping me with my assignments.

Dazzle sighed in content. Good to hear Silver was doing better than before. She read further.

I just wanted to thank you for helping me. I know you are going through tough times too, being separated from friends and family and all that. How are you doing? How is Mane-hattan? I heard from Randolph the other day that you grilled Suri Polomare. I want to hear all about that story! Ponyville is buzzing to see how your side of the story was!
Can’t wait to get a letter from you! Bump, Bump, Sugar Lump, Rump! -Silver Spoon

Dazzle took a pen and paper out of her desk and started to write.

Dear Silver Spoon!
It is so good to hear back from you! Good to hear you are doing great!
As for the story, I about started a riot! Poor Coco has a lot of jerks picking on her. I have a lot to learn from her though. She somehow still stands her ground in silence and gives the other pony the respect they sometimes don’t deserve. Something that I’m slowly learning to do.
As for my side of the story, we were on the top floor of the Mare-pire State Building, enjoying the view, about to leave when Suri Polomare throws a couple passive-aggressive jabs at Coco. Then, I come into the picture, and instead of passive-aggression, I tell her how it is and then she gets all wishy-washy. Turns out she has a new boyfriend…

“I thought you were going to hit the hay.” Coco said.

Coco was dressed in fuzzy white robe and baggy blue sweatpants. Her eyes were just about closed as she squinted towards Dazzle. Her mane still had that simple and sharp style, however. How did she train her hair to do that?

Dazzle turned and spit the pencil out of her mouth. “Just had to write a letter to a friend.”

“Alright. Just get to bed. You have a couple chores to do before running off with Napoleon tomorrow.” Coco yawned before shutting the door to a crack. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.”

Dazzle picked up her pencil and folded up the letter. “Coco’s right. I’d better get some rest.”

Chapter 25: In Nightmares, Part 1

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...Sometimes ponies went to sleep because rest allowed them to recover. They went to sleep to escape the pain of living if only just for a second.

Luna had dealt with this pain long before, like an aethereal scar on her soul’s heart and heart’s soul. Never before had she felt the intensity of pain― one that masqueraded itself as relief. Now, she dealt with a stronger pain― a pain of sympathy, but being unable to do anything about it.

Sometimes, all you could do was watch.

Her father set the jar atop the counter. Pinkie Pie traded glances with him and took the jar away. Diamond caught something in their eye before Pinkie slipped into the kitchen. Both her father and Pinkie were missing that mischievous and playful look in their eye. What had lingered for a touch too long was a solemn, dark, and serious expression that seemed to steal all the warm feelings that Diamond had previously had.

"Where is she taking it?" Diamond asked.

"Someplace safe." He smiled. He pressed his hoof against her side, goading her towards a booth. "Come along, let's get something to eat."

Diamond sat down next to her father. Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo took their seats across the table.

"Okay… let's see here… what would like, Diamond?" Her father lifted up a menu in front of her with his magic.

"Daisy sandwich." Diamond answered quickly. Personally, she didn’t care what she got to eat, she cared more about what plans they had for the jar.

“Good choice!” Her father set down the laminated menu. “I’ll have some minestrone soup. What about you, Crusaders?”

“We are going to share some nachos!” Applebloom smiled.

“They serve that here?” He asked. “I guess it’s not a long shot. Pinkie seems to do anything she sets her mind to!”

“Aw, I wanted some velvet cake!” Scootaloo whined.

“I’ll get you some.” Mr. Rich winked. “You can put it on my tab.”

Scootaloo smiled. “Thank you, Prince Rich.”

“No problem.” Her father winked.

Applebloom smiled nervously. “Don’t tell Granny Smith I’m having nachos.”

Her father mimed through the actions. “Pinkie promise, cross my heart, hope to fly, s―”

“What can I get ya?” Pinkie interrupted. Standing at attention, she held a notepad in her hoof.

“Minestrone soup, daisy sandwich to complement it, nachos for the Crusaders, and a slice of red velvet cake for Scootaloo.”

“Can we have the nachos a pinch spicy?” Sweetie cut in.

Applebloom and Scootaloo cast a weary look at their friend.

“Sure thing! Touch of Jalapeno!” She flicked the pen off the notepad. “Anything else?”

“That’d be it.” Her father said.

“It’ll be out in a jiffy!” Pinkie bounded towards the kitchen doors.

“So, what have you three been up to?” Mr. Rich asked.

“Nothin’ much.” Applebloom said. “We are sleuthin’! Granny spotted some creature slinkin’ about in the orchard.”

“Oh?” Her father leaned closer towards them. “Did she say what it looked like?”

“She said it was like from the Doom Days.” Applebloom said. “Full of shadow, eyes of melted iron, somethin’ that give you the willies just by havin’ a gander at it.”

His smile fell off his face.

“What is it dad?” Diamond felt a tinge of unrest in her heart, like she had in her younger years, thinking of the monsters in her closet or underneath her bed. What Applebloom described sure fit the description.

“It’s nothing, Diamond,” her father said. “Just had a bad memory come back.”

“What was it about?” She asked.

"Another time, Diamond." Mr. Rich frowned.

Diamond couldn't help but cuddle in the crook of his flank. The warmth and the fluffiness mixed together. She was in heaven.

The hearth glowed a golden color, while the walls reflected light from the stars, creating an ambience like the amber sky during sunrise. Her heart reflected such light and at last, she never felt more relaxed or more at home in all of her life. There she was. With her father in paradise.

“Can you tell me about the jar?” Diamond asked softly.

He turned his gaze towards her. Before he could answer, somepony knocked at the door. His focus was stolen away just as quickly as her composure: in a blink of an eye. Silver aura covered the door as Filthy swung the door open with his horn. “Oh, Sciurus! Good Evening!”

The pony at the door had a harvester’s bag full of apple on his side. His face and hooves were caked with dirt. Which was odd… she recalled that the dirt here wasn’t supposed to fragment and rubble. “Prince Rich, the Princesses require your presence in Sweet Apple Acres.”

“Oh? What news do we have from the Apples?” Filthy asked.

Sciurus’s eyes darted nervously away from Diamond. “The Princesses require privacy to the matter. It’s urgent that we leave now.”

Mr. Rich’s tone, light and calm from before had become darker and unsettled. “I understand.” He turned to Diamond. “Sorry sweetheart, I just need to check on Mom’s tree. I will be back later this evening.”

“But what about the jar?” Diamond asked again.

“I really need to go, Diamond.” Filthy said as he hopped off the couch. “I’ll be back to tuck you in after I tend to the field.”

“But!” Diamond said. “Wait… can I go with you?”

He shook his head. “It’s nothing much really, just tending the garden. I know how much you dislike to get your hooves dirty.”

“B-But I―!” Diamond stuttered.

“I’ll be back in half an hour.” He slipped on his coat and wrapped a scarf around his neck hat before proceeding out the door.

The sky grew dark. A swirling storm churned above the town. Everypony in the streets froze and gazed up at the sudden change in the weather.

“FOR THE LAST TIME, DIAMOND!” Filthy shouted. “IF YOU EARN YOUR CUTIE MARK, YOU FADE BY NEXT SUNRISE!”

The passersby ducked into nearby houses and those who were running the stands quickly closed their shops.

Her father growled with as his gaze locked onto the storm. “It’s too late. She’s already summoned.”

His horn glowed ready, waiting and watching for something― Something that Diamond didn’t know. But whatever it was, it spooked her father.

The wind blew and blew, occasional items floated around. As she gazed towards them, she had a surreal sense of dread wash over her- a creepy and cold feeling of dae ja vu. It was then and there that a thought forced itself into her mind, like an intruder in the fortress of her mind-

She was dreaming.

Diamond recognized the items from a ghostly vision, a previous nightmare. An IV, a picture of Coco and Yttrium when they were young, a lab coat, a needle. Suddenly, a particular item caught her eye.

A tiara.

The tiara hovered in front of her. It hummed like a tuning fork as it levitated. Once the humming stopped and melted into a shiny goo. As it melted, other items joined it, together in a silver slurry like mercury. It formed an ornate ring, decorated with grooves and cuts that looked like the work of a Canterlot artisan.

“No!” Her father’s horn blasted it, but the beam of light ricocheted off and shattered a nearby window. The nearby building had begun to crumble from the blast, showing fragmented crystal like a broken mirror. From the shards and debris, the ornate ring gathered up more material into the melt.

His horn lit up again, charging for its strike.

Suddenly, a couple drops of silver liquid, sprouted like tendrils from the mirror and wrapped around his horn.

“Ugh!” He yelped, rearing back to yank the grip of the coating off. It wasn’t until he reached a hoof to pry it off he yanked himself free.

The reflective liquid became still in the middle. A rake of pain dashed across the top of her head. Before she could tuck her head into her hooves, something pinned her neck in the upright position, like her mother did when she was teaching her to keep her posture. As if it read her mind, it pinned her gaze towards the reflection.

A mirror shown her reflection, the edges were various knick-knacks she had from past, present and future. Her reflection, a mare, stepped out of the mirror. She had dragon-like eyes and a wide grin with rows of razor-sharp teeth. The reflection deviated from mirroring Diamond’s stance, and gnashed her teeth in mirror’s edge.

The glass shattered. The Demon stepped out. “Greetings, Diamond Dazzle Tiara.” She smirked. Her voice was dissonant, like two voices in unison. One was a higher pitch, her voice, and the other was a lower pitch, her mother’s voice.

“Dazzle Tiara!” Filthy shouted.

Diamond turned to her father. The Demon turned to him as well.

His mane glowed with strands of gold and silver, like blowing on the embers of a fire. “Go back to Tartarus! Or I’ll―”

“Or… what?” Demon Tiara said. “You’ll use the tree? You misunderstand. I’ve grown stronger than you’ll ever be!”

“What?” Diamond asked. “Dazzle?”

“Diamond don’t let her―”

“Oh? I believe your father hasn’t told you yet.” The demon’s chainsaw-like teeth gleamed in the afternoon light. “It figures, he keeps everypony in the dark about his doings. That’s his downfall!”

In the distance, a mushroom cloud of darkness rose.

Diamond’s heart sunk. She looked at the epicenter of the blast and found a tree split in two and suspended in midair by dark strands.

Diamond gritted her teeth. Now, this was personal. Nopony messed with mom’s tree! She pulled her hoof back to punch the Demon. In response, Demon Dazzle’s mouth hissed open, and a strand of darkness jutted out and latched onto her hoof.

Even whilst her mouth was open, Demon Dazzle could laugh and talk. “Foolish filly! You underestimate the power by which you were created! I have the power to mold you into any shape!” Demon Dazzle’s hoof sprung up; a beam of darkness shot out towards Filthy’s way. Luckily, he tucked and rolled.

“Hold Still! If you know what’s good for you!” Demon Dazzle growled. She shot a barrage of beams, each Filthy dodged with a duck, hop, sometimes a somersault. He was doing a good job at it, since Demon Dazzle was confused.

“Enough!” She pointed a hoof at Diamond. A glowing ember at Demon’s frogs blazed softly. “If you keep resisting, your daughter’s next!”

Filthy froze.

Still struggling to put her hoof down, Diamond jostled the strand of darkness, in time, catching Demon Dazzle off guard. Diamond dodged a spire of darkness as it jutted out of Demon’s hoof. Just in time too as she felt the sharp pain as the beam of darkness graze across the top of her forehead as she ducked. It didn’t help that her hoof was still caught in the grip of the shadow tongue of the Demon.

“So, we’ll play that game!” Demon Dazzle shouted, still holding the strand taut. Her eyes glowed in the colors of the rainbow, Purple, then green, red, blue, yellow, then orange.

“NO!” Filthy cried as he dove in front of Diamond. He landed on the strand, causing the tongue to snap back into Demon’s mouth. Diamond’s eyes squeezed shut as she hit the ground from the recoil.

Diamond coughed as the dust around her got in her lungs. Spooky. The magic that the town had was fading, usually she would hit the ground and brush off no rubble. But now, the dust was more than prevalent.

As the dust cleared, she froze up as tears came to her eyes. Stone hooves planted firmly against the ground in her line of sight. As she looked up, her father’s face was frozen-petrified in a horror-filled glance. He had been turned into a statue.

“Ha! Another thing he failed to mention!” Demon tapped on the stone. She pointed to the inside of her mouth and hacked. Suddenly, a familiar gem came rolling out of her throat. It was blue, about the size of an apple, but lacked the shape of a balloon. It was shaped like a swirl.

She spat it out of her mouth and into the grip of her magic. “Look familiar?! The foundation of Equestria that has been graced to fall into the hooves of its rightful owner! The Elements of Harmony!”

That is how she turned her father to stone. She’d seen it before when Princess Twilight had reversed the effects of chaos and sealed Discord back into stone.

“It figures since that counterfeit Princess tossed them into the void from whence I was sealed! She couldn’t wield it anymore! It took me a millennium to figure them out, but now I have pure power of cutie marks!” Demon sneered. She spat out five more gems. Each with familiar colors, but disorganized in the fact that they weren’t in the shapes of the Mane Six’s cutie marks. Then… she noticed. One of shapes was in the shape of her cutie mark.

“Now, what shall I do with you?” Demon’s tongue tapped against her own chin. “Oh! I know!” She smiled. “I will send you to the void for the next millennia!” Demon’s horn glowed a like embers of a dead fire. She lowered her head and took aim at Diamond.

Chapter 26: In Nightmares, Part 2

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“Nopony messes with my friend!” A voice called out.

Demon didn’t have time to turn before a metallic Timberwolf dove for her. It raked a claw across Demon’s body. Demon shrieked and reared back from the Timberwolf.

It lunged out of the way, in turn, dropping the six gems. She noticed one of the gemstones was that of a white spoon. This must’ve meant something.

“Silver Spoon?” Diamond asked the wolf.

The wolf nodded respectfully, almost like a curtsy or a bow.

“Princess Luna invited me to join the fight to save my friend. She also gave us a boost!” Silver Spoon pounded on her armor with a metal paw. “Besides, I owe you one for the time you saved me.”

Argentum raised a claw against Demon and raked her across the face.

A beam of silver and blue blasted across Diamond’s vision, nailing Demon in the stomach. Diamond looked around, finding no owner to the beam of light that surged in.

In defense, Demon sneered and sucker punched the Timberwolf with a hoof make of darkness and fire.

“NO!” Diamond screamed.

However, the Timberwolf didn’t flinch. It shook off the hit like it was shaking off water from its coat and pounded at the demon with silver claws again.

“Thou Nightmare, you are powerless against us! You cannot edit what is not native to the dream!” Luna bellowed as she glided in. Her body was covered with guardspony armor, only a little more ornate. Her horn shone silver like the moon’s reflection upon water.

“Luna? Silver Spoon?” Diamond traded her glance between them.

“And Wonderbolt Vertigo!” A filly zipped in with the yellow and blue uniform of the elites. She flew circles around Demon, causing a small dust devil made of crystal fragments to churn violently. The Demon was caught up in the small storm.

“Thank you, Vertigo Heart.” Luna’s horn lifted the six gemstones up. She blasted them with a ray of light, each of them floating up. Three of them, Red, Yellow, and Dark Blue orbited around her. One sailed through the air like an arrow to Argentum. Another one to Vertigo. The last one to her.

The light fed strands of light into tornado. As the light swirled, the tornado grew smaller. A low rumbling accompanied a gentle vibration from the ground. In an instant, the tornado imploded on itself. In the epicenter, was a statue made up of crystal. The Demon in a stance of recoiling like she was in pain.

“Quickly now.” Luna instructed, craning her head towards the tree atop the hill. Her horn glowed as three saddlebags materialized out of air. She levitated the saddlebags to each respective pony, including herself. She pocketed the three gemstones into her bag. The Gemstone of a spoon settled into a groove atop Argentum’s crown.

Vertigo took the gem of a blue swirl and inspected it. “Hmm, peculiar.” She said while the lenses of her goggles reflected it.

“To the tree! We don’t have much time!” Luna picked up the statue of Demon. Vertigo hoisted the statue of her father and onto the Silver Timberwolf’s back.

“Come with us, Diamond Dazzle Tiara, the fortress of thy mind is in grave danger.” Luna patted Diamond’s back, helping her to go on.

Vertigo and Silver already had a head start. As she got ready to run, whiskers grew on her muzzle and her mane wrapped around her head. She bolted, eyes fixed on the tree, which was cloven into two and suspended in the sky.

She ran. She ran until her lungs and muscles screamed for her to stop. Each pound of her hoof thundered against the ground, every heartbeat surged through her body. At long last, she felt another surge of power run through her like an electric shock.

Luna came up by her side. “Quickly! You are in tons more danger than your friend was!”

Diamond turned to Luna. “Wait. What danger?” She asked.

“If we don’t act quickly, Demon will be released. She will destroy what is dear and precious to you- your friendships made in Mane-hattan!” Luna shouted. “Worse even… the sanity of your mind is at stake!”

“My sanity?” Diamond asked.

“What you stopped your friend Silver Spoon from doing, it will pass onto you if you continue to leave these feelings of self-hatred unchecked.”

Diamond ground her hooves into the dirt to halt herself. “What was Silver going to do?!”

Luna halted alongside The Timberwolf and Vertigo.

The Timberwolf collapsed as Silver Spoon stepped out of its neck. Tears were coming to her friend’s eyes as she detached her armor made of Silver. Without another word, Silver rushed up Diamond and hugged her. “If you didn’t come in time, I would’ve been dead. But you saved me! I’m so grateful I have a friend like you!”

Diamond’s heart pounded. All the pieces came together. She caught a glance of Silver’s forelegs. The red lines from before had faded, no longer red, but watermarks from the past.

“That’s the danger I’m talking about.” Luna said. “Dreams have the uncanny ability to reflect reality. What is said, done, or thought here might become reality the next day.”

“I’ve come to return the favor.” Silver let go of the embrace and bowed. As she backed up, the Timberwolf armor wrapped around her. “For Diamond!”

Vertigo cheered. “For Dazzle!”

Luna smiled. “For Diamond Dazzle Tiara!”

Once they arrived at the top of the hill, Luna set the crystal statue down. On the opposite side of the massive hole, Vertigo flew the stone statue over.

“We got here just in time.” Luna inspected the crystal statue. “Demon Dazzle is slowly breaking free. We have mercy on our side though. The tree provides a beacon of magic that will slow her progress.” Diamond looked closer and noticed fissures gathering on the seams of the crystals.

“So… Princess.” Diamond started, trying to catch her breath. “Why just Silver and Vertigo?”

“I had to be frugal in how much I edit.” Luna said. “So, out of your seven friends, I chose the two that had the most potential. Silver Spoon, who overcame the same darkness you are facing, and Vertigo Heart, an unyielding optimist in face of trials.”

Diamond couldn’t help but smile as the Timberwolf and the Wonderbolt worked together on the other side, trading high-hooves when they set the statue down and anchored it.

“You chose great friends, Diamond Dazzle Tiara. Never forget that.” Luna nudged Diamond. She glanced up at the sky. “In order to seal her back and release your father, I must make a bold edit, but first, I need permission from the author of the dream.”

“Yes?” Diamond asked warily. She grew to trust Luna over the course of last dream― rescuing Silver Spoon. However, she couldn’t quite shake the feeling from last time Luna asked permission.

“I will have to edit you to Alicorn.” Luna said.

Diamond felt a little unease. She balked, but as she did so, the statue of her father came into view. This must’ve really meant something. “You have my permission, Princess.” Diamond bowed.

A beam of light flew into Diamond. She felt a horn spring out of her skull and wings from her back.

“Fly up, and Levitate the tree into position. This is a very simple task, I know. But once we get the tree replanted, the seal will be remade, and the Demon will be vanquished.”

Diamond nodded and flew up. She felt a bit dizzy trying out a pair of wings for the first time. Then, she felt a hoof take hers. She looked to her right. The Wonderbolt had joined her. “Need some help?” Vertigo smiled.

“Yes please.” Diamond nodded. Vertigo swooped under her barrel and held her in place and kept Diamond steady as they ascended towards the top of the tree.

Slowly, but with an eye on the tree, both of them climbed. Dazzle decided to pass the time with some catch-up.

“How did you react when you met Silver?” Diamond asked, trying hard not to wobble as she flew up with Vertigo. Thankfully, Vertigo was able to counter those sudden shifts.

“She is awesome! I can see why you chose her as a friend!” Vertigo answered. “I also asked her about what you were talking about, you know, that day at school when Napoleon was being a jerk-face.

“Jerk-face, that’s new…” Dazzle snickered.

“Anyways… Silver Spoon told me that she has problems sometimes, but you are the one who helped her through!” Vertigo said.

“What about her? How did she react to you?”

“Great! Once I mentioned I was a friend of yours― or technically Luna told her that I was a friend of Diamond Dazzle Tiara― she couldn’t stop yabbering.” Vertigo laughed. She hushed down to a whisper, “And that’s says a lot when the chatterbox calls you a chatterbox.” Diamond could feel her diaphragm jostle as she laughed. “She asked me about all kinds of things… from how Mane-hattan is, what kinds of things you and I do at recess, and something about Suri Polomare, but of course, I told her that I wasn’t there when it happened.”

Diamond’s heart floated a little in her chest. Whether it was the news that her friends were doing well and getting along, or the fact that she felt a little vertigo while going up- literally and literally.

As they hovered above the leaves, Vertigo motioned with a hoof. “Let’s fly there. We have an opening.”

Diamond carefully glided down, Vertigo often wrapping hooves around Diamond’s barrel, re-steadying and pulling up every so often so they didn’t crash.

“Careful trying to get a grip on the tree. Landing is even harder than flying.” Vertigo instructed, pointing towards the direction of the trunk. She guided Diamond’s hoof to a considerable sized branch and set it down on the bark. “Push it in that direction.” She pointed straight towards the ground. “I’ll push the other half. Don’t worry trying about going fast. I’ll help if you need it!”

Diamond gently set her hooves on the bark, most times she would be worried about getting a splinter. But now, since she knew this was her mother’s tree, she wanted to extra gentle.

Vertigo tilted her head. “Well, what are you waiting for! Go ahead and start pushing!”

Diamond nodded and shifted her weight onto the tree. She could feel it start to move.

“There you go! Nice and easy!” Vertigo cheered. Her wings fanned out. “I will go to the other half!”

Diamond pushed with all her might. Out of the twisty canopy of the tree, she could see Vertigo zip across the divide and into the thicket of the other half of the tree. She noticed how much faster Vertigo was going. She attempted to match it.

KRUNK!

An explosion like the pounding on wood rattled below. Crystal debris followed the splintering sound. The canopy of leaves and branched shielded her from whatever chunks went flying.

Diamond flew out of the tree’s canopy, and clutched a nearby branch as she looked down.

No. How did she get out?

Luna leveled another silver beam at Demon. Demon countered it with a beam of glowing incendiary and shadow. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Vertigo fly from her post and charge straight down at Demon. Diamond jumped after her.

Gravity took over and she fell. Fast. She fanned out her wings, trying to slow her fall, but the wind raked and pinned her wings back. She didn’t have the strength to push against the wind.

“Vertigo! HELP!” Diamond screamed.

Down and down she fell, the sinking feeling of doom as the ground came hurtling closer to her.

Suddenly, she felt hooves wrap around her barrel. “Gotcha!”

Diamond sighed in relief as Vertigo glided her down to the ground.

“Next time, just stay where you were at.” Vertigo chuckled. “I need you to h―AUGH!”

Diamond was knocked away from Vertigo.

Suddenly, the feeling of freefall resumed. Diamond didn’t have time before she hit the ground. She opened her wings, and strung out her fall. The impact wasn’t much as it could’ve been, but it knocked the wind out of her. Thankfully, grass cushioned their fall like a mattress.

As soon as Diamond got to her hooves, she ran towards her friend. Vertigo laid on the ground, muzzle first, carving a trench in the dirt. Diamond stared in horror as she looked at Vertigo’s wings.

Thick black chains looped around Vertigo’s wings― chains made up of shadow, held taut by a lock with a keyhole glowing like ember.

“C’mon! Getup Vertigo!” Dazzle shook her friend and helped her to her feet.

“You’re too late!” Demon called out as she approached. A disk of floating amber arcane runes twisted and orbited around her Magenta and Obsidian horn.

Luna approached quickly, lowering her head to take another shot at Demon.

“You make one more move, and I’ll chop Wonderbolt’s wings off!” Demon warned.

Luna grinded her hooves against the dirt to a stop. She glared at Demon. Her horn still glowing with silver light.

Demon clicked her tongue. “That means horn too!”

Luna growled as she rolled her eyes. Reluctantly, the light from her horn faded.

Diamond just recalled something. From the power she was lent, she had an opening. Demon’s gaze was fixed upon Luna. Now was her chance! Her back was turned! Quickly, her horn charged and fired a beam at Demon. Demon roared in pain. Suddenly, six jewels popped out.

“Diamond! What are you doing? We need Vertigo to be able to fly!” Luna called to her.

Demon shook off the sucker hit and spun to Diamond. “YOU! YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT POWERS YOU ARE MESSING WITH!”

Diamond took another opportunity to fire a blast. Demon rolled out of the way, picking up the six gemstones that fell from her body. Diamond shot another blast at her as she got to her feet. Suddenly, the gemstones spun around her and formed an invisible barrier. Diamond’s shot ricocheted off and whipped back in her direction.

Before she could dodge it, it nailed her in the forehead. A sharp pain ran through her temple, like somepony took a railroad spike to her head.

She tried hard to hold it back, but the pain was unbearable. Hers tongue twisted and she grit her teeth. Finally, she screamed.

She screamed so loud that the pain intensified.

Struggling for breath, Dazzle rolled and then hit the ground hard.

Hardwood greeted her as she took her first breaths in the free air. The golden hue of day’s first light flooded through the window over the jagged horizon of skyscrapers. She covered her ears as a piercing ringing drove spikes into her mind. It felt like her head was stuffed with cotton.

As she rolled around, she felt a hoof prod her barrel and a muffled squeak. Her hearing focused, and then the clarity of sound hit her. Somepony was calling her name.

“Dazzle! Dazzle!” She read on Coco’s lips as Coco shook her awake, rocking her hoof firmly against Dazzle’s Barrel. Dazzle could see Coco’s worried expression, like the time she had forgotten to make a dress for a line. The last bit of her fogginess washed away as Coco’s face came into view. She had tears in her eyes. Only a couple words she could make out, but through the haze, she only could try to read Coco’s lips.

“Huh?” Dazzle said, rubbing her eyes. She then cringed, as the pain of a headache strummed through her skull

“You were screaming in your sleep a couple minutes ago…” Coco said. “Are you okay? Do we need to go to the Doctors?”

“Screaming?” Dazzle said. She propped herself up and stretched. “Nothing to worry about… just a stupid nightmare.”

“No seriously… this wasn’t a whimper or any small scream.” Coco said. “It was deafening! I’d fear that you wake the neighbors if you continued.”

“Huh.” Dazzle said. “Nope. I’m fine. I just had an intense nightmare…”

“Yeah, I’d bet it was intense if you were screaming like that,” Coco said. “Forget my plans for the day. I’m taking you to the hospital.”

“It’s just a nightmare.” Dazzle waved her off.

“Dazzle w―!”

“Last I checked, a nightmare hasn’t killed anypony.” Dazzle said.

“It sure sounded like it though!”Coco pointed towards her wet and teary face. “I’m geniuninely scared, Dazzle.

After a brief pause and averted eyes, Coco stood stoutly and said, “If you are truly okay, Look me in the eyes and tell me.”

Dazzle stared directly into Coco’s blue eyes. Those shaking irises… The unnerving look of Coco in tears made her want to bawl too. That, and her splitting headache she had woken up with. With all the power she could muster, she nodded “I’m fine.” She lied to Coco.

“Okay…” Coco trailed off. “You know, if you are having a hard time right now, you can tell me.”

“Psh!” Dazzle looked at the alarm clock on her table. Five minutes before the alarm would go off. She flicked the knob to disable the alarm.

“I need to get ready now. I gotta meeting with Napoleon in an hour!” Dazzle squirmed out of her cocoon of blankets and stood up on her hooves. Today was the day that they present their project, after all.

As Dazzle exited the room, Coco shook her head. “I sure hope you’re okay.”

Chapter 27: Napoleon's Dilemma

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-Late March-

“She’s so awesome! I didn’t know her favorite ice cream flavor was Huckleberry!” Vertigo hopped alongside Dazzle.

Dazzle couldn’t help but snicker. She made friends with a Pinkie Pie. How did Vertigo have this much energy to begin with?

Ultimately, Dazzle had Vertigo promise to keep it a secret. Pinkie Promise. Though, it wasn’t too much of a problem since Vertigo talked more about making friends with Silver Spoon she didn’t mention the part where her wings got bound or Diamond got hit by a bolt that ricocheted off Demon’s barrier.

“Did she say anything about how she’s doing?” Dazzle asked.

“Oh! She wanted me to tell you that she had an outing with the Crusaders! She helped somepony get their cutie mark in the process!” Vertigo said.

“Wha-wait! Did somepony say cutie mark?” Bling came to the table and looked at Vertigo’s flank. “Oh, so you haven’t yet.”

“Nope!” Vertigo stared down at her blank side and wiggled her flank. “But I’m in no hurry. I’m happy to just fly around.” She tilted her head. “Speaking of which, are you ready for our practice today?”

Dazzle marveled at how she directed the conversation like sweeping it under the rug. How did she do that? Maybe that was one of her secret talents- she knew how to keep stuff hush-hush without acting a wee bit suspicious. Or, perhaps it was just her being a little ADHD.

“Eeyup.” Bling nodded. “Though it’s going to be tough with the crowds.”

Napoleon must’ve caught onto the conversation also. “Preaching to the choir. Some of them are from Baltimare and another east coast city I can’t quite put a hoof on,” he said before sitting down. He pulled a book out of his pack and propped it open on the table.

“Fillydelphia?” Bling hinted.

“That’s right. Fillydelphia.” Napoleon clicked his tongue and pointed to Bling.

“What’tcha reading?” Vertigo asked in a sing-song manner, rocking her head back and forth.

“Last minute studying,” Napoleon kept his eyes glued to the book. “Gonna need it for the fair.”

“What about me?” Dazzle asked. “Do you need me to prepare also?”

Napoleon slid the book towards Dazzle. Once it met Dazzle’s eyes, she whistled. She couldn’t even begin to interpret the charts or the paragraphs filled with scientific jargon. She slid the book back to him. “Wow, I can’t even begin to understand that.”

“Oh no, poor things…” Vertigo cut in. She pointed at Bab’s table.

As Dazzle turned her gaze, a familiar feeling of dread washed over her. Out at Bab’s table, two ponies, a filly and a colt, were being yelled at by Fancy Gem. From reading Fancy’s lips, Dazzle made out the words ‘the seat is saved! Go somewhere else!’

Dazzle felt a burn inside her. Memories of her mother came to mind and she thought of the many times she’d been scolded. As much as she wanted to retaliate, she really couldn’t. Going over there with Babs at the table was a ticket for disaster. She found it easier to stay out of Bab’s radar.

Suddenly, Napoleon slapped his book shut and hopped out of his seat.

“Uh, Napoleon, what are you doing?” Bling asked, shifting his eyes nervously between Napoleon and the table.

“I’m going to pull a Vertigo-Dazzle.” He winked at Vertigo, and then winked at Dazzle. “Wish me luck.”

Vertigo’s jaw hung open.

Without another word, Napoleon approached the filly and colt.

“Is he crazy? Babs is already mad at him for not joining their table!” Bling pointed towards Napoleon.

“Personally, I think she should get over it.” Dazzle kept her eyes on Napoleon. “Napoleon only wanted peace and quiet to finish his book after all.”

The filly and colt slowly trotted away with their heads hanging low.

Napoleon tapped on the shoulder of the filly. She spun around.

Bling continued, “Does anypony else think he’s been acting funny? Usually he’s got his snout stuck in a book, wanting as little conversation as possible. It’s even weirder that he he’s greeting foals from another school.” Bling tapped his chin. “What really stumps me is why would he choose willingly to make a bold move against Babs.”

“You’re right.” Vertigo chomped down on her daisy sandwich. “I’d avoid Babs often, after her turning, I became a prime target. That’s why I fly; a moving target is hard to hit.”

“Maybe it’s just the science fair.” Dazzle suggested. “I think the stress has pushed him to go out of his comfort zone.” Dazzle pointed to a poster board case sticking out of the filly’s saddlebag. “I think he wants to scout out the competitors so he knows what he is up against.”

Dazzle could see a brief exchange, and a change in facial expressions, the three of them started towards their table.

“Even so, I know that Napoleon goes to extreme lengths to avoid Babs.” Bling said. “He’d hide behind other groups of chattering foals, time his lunch to make sure he’s not in the same room as them, and even so far as sulk in the library, somewhere Underdog never likes to look even if Babs told him to look for Napoleon there.”

“Wow, all that? You must be his fancolt!” Vertigo snickered.

“After hanging with Underdog, I notice a few things.” Bling frowned. “But that’s all in the past now.” He said.

He finished his sentence just in time as Napoleon motioned to the filly and colt to take a seat first.

“Hoi! I’m Vertigo!” Vertigo jumped in, holding out a hoof to the colt.

The colt flinched. “Uhm, Dusty Mantle,” The colt answered, reaching out with a shaky brown hoof.

Napoleon sat down at the table, to the side of Dazzle. He waved over to a filly who was taking her seat “Everypony, this is Pink Sprinkles. Pink Sprinkles, this is Dazzle, Vertigo, and Bling.”

The filly waved her forehoof. “Pleasure to meet you!” She set her pack with the poster board down on the seat.

Bling held out a hoof. “I haven’t seen your faces at our school, so I’m assuming you are from out of town. Which school are you coming from?”

“Baltimare West Academy of Magic.” Pink Sprinkles said.

“Planning to participate in the science fair?” Vertigo asked.

“Yup!” Dusty Mantle nodded. “Pink and I want to go to CSGU. This is the best chance we’ve got since Corrosion is rampant.”

“I feel the same way.” Napoleon held up a high-hoof.

Dusty accepted and slapped his hoof. “Are any of you participating?”

“Just Napoleon and Dazzle.” Bling motioned towards them with a tilt of his neck.

“Wow, a unicorn and an earth pony teamed up for the competition…” Dusty said. “You don’t see many of those. It seems that most pairs are unicorns only.”

“How come?” Dazzle asked.

“Beats me.” Dusty shrugged. “Though, comes to think of it, the majority of teams are from Fillydephia’s― an academy for unicorns. I guess that is one of the factors of it.”

Dazzle’s mind reeled back to what Yttrium said. For some strange reason, whatsoever it was, earth ponies didn’t gravitate towards hospital work. One of the causes might be the disadvantage of not having wings or a horn.

“How hard has the Corrosion hit you school by the way?” Napoleon asked. “Here, as you might’ve heard, unicorns are not allowed to use magic while it’s rampant. I wonder though, how are the unicorn academies fending?

“About the same.” Dusty said. “Not much else. We only are allowed to practice at home in the safety of our homes, to prevent spreading. As if an annoying little sister was already hard to deal with.” He looked up at Napoleon. “You got any siblings?”

Napoleon turned white as a ghost. “Well, uh no… so. Uhm, sorry, I can’t relate.”

“Pfft. You’re lucky.” Dusty said. “I’m kinda thankful I’m spending a week in Mane-hattan so I don’t need to deal with her.”

Dazzle picked up on something, a hint of unease, maybe resentment. Napoleon’s face seemed to burn with another emotion, one that she’d hadn’t seen to this intensity before- anger.

“What about you?” Dazzle pointed to Pink before the tension could get worse. She decided that the topic was a safe one to be on just as long as Napoleon didn’t get tangled up with Dusty.

“I have two older siblings.” Pink said. “A sister and a brother.” She giggled and then pointed to Vertigo. “Your turn!”

“I have an older sister who is already off to college.” Vertigo said. She tapped Bling on the shoulder. “You?”

“Same as Napoleon. Only child.” Bling folded his hooves.

“How many siblings do you have?” Dusty Mantle asked Dazzle, taking a bite out of his daisy sandwich.

“I’m an only child.” Dazzle said.

“Wow a lot of families with one foal.” Dusty said. “I’m sure you get all the attention.”

Dazzle’s ears drooped. Her parents back in Ponyville never really payed attention to her. What made it a change of pace is that Coco listened to her. She wasn’t used to it. Ultimately, she felt bad for Coco. She was like a changeling, draining all the love that Coco had, leaving her exhausted most days. All she could do was model for her. Not much else.

“So, what is your project?” Dazzle figured that it was best to cut back to what he was saying before. She also kept watch on Napoleon, just in case he showed any sign of tension. Even in the week following the science fair, he showed a lot of unease. Even now, she noticed him acting weird― greeting the students from another school was certainly out of the norm for him.

Dusty started to life. “Oh, we are presenting a spin on Star-Swirl’s elementary shield spell― It’s an experiment of where the shield is weakest, and how the magic aura rotates about an axis to make up for any chips or cracks.”

“Very nice!” Dazzle said.

“I don’t want to be rude, but―” Bling finished his sandwich with one final bite.“― Lunch is halfway done.” He pointed towards the clock. “Vertigo and I need to practice.”

He was right. The clock had passed them by. Only about half an hour left to relax.

“Sure thing!” Vertigo chirped.

As the two flew off, Dazzle figured it couldn’t hurt that the two join them. Besides, it would allow Napoleon to calm down just a tad. “Hey, wanna come? Vertigo and Bling are excellent flyers!”

“Certainly! This will be a treat.” Dusty said. He packed away the rest of his lunch and started for the doors. Dazzle trotted to Napoleon’s side as both of them led the way out.

“W-wait!” Pink Sprinkles feverishly packed up and snatched up her saddlebags.

As she leapt out of her seat, Dazzle saw her hooves collapse under her. Before Dazzle could react, her lunchbox spilled its contents up, splattering soup all over her coat and saddlebags.

Pink scuttled to her feet quickly. She gasped as she stared at the posterboard.

Dusty quickly picked up the posterboard and inspected it. He gasped as he stared at a giant smear from Pink’s soup… and from the looks of it, it wasn’t coming out anytime soon.

“Pink!” Dusty said. “You ruined it!”

“I’m sorry!” Pink cried.

“How are we supposed to do the fair now?” He pointed toward the board.

Napoleon stepped through and nudged Dusty away.

“Uhm, what are you doing?” Dusty asked.

Unfazed, Napoleon inspected the poster board. “Hmm, what material is your poster made out of?”

“Cardboard?” Dusty raised an eyebrow.

“No, I mean, where did the cardboard come from?”

“A tree? I guess?” Dusty said. “Why are you asking?”

Napoleon took out a bottle of soap from his pack. His horn glowed as he started to rub the soap over the smear. He lifted his water bottle from his pack and unscrewed the lid. He held the soap out to Pink. “Here. Rub this on your coat on the soup marks.”

“Why?” Pink asked.

“What are you doing?” Dusty said a little louder. Irritation was becoming more apparent in his voice.

“Just trust me.” Napoleon said.

Pink slowly rubbed the soap on her stained tan and pink coat, froth started to form from bubbles. Napoleon proceeded to splash a tiny bit of water on the poster. The soap foamed up and fizzled. Some of the water rose up as steam, giving off a slight aroma of lavender.

Dusty’s jaw dropped.

Napoleon levitated his canister towards Pink and poured water onto her coat. She winced at the fizzling.

“Sorry, your coat might be a little damp after this. But, it’s certainly better than having food stains on you.” Napoleon said.

“Napoleon!” A teacher called out.

“Sorry Ms. Lagoon, it was an emergency.” Napoleon said.

“He cleaned my board!” Dusty inspected his poster board closer, then turned back to Napoleon. “How did you do that?”

“You’re lucky!” Napoleon said. “It just so happens that my project is on soap.” He held up the bottle of soap proudly. “I knew that enchantment would come in handy. Insta-dry. Just in case the judges want to see it in action.”

Ms. Lagoon frowned. “Be careful, Napoleon, you don’t want to catch Corrosion.”

“I will. Sorry for breaking the rules.” Napoleon said.

“No worries. Like you said, it was an emergency.” Ms. Lagoon said. “Well, I got to find a janitor to clean up the rest of the splatter.”

“I’m sorry…” Pink apologized.

“Don’t worry about it. It was an accident.” Mrs. Lagoon said. She motioned to the clock. “Lunch is almost over. I suggest going to set up your partition in the gym. I was coming to round up the students who are participating.” She smiled “I would before your poster board gets lunch splattered on it again.”

Napoleon glanced up at the clock. “She’s right. We should set up.”

Dazzle hoped Vertigo and Bling wouldn’t be to upset. She’d was also sure they’d understand, since they would notice the droves of students going to the gymnasium to set up their poster.

Carefully, she unfolded it and placed it on the table. It was filled with a couple lines of writing- her very own muzzle-writing, followed by a chart of the results- one that Napoleon explained was the pH graph with the percentage mixture. Another graph was the enchantability scale (Napoleon was especially excited to make this one) versus each percentage. She had to say, it looked a lot like a bell curve. Slap on a couple pictures of their procedure with a couple pictures of them smiling for the camera during mid-experiment, they were complete.

Napoleon wheezed. He set down a crate on the floor full of tiny packets. He’d insisted in making a couple samples for the judges. It wasn’t his idea― it was hers. Her father taught her to provide incentive for customers― or judges for that matter.

“There we are.” Napoleon said. “You ready for tomorrow? Did you practice your part of the presentation?”

“Yup.” Dazzle couldn’t help but snicker. Napoleon wanted to control every aspect of this. “I see judges already going around. Are you sure we present tomorrow? Some of the other foals have are being scored already.”

“Yeah, I’m sure.” Napoleon said. “They are just letting the some of the foals from the other school go first since it’s kinda costly to rent a place to stay here in Mane-hattan. Besides, they figured getting the majority done first makes it easier on the judges… Hard part first, easy part later.” He winked. “It makes it so they are easier on judging our project since long days makes anypony crabby.”

Dazzle snickered. “Alright. Whatever you say.”

Napoleon went to apply the finishing touches.

“Napoleon,” Dazzle began. “There’s been something I been wanting to talk to you about.”

“Hmm?” Napoleon turned towards her.

“You’ve been acting funny as of late.” Dazzle started.

“What? Funny? How?” Napoleon asked.

“Don’t think it’s not apparent. You’re not your usual self, greeting others, welcoming them to our school, even to the length of shutting the book and walking towards Bab’s table” Dazzle smiled. “Are you nervous about the competition?”

“No― I mean yes, kind of.” Napoleon said. He sighed.

“Well, if you need a Pep Talk, my mom is surprising good at them.” Dazzle helped him put together the mock setup of the soap preparation. “You should see her when I’m procrastinating on homework.”

“It’s not that.” Napoleon said. “The competition is hard enough as it is.” His eyes widened and he covered his muzzle.

“Oh? Does it have anything to do with Vertigo?” Dazzle felt a grin spread across her face.

“It has to do with my family. I would tell you, but it is my parents’ business.” Napoleon said.

“Is something happening with Florin and Montresor?” Dazzle blurted.

“Nono! Er… Uhm, I meant yes.” Napoleon face-hoofed. “Dangit! I’m horrible at keeping secrets!”

Dazzle recognized the look on his face- it was one she made herself. Was it happening to his family too? Was his family being driven apart by some unbeknownst conflict happening behind the scenes? It didn’t make sense though. On the outside, she would’ve never thought Florin and Montresor would fight since their dynamic was playful, even endearing and cute at times.

“Are you okay?” Dazzle said. She related, since nopony asked her how she really felt after everything was said and done- it happened all too quickly. Sometimes, she wished there was that shoulder to cry on when she was at that low point in her life.

“I’m fine.” Napoleon looked away. “I’m just scared.”

“If it’s something that you want to share, go ahead, if not, then I won’t bother you any more about it.” She stretched her foreleg over his back. “In my experience, though, I think it’s best to get it off your chest.”

“If I tell you, do you Pinkie promise not to tell anypony else?” Napoleon asked.

She figured it was alright. He was taking caution, as the Napoleon she knew. She’d felt that burn of embarrassment from her family troubles, after all. She kept it hidden, since she could imagine the other school ponies laughing at her if she told anypony. Probably the reason why she didn’t tell the crusaders until her life fell apart. What she’d never expected is that if she told them they would have respect for her private life. The fact that Napoleon was sharing his deepest troubles showed that he had a lot more maturity than her when she was at that point.

She mimed through the actions.

Napoleon flashed her a weak smile. “Mom and dad told me that I’m going to have a sister.”

“What?!” Dazzle shouted. She immediately toned down to her inside voice once Napoleon’s eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

“Shhhh!” Napoleon placed a hoof over Dazzle mouth. “They don’t want anypony to know. If word gets out, the tabloids will be all over it.”

Dazzle wasn’t expecting it. It wasn’t a dynamic of a family coming apart. It was a family coming closer together by welcoming a filly into the world. “Did they already pick out a name for her?” Dazzle asked excitedly.

“Vivienne Rose.” Napoleon said.

“Sounds beautiful.” Dazzle said.

“I agree. Though, I’m terrified.” Napoleon said.

“Terrified? Of what?” Dazzle asked.

Napoleon paused. “I’m scared that I won’t be the best big brother that she can have.”

“What are you talking about? You’ll do fine!” Dazzle punched him in the shoulder.

“How can I be a great big brother when I still got a lot to improve?” Napoleon asked.

Suddenly, everything started to make sense for Dazzle. Some signs were that Napoleon was acting funny lately, doing things that he normally wouldn’t. Preparing for a sister pushed him way out of his comfort zone, even more so than what the competition was having him do. He didn’t even so much as talk about the other’ foals projects nor get the jitters when a judge came by. The reason why he was calm about this is because he felt he had bigger fish to fry.

However, he wasn’t himself. That worried Dazzle.

Her mind wrapped up all the thoughts she was having, tying it in a nice bow. She immediately summed up her thoughts in a couple words. “Just be yourself.”

“What?” Napoleon asked.

“Just be yourself. I know you feel like you want to be somepony else, but the best pony you can be is yourself.” Dazzle said.

“You’re crazy. I can’t make friends with a little sister unless I stop reading for a while. How else did Princess Twilight Sparkle make friends if she didn’t put herself out there to make some friends? How can a little sister like me if I’m not cool like Twilight Sparkle and her big brother and―” Napoleon rubbed his hoof on the gym floor. “What if she doesn’t like me?”

“I understand where you are coming from. But this sudden― your parents might even call it dramatic― change in attitude and temperament is worrying everypony.” Dazzle said.

“Worrying who?” Napoleon asked.

“Vertigo and Bling, to start with. Vertigo and Bling are wondering what happened to the nerdy bookworm colt they knew. Also, I’d be worried about how your parents feel.” Dazzle said. “Have you talked to your parents about this?”

“Hmm… Sort of.” Napoleon said. After looking at Dazzle nervously, she knew he felt the guilt of lying under his breath. “No… Not really.”

“Talk to them about how you feel.” Dazzle said. “It’s like what your mother and my mother say, ‘Live Transparent’, don’t care what others think- just be yourself.”

“You got a point there.” Napoleon said. “I guess that’s a really catchy phrase; 'Live Transparent!'”

“Yep, just be you!” She scruffed up this hair. “Go back to the bookworm foal we all know and love!”

“Chemistry included?” Napoleon laughed.

Dazzle chuckled. “Chemistry Included.”

He chuckled “Anyways, I think we should get back to setting up the project, don’t you think?”

“There’s the Napoleon I know!” Dazzle smiled and punched him again in the shoulder.

Chapter 28: Disaster During Presentations

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Dazzle sat with crossed legs. It was the day after the first presentations and she was already bored out of her mind. Even though the other schools went first, she still had to attend. Hopefully now was the day that the judges got to them.

She caught herself dozing off a couple times, trying to fight off the urge to sleep.

If only she had brought her homework from Mrs. Paprika’s room… she could’ve gotten a bunch of studying done. That, and her body was fighting for an afternoon nap.

At least Bling and Vertigo were okay. They were probably having a blast right now. Vertigo eagerly invited them to see a trick that her and Bling learned. Unfortunately, Dazzle had to decline since the competition couldn’t wait. Thankfully, Vertigo was a good sport. Both Vertigo and Bling said that they would continue practicing so they could show them when the competition was over.

Dazzle jolted awake when she heard the sound of Napoleon slapping his book shut.

Through foggy vision, Dazzle could see him in a blur, as she sunk in and out of sleep.

“Long Night?” Napoleon asked.

“Yeah.” Dazzle yawned. “I was up trying to play catch-up with my assignments. Mrs. Paprika gave me the assignments I was missing.”

“Same here.” Napoleon set the book down. “The hardest part was the literature.”

Dazzle shook her head and chuckled. “I thought you loved to read…”

“It has to be of my own choice. Forcing me to read something takes the fun out of it.” Napoleon hopped out of his chair. “It doesn’t matter though. We need you bright-eyed and ready to spring into action.” He held out a hoof.

Dazzle, in her half-conscious state, reached out with a mild dizziness and finally grasped his hoof.

He helped her out of the chair. Through the fogginess, everything whirled around her. She could feel her body fight between the two sides of sleepiness and consciousness. At this point, even the gym floor looked like a good place to take a nap.

“I have a good cure for sleepiness.” Napoleon said. He fished in his backpack and grabbed a pencil and some scratch paper. He held them out for Dazzle. “Let’s review our presentation.”

Dazzle accepted, yawned again, then stuck the pencil in her mouth. “Ready.”

“Okay, so, first we start off with the beginning, heating up the lye and the fat.” He said.

Napoleon had just the right thing in mind. Her sleepiness faded away as she took careful notes. As soon as she noticed her writing becoming scratchy, she pushed off the urge to fall asleep. When she was through the last of it, a judge trotted towards their board. Napoleon zipped up to him as soon as he spotted him.

“Good morning.” Napoleon greeted promptly.

“Good morning.” The Stallion set the clipboard in his mouth down on the counter and held out his hoof. “Mr. Yorsets.”

“Napoleon.” Napoleon smiled and shook his hoof. Dazzle could tell that he was giddy, but tried to keep his composure. She would be lying if she didn’t see a little shake in his tail from the excitement.

“Looks like you know your magic.” Mr. Yorsets waved to his posterboard. “Can you tell me a little more about your experiment?”

“With pleasure! We did a modification of a classical Meadowbrookian experiment.” Napoleon waved out to a couple pictures and charts, giving the basic rundown of the process.

Overall, Dazzle figured Napoleon would do just as well solo as he were in a group. While he led most of presentation, she only added a couple spark notes, to add simplicity and show her participation.

“…And so, Mr. Yorsets, we found that the ab-staining spell worked best within the fifty-fifty percent range of lye and fat.” Napoleon presented the conclusion section. “We also found that synthetic fibers conduct magic better than natural fibers.”

Mr Yorsets nodded. “Well done! Second Meadowbrookian Postulate! Non-organics can become strong magic conductors when a mediator, such as soap, bridges the gap!” He nodded his head. “Well done. My advice for you next time is that you let your partner talk. But other than that, A plus!”

Napoleon glanced back to Dazzle, sheepishly smiled, then turned back to Mr. Yorsets. He took one of the soap bottles from the crate and held it out to Mr. Yorsets. “Here is a sample of what Dazzle and I were able to make.”

He smiled and accepted. “Thank you for your time, Mr. Dynamite.” He bowed and trotted away.

“You’re welcome, Mr. Yorsets.” Napoleon bowed back.

Once Mr. Yorsets disappeared out of view, Napoleon turned to Dazzle with a wide smile. “That was Bastion Yorsets!”

“Bastion Yorsets?” Dazzle asked.

“Blasphemy!” Napoleon teased. “He’s one of the executives from CSGU!” Napoleon sat on his haunches. “I really hope I made a good impression!”

Dazzle snickered. “Don’t worry. That fact that you were calm and collected says a lot. Plus, I think a little bottle of soap couldn’t have hurt.”

Napoleon shuffled his hooves and squealed quietly.

THWACK!

Dazzle nearly leapt out of her skin. She looked over to the doors of the gym, from where the sound came from. Little Cookie rushed down the aisle with tear-filled eyes. The only words that Dazzle could make out from in between in hiccups was ‘Help’.

“Woah, woah, woah! Little Cookie, what’s wrong?” Dazzle asked as she stepped away from their presentation stand and stopped her in the middle of the aisle.

She looked at Dazzle with teary eyes, almost like streams gushing down the side of her face. “A-arct-tic Ar-ar-row! His h-horn!”

Dazzle’s heart dropped in her chest. It couldn’t have hit here, could it?

Suddenly, Bulk Buster burst through the doors. He huffed, then confirmed the suspicion. “Corrosion! Outside!”

Dazzle pushed through floods of students. Some clamoring, but most of them trying to push forward towards the scene of the incident. For a moment, Dazzle wondered if she was going the right way. The lack of visibility of anything amidst the sea of foals made it hard to get her bearings.

“Dazzle! Dazzle! Wait up!” Napoleon’s voice pierced through the din.

Dazzle turned around just in time as Napoleon squeezed through the crowd. His white coat brushed up against hers. “Quite a crowd, huh?” he chuckled.

“Yep.” Dazzle said. “Also going to see what the fuss is about?”

“Yes.” He sighed. “I’m really hope it’s not severe.”

They pushed further through the crowds, some protesting them to watch where they were going. Of course, Dazzle didn’t care. This could’ve been her doing, after all. She noted to herself to clean her coat thoroughly after visiting the labs.

“Quite an inopportune time to have a breakout.” Napoleon commented. “The Corrosion seems to always ruin my plans.”

“You must have very bad luck.” Dazzle looked back at him and stuck her tongue out. She turned back to weave through the crowd. Surprisingly, the crowd had thinned. “Gosh, it’s so hard to see, I don’t know if we are going in the right direction.”

“We are.” Napoleon looked up. “Something that doesn’t change are the walls surrounding this courtyard.” He pointed toward one wall of the school.

Dazzle looked up also. “What happened to the flurry of pegasai foals that were learning to fly?” Then, out of the corner of her eye, a yellow blob zipped across the sky. When she turned her to look, she gasped.

A Pegasus dressed in a hazmat suit carried a shiny metal canister towards the scene.

“I have a bad feeling about this.” Napoleon said. “Wait! Bling and Vertigo!” He rushed forward ahead of her. “Quickly! I see yellow tape!”

Dazzle followed Napoleon and broke through the barrier, all gathered around the yellow tape. A whole section of the courtyard was taped off. Teachers, janitors, and advisors guarded the perimeter while ponies dressed yellow hazmat suits sprayed the area with a white dust.

As soon as Dazzle saw the quarantine- and who was in it- her heart stopped.

“Vertigo!” Napoleon cried out. He ducked under the yellow tape and charged.

“Stop, Napoleon! We’re unicorns!” Dazzle yanked him back. “We’ll catch it too if you go any closer!”

As he wriggled more to evade her grasp, a teal aura suddenly enveloped him.

To Dazzle’s surprise, she found Ms. Paprika’s horn glowing. She had never seen the true color of her teacher’s aura.

“Ms. Paprika! You aren’t prote―!” Dazzle protested.

“I know.” Ms. Paprika said. “I don’t care. If I had to choose between one of my students or me to get Corrosion, I’d take the fall each time.”

Napoleon fell to the ground, limp as a ragdoll. Ms. Paprika levitated him towards her.

“Napoleon. You know better than charging straight into a Corrosion lockdown.” She scolded, but in a calm, gentle way.

Napoleon’s avoided eye contact with her.

“I understand where you are coming from. You’re brave and will do anything for the ponies you care about, even if that means putting yourself in harm’s way.” Ms. Paprika gave him a gentle smile. “Just like I’m doing for you now.”

“But I never said goodbye!” Napoleon cried.

Mrs. Paprika picked him up. “I know it hurts. My mother, Peppercorn, passed away because of this.”

Napoleon stopped wresting out of her grasp.

“But you know what hurt the most? I couldn’t say goodbye because the doctors said I’d catch it.” Ms. Paprika finished. Tears filled her eyes.

Napoleon hugged her. Ms. Paprika embraced him back.

Out of the corner of Dazzle’s eye, she spotted an eerie sight. A pony wearing a hazmat stopped a purple and yellow pegasus foal approaching the yellow tape. The opposite side of the yellow tape, to be exact. Bling’s ears drooped and his head slumped to the ground. After inspection around the wings, the guard let him pass the tape.

“What happened?” Dazzle asked as soon as he was permitted to pass.

He turned to her with puffy red eyes. “It’s my fault. I’m sorry!” He bolted away into the crowd.

“Bling!” Dazzle called out. Before she could chase him, he disappeared into the sea of clamoring students. Dazzle sighed and turned back to the site. She stared out as long as she could bear at her friend, Vertigo sat on a foldable metal table. Without a fight, the hazmat suited ponies sprayed a familiar substance- a white powder on the bridge of her wings. Then, they fitted a pair of glass containers over her wings. To finish, they strapped the glass together, pinning her wings to her sides.

Altogether, she sometimes flinched, but never wrestled. She had the strength to fight back too.

Each of them had a glass fitted to either their wings or their horn. Some fought it, some of them let it happen, like Vertigo. There must’ve been at least thirty foals lined up. As she studied the quarantined foals, she spotted Artic Arrow, the one colt that Little Cookie mentioned. Others stood out as well, but it was a mixture of passerbys and familiar faces from the school. With the ones that were unfamiliar, she really hoped nopony from the other schools had caught it because the majority of visitors were unicorns.

“Just so happens to be on the same day we invite two different schools to join us.” Ms. Lagoon growled. “Looks like the atmosphere of multiplying the number of Unicorns in our school for one day only gives this Tartaric disease a breeding ground.”

“Funny, I was thinking the exact same thing.” Dazzle turned to the gym teacher. “Is there anypony in there that is from the other schools?” She figured that Ms. Lagoon would know since she practically had every foal in her class.

“Thankfully I haven’t noticed any so far. All the faces I’ve come across are definitely ours.” Ms. Lagoon said.

“Dazzle! Dazzle!” Mrs. Paprika shouted as she squeezed through the crowd toward her. Napoleon followed close to her side. “Hey Dazzle, there is a Nurse here that wants to talk to you.” She pointed towards a mare pushing through the crowd and following Mrs. Paprika. Dazzle immediately recognized the Pristine white coat and red hair accented with green ridges over the wings.

“Nurse Radius!” Dazzle rushed up to her. “What are you doing here?”

“I was sent here in a hurry as soon as Doctor Fuse received word that the Corrosion hit here.” Mrs. Radius said. “He’s finishing up a report and will be here within the hour.” She looked towards the enclosure. “I have something for you.” She took out a laminated card with Dazzle’s Photo and few lines of information that stated her name and her Identification.

“Really? I thought I wasn’t clear to go into the labs for another week.”

“Think of it as an early Birthday Present from Yttrium.” Nurse Radius said. She motioned towards the enclosure. “Normally, we’d wait a week, but since Corrosion has made itself apparent here, we need as many hooves on the floor as possible. Not to mention that an Earth Pony is an advantage.”

“How did you know where I was?” Dazzle asked.

“I’ll tell you later.” Nurse Radius pointed towards the enclosure, where quarantine tents were being set up at the current moment. “We need to move. Corrosion isn’t waiting any longer.”

“What about my tiara?” Dazzle asked. “I don’t have it on me.”

“We can adjust as necessary.” Nurse Radius lifted up the tape.

“What do you need me to do?” Dazzle asked.

“Take roll of the names of all affected and how badly.” Nurse Radius said. “After that, we wait for further instruction from Mane-hattan North’s Director as well as the governor of Mane-hattan.”

“That official. Wow, we really need to work quickly...” Dazzle said.

“Yep. The more we get done the better we can contain and study the Curse.” Nurse Radius said. “I know it’s kind of like being thrown into the deep end, but are you okay with helping?”

“Certainly!” Dazzle said.

Suddenly, a thought popped into her mind. Since she was going to go see the foals in quarantine, she could multitask ―in the form of passing a message along. “Hold on, let me take care of something first and I’ll be right with you.” Dazzle trotted up to Napoleon first. “Hey Napoleon?”

He turned to Dazzle. The fact that she saw him in his broken and vulnerable state like this made her heart fall to pieces. His main characteristic was apathy. He never really showed emotion other than when talking Chemistry. Even when he was teased, he kept his emotions in control. Something that Dazzle had yet to master. To see him like this caused her to wither on the inside.

“I’m going to see Vertigo with Nurse Radius.” Dazzle explained. “Is there anything that you want to say to Vertigo?”

“Uhm… Hic… I don’t know.” Napoleon sniffled.

Dazzle shook her head. “Napoleon, now isn’t the time to be unsure. You won’t be seeing her for a while.” She had learned to calm down patients because if she told them really how it was, it would hinder their recovery. On the other side, the reverse was also true. The Placebo effect at its finest. Plus, she couldn’t just tell him right now that there was a chance that Vertigo may not make it.

“Tell her she is the most amazing Pegasus I’ve ever met.” Napoleon said. “Tell her I’m sorry for not being there when she needed me.”

Dazzle nodded. Dazzle turned to Nurse Radius who was dressing in a hazmat suit. She trotted towards her.

“Dazzle?” Napoleon stuttered.

“Yes?” Dazzle stopped dead in her tracks and turned towards him.

“Tell Vertigo I love her.” Napoleon said.

Ms. Paprika’s eyes widened.

“You should show how you feel more often. It looks good on you!” Dazzle waved to both of them before ducking under the yellow tape.

Nurse Radius instructed Dazzle once she got close. “Mr. Filter here will help you into a hazmat suit. Even though you are immune, it’s still a good idea to protect yourself and others.”

Dazzle nodded as she was helped into a tiny hazmat suit. It was certainly made for an older pony, but luckily it wasn’t overly baggy. They zipped it shut and put the plastic seal over the zipper.

“C’mon. We don’t have much time.” Nurse Radius’s voice echoed in her suit. “The Shield Ambulances will be here shortly. We will need to work to contain this fast.”

Dazzle wrote down the name of the pony on the clipboard she visited last before writing down Vertigo’s name. She already knew who was up next, and wanted to surprise her. She slipped through the entrance of the enclosure slowly, sneaking up to Vertigo.

Vertigo’s ears drooped. She stared at the ground, zoning off.

Now was the prime opportunity to surprise her. Dazzle approached the edge of the table slowly. “Vertigo?”

Vertigo yipped and fell off the table. “Dazzle?!”

“Easy there. You don’t want to shatter any of that glass.” Dazzle said, running to catch her.

Vertigo quickly regained her balance, twirled around, and gave Dazzle a big hug. “How did you…?”

“Get past quarantine?” Dazzle asked, trying her best to embrace her with plasticky hooves. “I have friends on the inside. That… plus I’m an earth pony. We have perks too.”

Vertigo chuckled. She pointed to her wings. “Well, I guess I’m going to have to play earth pony for a little while too.”

Dazzle chuckled. As she examined the carefully wrapped wings, she noticed something colorful on Vertigo’s tan flank. “Vertigo! You got your cutie mark!”

“I know.” Vertigo’s ears drooped. “It’s kinda cruel.”

“Why?!” Dazzle said.

Vertigo posed to sport her cutie mark― a heart with a dizzy face on it. The face had swirly eyes and a goofy smile. “I got it while doing a free-fall with Bling. But when I got it, I felt a burning in my wings. Suddenly, I only could fly upside down! It was like my movements got reversed! Instead of flying up, I hurtled towards the ground, everything was switched!”

“Shielded Ambulance coming in T-minus- twenty minutes.” A stallion over the intercom said.

Vertigo shook her head. “Chances are that I’ll be going through treatment for a long time.” She said. “I already know what they are going to do to me.”

Dazzle knew it from the labs. First, they needed to soak her wings in a pH bath, then, allow the feathers to grow back. It will be an extremely painful process for her.

But, knowing Vertigo, and her cheerful demeanor, Dazzle was ninety-nine percent sure that she was going to survive. She will be able to fly again. Just a trial she had to go through.

“You know what the worst part is?” Vertigo sighed “Once I got my cutie mark, I also saw a bunch of other foal’s unicorn horns fizzling. I think earning my cutie mark had something to do with it!” She sighed. “Above all, I feel bad for Bling. Somehow, he didn’t catch it, but I think he feels bad for causing the chain reaction. It’s not his fault. He only helped me get my cutie mark.”

Dazzle nodded. Perhaps she should tell Yttrium when he got here.

Another pony with a yellow hazmat suit entered the room. “We’ll be leaving in fifteen minutes, Ms. Heart. I will need you to get back on the table and lay down. The Frost team will be here shortly.” He slipped back out.

Vertigo hopped onto the table.

“Frost team?” Dazzle asked.

“They are going to put me in a cold chamber. Supposedly, the disease slows down in the cold. It also alleviates some of the burning.” Vertigo said. She smiled. “It’s supposed to be as cold as dry ice. Though I’m not worried about it. Pegasai are used to extreme conditions.”

Dazzle shook her head. “How come you are still so happy, Vertigo?” She swished her tail. “You’re in pain, aren’t you?”

“Thank Napoleon.” Vertigo hopped up and laid down on the table. “Napoleon taught me to be strong. I can see why you chose him as a friend.”

Dazzle smiled. “You are also a good friend. He wanted to tell you that you’ve helped him also. He wanted to say sorry for not being there.”

Another pony, this time in a blue hazmat suit, stepped in. The suit was fitted with all sorts of protective gear as if it were designed for artic research. He trotted over to the table and started to undo the strap pinning her wings. He was followed by a mare coming in with a similar suit.

“Tell him it’s okay.” Vertigo said, wincing every often as the glass covering was undone. “I’ll show him my cutie mark once I’m out of treatment.”

“You! Filly in the Hazmat! We will need to leave the room. We’ll be releasing Ms. Heart’s wings.” The third pony in a blue suit instructed.

“Understood.” Dazzle said. “One last thing though.”

She turned to Vertigo. She tried to deadpan, but she could feel the corners of her mouth lift because she was couldn’t keep the mischievous smirk off her face. “Napoleon wanted to say one last thing.”

“Oh?” Vertigo cupped her lips.

“Napoleon says he loves you.”

Silence penetrated the room. Dazzle took that as her que to step out. She waited until she was on the other side of the curtains to burst out in laughter.

“Dazzle! How dare you!” Vertigo shouted jokingly behind her.

The hazmat suits grunted. “Okay, the volunteer’s gone. Remove the glass.” One of them instructed.

By the time Dazzle came out of the quarantine and got sprayed with white powder, Napoleon came up to her. “How’s she doing?” He asked.

He still had watery red eyes matched with croaky voice, but altogether, he was back to composed.

“Great.” Dazzle answered. She figured she’d get down to business. She still needed to take care of one more friend. “Do you know where Bling is?”

“He wasn’t in the tents?” Napoleon asked, pointing towards the quarantine.

“Nope. He was cleared by the guard and was allowed to walk out.” Dazzle explained.

“Huh. Weird.” Napoleon raised an eyebrow. “You saw him, but why didn’t you approach him?”

“I did. We talked briefly.” Dazzle said. “And by brief, I mean he ran away a soon as soon as I said the first word. When talking to Vertigo, she mentioned he felt guilty for causing it.”

“That doesn’t sound good.” Napoleon said. “But, what did he cause? Why does he feel guilty?”

“Sorry. I wasn’t clear.” Dazzle said. “He feels bad for causing Corrosion.”

“That’s just ridiculous!” Napoleon “It was nopony’s fault.”

“I agree.” Dazzle said. “Though I think he feels bad for being unaffected. He was in the center of it, pulling off a dive with Vertigo, when everything went to chaos. Whilst everypony was catching the fizzle, he stood unaffected. That’s why he probably feels bad.”

“Survivor’s guilt.” Napoleon said. “We’d better get a move-on and find him.”

“Okay, but first, we need to ask permission.” Dazzle suggested. “Let Ms. Paprika know where we are going.

“Mrs. Paprika,” Napoleon approached her teacher. “I need to go and find my friend. Dazzle will be joining me. Is it okay if we go?”

Mrs. Paprika nodded. “Just come to the commons when you are done. That is our rendezvous point during fire drills.”

“Okay.” Napoleon nodded. “We got the green, Dazzle! Let’s go!”

Chapter 29: Bling's Guilt

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“Do you think he hid in the colt’s bathroom?” Dazzle asked.

“Already checked there.” Napoleon answered, shutting the classroom door behind him. He looked at the clock. “It’s been half-an-hour. Maybe he joined his teacher.”

“I doubt it.” Dazzle said. “He seemed pretty upset when I talked to him.”

“It seems very unlike him.” Napoleon said. “I haven’t seen him this upset. Most of the time, he rolls his eyes when I pop a cheesy joke about Chemistry.”

“I like your one about the Hydrogens talking the Oxygen.” Dazzle snickered.

“Thank you.” He smiled for a second, then stared grimly down the hallway. “Still though, it’s very unlike him to be this upset. Not to mention he’s blaming himself for something he didn’t do. That worries me.”

“Yeah. I agree.” Dazzle rubbed her hooves on the carpet nervously. “I wasn’t completely honest with you back there. I have a confession to make.”

“Oh?” Napoleon stopped in his tracks.

Dazzle took a deep breath, and calmly stated, “Vertigo got her cutie mark.”

“WHAT?!” Napoleon shouted.

“You’ve heard me correct.” Dazzle said.

“Sweet Celestia! Now all of us have our cutie marks!” Napoleon glanced at his flank. “What was it a picture of?”

Dazzle’s mouth popped open for a second to tell him, but she stopped herself. “Not telling. I will leave it as a surprise.”

“C’mon Dazzle! You can’t leave me hanging like that!” Napoleon placed his hooves on her shoulders and shook her.

“Still no.” Dazzle stuck her nose up. “You will have to wait.”

“Aw man. But what if she never makes it out the hospital?” Napoleon said.

Dazzle flinched. “That’s a dark thought I’d prefer not to think about.” She bowed her head and sighed. “The only reason why I brought it up is because it may have something to do with why he’s upset.”

“How so? It’s good news…” Napoleon raised an eyebrow. “I would’ve thought it to be an honor to be there the moment she got her cutie mark.”

“I’m with you there,” Dazzle said. “However, that might be a factor weighing in on his mind. According to Vertigo, after she got her cutie mark, her wings started to burn. After that, many other’ foal’s horns and wings started to fizzle.” Dazzle said. “Bling probably blames himself because he thinks he started some sort of chain reaction by helping Vertigo get her cutie mark or something.”

“Huh. That’s weird. Why would a cutie mark set off everypony within a three-meter radius?” Napoleon scratched his chin. “Not to mention that he didn’t catch it when he was in the epicenter.”

“Which is probably the reason why he is upset.” Dazzle reasoned. “He is the only one who should’ve caught it, but didn’t.” She made note of her thought process. Perhaps the information might be of some use to Yttrium.

“I feel bad that I wasn’t there. Vertigo and Bling must’ve pulled an awesome dive.” His tail flicked.

“I feel the same. Maybe we’ll have the chance when she gets out of the hospital.” Dazzle’s lips twisted. “Come to think of it, I might be able to visit Vertigo in the lab section of the hospital.”

“Really? You could? Can you bring me along?” Napoleon hopped up and down in the same way that Coco hopped when she was around Yttrium. He stopped suddenly. “Wait a sec… maybe it wasn’t the best idea to pour out my feelings about her?”

Dazzle smirked. “You’re cute, Napoleon. I like you better when you’re not uptight.”

“Uptight?!” Napoleon nudged Dazzle. “You take that back!”

“Nope.” Dazzle stuck her tongue out at Napoleon.

He stuck his tongue out in response. He sighed. “What did Vertigo say about―?” His cheeks burned a shade of pink on that white coat. “Heh… my message?”

“They took her away before I could get an answer.” Dazzle answered. She decided to omit the fact that she left it very last to mess with her and Napoleon. “If you want an answer, you need to come with me this weekend to go visit her.”

“They would allow that?” Napoleon looked up at his horn.

“I can twist a couple legs.” Dazzle smirked. “I have to check though. No promises.”

“Thank you Dazzle! You’re the greatest!” Napoleon nearly tackled Dazzle.

Dazzle barely dodged the initial tackle and hugged him. “Woah! You’re welcome, Napoleon.”

Dazzle re-focused on the empty hallways. She’d been distracted for way too long. “Now, where do you think Bling would be hiding?”

“I don’t know…” Napoleon answered. “…though he can’t hide for long. Administration sent out messengers for our parents. If we don’t find him, then either administration or Marigold will.”

Dazzle shook her head. “I want to find him first. Our friend needs our help.”

“Well, we are running out of places to search.” Napoleon pointed down the hallway.

He was right. Just one more hallway before they return to the commons. Not to mention how empty the hallways were. Not literally empty, but meaning lacking classrooms. It was probably because the other wall had the courtyard on the other side.

As they passed through the hall, Dazzle spotted a name above a door ‘Ms. Lagoon’

“I didn’t know that the gym teacher had an office.” Dazzle observed.

“I didn’t either.” Napoleon said. His horn shimmered to life. Slowly, he twisted the handle with his magic. “Ugh. It’s locked.”

“Aren’t you supposed to be careful with your horn?” Dazzle asked.

“I can always blame Mrs. Paprika.” Napoleon reasoned as he turned away from the door. “Besides, we are far enough away from the epicenter.” He rocked his head back and forth. “That― and it’s an emergency.”

Behind them, the heard the deadbolt of the door slide across. The door slowly creaked open.

“Yes?” A voice asked. Even through the rawness and coarseness of the voice, Dazzle recognized that voice anywhere.

“Bling!” Dazzle swerved around and ran towards the door.

“Leave me al―”

Before Bling could slam the door, Napoleon conjured a pane of magic to block it from closing.

“Oh no you don’t, you little rascal!” Napoleon wedged the door open with the pane. Once it was open enough for Dazzle to get through, Napoleon commanded “Sick em’!”

Dazzle leapt inside and nearly tackled Bling. Dang. He narrowly dodged her. Locking onto her target, she charged for him as soon as he bolted.

Apparently, Bling was too busy paying attention to Dazzle that he didn’t notice Napoleon flanking him. Napoleon tackled him. To finish it off, Dazzle joined the pileup.

“Augh!” Bling cried. “Get off me!”

“Think of this as payback for the many times you’ve done this to me!” Napoleon joked.

Dazzle scuttled to her feet. She figured it was a playful gesture, but Bling obviously had enough.

Napoleon stood up and brushed himself off.

As Dazzle looked around, she noticed the messy office with various textbooks and workout equipment spread on the shelves and sprawled across the floor. Some of them had been partially assembled, or taken apart― which ever it was. Springs, cords, some round thingies that Dazzle couldn’t begin to name were scattered all over the floor… not to mention how many papers littered the desk.

“What are you doing in here?” Dazzle asked.

“After I made my move to tattle on Candy and Underdog, Ms. Lagoon understood that they might want revenge.” He wiped a hoof across his wet face. “So, during some lunches, she offered me a place to stay until things cooled down.”

It made sense. Dazzle often wondered about all those times that Bling had been missing from their table during lunch. He wasn’t gypping out! Mrs. Lagoon was trying to prevent fights at school.

“Your mom is probably looking for you.” Napoleon started. “Last I checked, they sent out messengers to collect our parents.”

Dazzle completely forgot about that fact. Previously, the school used aid of letter teleport spells to communicate with parents. Corrosion made that mode of communication no longer safe. For now, it had to be done by hoof.

“I don’t want to go back out there. They’ll kill me for what I’ve done.” Bling said.

“Bling, what are you talking about?” Dazzle said. “It’s not your fault.”

“You don’t know anything!” Bling said, swiping a hoof at the dilapidated equipment, sending it clattering across the floor.

Dazzle flinched.

He covered his face in his forelegs and sobbed.

She hadn’t seen his violent side… ever. All she had seen was Underdog’s and Candy’s, but that was about it. It didn’t seem his nature to lash out anymore. Came to think of it… did she and her friends pacify him?

“Vertigo told me it’s not your fault.” Dazzle managed.

Bling stopped hiccupping for a moment. “Wait… how did you talk with her?”

“It’s a long story. Let’s just leave it at ‘I’m an earth pony― Corrosion has no effect on me’.” Dazzle smirked. That last sentence kinda felt like a brag. A good brag.

“Right.” Bling stared at his hooves. “You know about her― HIC! ―mark then?”

“Yep.” Dazzle said. “I also know you blame yourself. Vertigo wanted to tell you that it is all okay.”

“No. It’s a lot more than that.”

“A lot more?” Napoleon said. “How so?”

“I had nightmares about this.” Bling said.

“Nightmares? About Vertigo having Corrosion?” Dazzle found that strange. Maybe the moon princess was due to visit another foal.

“I had nightmares that I went back to being a bully and started picking on you again.” Bling said. “I don’t want to hurt you guys anymore, but after what happened today, I’m no longer safe to hang around.”

Dazzle wanted to disagree, but she related to how he felt all too well. Every once in a while, that intrusive thought would come and she had to convince herself with every argument possible in her brain that would never hurt her friends again.

But… how could she know for sure? How could she tell Bling the same? It was ingrained in their natures― they were willing to twist a couple hooves and throw a couple insults to get their way. She had no answer other than that reassurance that she was above her past self.

“Bling, I’m going to be blunt with you.” Napoleon started. “You said you hurt Vertigo, right?”

Dazzle noticed the look in Bling’s eyes. Fear. “Y-Yes.” He stuttered.

“Did you do it on purpose?” Napoleon asked.

“No.” Bling said. “But Vertigo is in the hospital bec―”

“You take that back! You need to stop doing this to yourself!” Napoleon shouted.

“But you’re angry!” Bling said.

Napoleon groaned. “Angry, no. Frustrated, yes.”

Dazzle figured Napoleon’s comment didn’t help. “Bling, you might mistake our tone as angry, but I promise you, neither of us is angry. We are just worried about you.” She added for good measure.

“Okay, so you are cool.” Bling said. “But what about the others? They probably want payback for what happened to their friends.”

Dazzle paused, taking time to form her words carefully. She was about to bring up a touchy subject to prove her point.

“Trust me, they won’t” Dazzle she began. “Remember the time Underdog and Candy beat me up?”

“Yes?” Bling wiped a hoof over his snotty snout.

“Did any of the other foals join in and fight back?” Dazzle asked.

“No… not really.”

“The amount of bystanders at that incident tells us a lot about how they react to out-of-the ordinary situations.” Dazzle elaborated. “Most of them just stood by the sidelines rather than intervening… The only one to do something about it was you and Napoleon ― and those are the only two ponies that you have to worry about.” Dazzle looked over to Napoleon. “I’m pretty sure he doesn’t hold you at fault for the incident. That’s one down. The other pony that you need to take care of is you. You need to forgive yourself.”

“Usually an argument is stronger when another pony agrees.” Napoleon said. “I think I read that in a book a while back― Either way, what I’m trying to say is that Dazzle is right. Nopony will go out of their way to make your life miserable. Besides… I think they were too busy gawking at quarantine that they probably didn’t notice you.”

“You think so?” He sniffled.

“I know so. Dazzle doesn’t lie.” Napoleon patted him on the back. “Dazzle is right about the fact that I don’t blame you for what happened to Vertigo. Past me would’ve found some reason to point a hoof. But we aren’t enemies anymore. We are friends.” He offered his hoof again.

“Why… why are you being so nice to me?” Bling asked Napoleon “I’ve been nothing but cruel to you.”

“Except for the past month.” Napoleon pointed to Dazzle. “Thank her. She taught me to look past the outer shell and see the pony inside. Yes, I was hurt that you picked on me for a long time, but I never realized that my worst enemy could become my best friend.”

Bling stayed silent. He sniffled again and wiped a hoof across his snotty nose.

“Let’s get back to everypony else,” Napoleon suggested. “And if anypony picks on you, I’ll beat them up!” Napoleon pounded his hooves together.

Bling chuckled. “Fat chance. You don’t come off as the fighting type to me.”

“I’m not. But things aren’t going well as of late. Everything is asking for a fight.” Napoleon said. “Science fair didn’t pan out, so I might as well try something new.”

Bling accepted. “Darn Corrosion keeps messing up your chances?”

“Eeyup.” Napoleon said. “But that isn’t what matters now. I’m more worried about both my friends. You and Vertigo.”

Napoleon’s horn blazed to life. Green aura enveloped the doorknob and pulled the door open.

“C’mon.” Napoleon motioned out. “Our parents are probably worried sick about us.”

As soon as Dazzle turned the corner leading into the commons, she was greeted by a sea of students, teachers, staff, and quarantine. She stepped closer towards the front doors that led to the outside. Only one problem: quarantine was standing in between the crowds and the doors. By the conversations she was hearing, this was not going to be pretty.

“Let us out! We don’t have Corrosion!” She overheard from one of the students. Another similar phrase was passed around also: “We’re not sick!”

Stoically, the hazmat’s didn’t seem to move an inch. Even when students were barking in their faces.

Dazzle spotted Mrs. Paprika. Thank goodness her teacher was tall.

“Thank goodness you’re here!” Mrs. Paprika shouted. “I was getting a little worried.”

“Took us a little bit, but we are here now.” Dazzle said.

“Good too! I have all my students accounted for.” She raised a hoof and motioned over to a pony in a hazmat suit to come over.

“How’s it going Dazzle?”

Dazzle spun around. Standing in front of her was a student she’d helped a little while back with homework: a pegasai filly with a triangle flag cutie mark, lavender coat and red tail.

“Fine.” Dazzle answered. “How are you, Fair Wind?”

“Good!” she tilted her head “Where were you?”

“I was helping a friend out.” Dazzle answered. She looked around and noticed something off. “Where’s Bulk and Jade?”

“You! Earth pony! Come here!” She heard behind her.

Dazzle spun around.

She recognized the huff of the voice before, one of the mares in a hazmat that prepped Vertigo for transfer to the hospital. The hazmat pulled out a walkie-talkie and said “Filt, we got another earth.”

“Dazzle, follow Teflon Coating out.” Mrs. Paprika instructed.

Dazzle followed the mare just like her teacher instructed. Bling and Napoleon were about to follow her, before Mrs. Paprika held out a hoof. “Unfortunately, you can’t go just yet.”

Dazzle spun around. “Mrs. Paprika, what are you doing?”

“Dazzle!” Teflon Coating shouted.

“Excuse them, Teflon. They weren’t here when the announcement was made.” Mrs. Paprika said before she swiveled towards Bling and Napoleon. “Sorry you two, you can’t go with Dazzle. Only earth ponies are allowed out.”

Dazzle scanned the crowds. So that was the hair out of place... the odd feeling she was getting. No earth pony in sight except a couple teachers, like Mrs. Lagoon. She trotted back to Mrs. Paprika. “Why not?”

“It was announced that all earth ponies are free to go since they neither contract it nor carry it.” Mrs. Paprika said.

Wait… that phrase sounded familiar.

“So, all Pegasai and Unicorns must stay in the school until further instruction.” Mrs. Paprika continued.

“What about Bling? He was let out from containment.” Dazzle asked.

Mrs. Paprika shook her head “Unfor―”

“Wait… you mean to tell me that this was the foal that was let out?” Teflon interrupted.

Dazzle bit her lip and gave Bling a nervous look. She didn’t mean to incriminate him. He shared the same expression.

Teflon brought out the walkie talkie again. “Filt, we may have your wild card.”

Another hazmat waded through the crowd up to them.

“Is it this one?” Teflon asked.

“Yep.” Mr. Filter said. “I can escort both of you out.”

“Wait! What about Napoleon?” Dazzle asked, gesturing to her friend.

“Dazzle, we can’t take all of you out.” Teflon said. “We can get away with you and uhm… Bling? Right?”

Bling nodded.

“For you, you are an earth pony… and for Bling, he is cleared because he somehow survived the major outbreak with no sign of Corrosion.” Teflon said. “However, if we take your friend, Napoleon out of the school, then the crowds will have reason to riot. Not to mention it is disobeying protocol.”

“Then I will stay with them.” Dazzle said. “I’m not leaving my friend behind.”

“I know you feel that way, but you need to go with your family outside.” Teflon said. “We already checked for Corrosion on Bling and we don’t want you to get mixed up in the crowd. It just means that checking the rest of the crowd will take more time.”

“Can’t you just check Napoleon and be done with it?” Dazzle said. “I’m pretty sure he doesn’t have Corrosion.”

“Our equipment was taken with the Shield Ambulances.” Teflon explained. “We are waiting until Doctor Fuse gets here with equipment and instructions.”

“I’m stay―!”

“Dazzle, go on. Coco is probably worried about you.” Napoleon said.

“I understand Dazzle when saying we’re not leaving you behind.” Bling stepped toward Napoleon. “What are we going to say to your parents when you don’t come out?”

“Like Dazzle said! I’m pretty sure I don’t have Corrosion!” Napoleon said. “You can tell them that I’m safe and healthy!”

Before Dazzle or Bling could say a word, Napoleon continued, “Let’s just call this even, Dazzle. You took a beating from Underdog in my place. It’s about time I return the favor in some way.”

“But what if you are wrong? What if you have Corrosion?” Bling asked.

Napoleon smirked. “Then I will be able to see Vertigo sooner. Her and her cutie mark.”

Bling looked at Napoleon with an uncertain and unnerved look in his eye.

“Wait? What?!” Fair Wind’s jaw dropped.

“Long story. I’ll tell you later.” Napoleon glanced at her, then back to Dazzle. “Go! Coco and Marigold are probably worried sick and cannot wait any longer.”

Bling sighed. “You sure?”

“Positive.” Napoleon said.

“If you say so.” Bling nodded. He put a hoof over Dazzle’s back. “C’mon Dazzle, let’s go.”

Dazzle sighed. Her heart as heavy as the lead that coated the lab walls. Never before had she felt so bothered by abandoning her friend. She had done it before… Silver Spoon. Now, she was doing it again… running away from problems like she’d done before. In the deepest part of her heart, she hoped Napoleon would be alright.

As soon as she passed through the doors, she spotted Coco. Coco’s face changed from grief to joy once she spotted Dazzle. Dazzle ran towards Coco.

“Oh, thank Celestia!” Coco hugged Dazzle.

“Mom, I’m an earth pony, remember?” Dazzle said.

“Earth pony or not, I’m just glad to hear you are safe.” She squeezed tighter. “Why were you so late?”

Dazzle glimpsed at Bling, who was in an equally tight embrace with his mother. “Bling needed a little help.”

“Where’s Napoleon?” Dazzle heard Florin ask.

“He’s still inside.” Dazzle said. “And Before you say anything, he wanted to tell you he is safe and healthy.”

“It’s quite a relief to see Bling-Bling’s back.” Marigold approached them with Bling sticking to her side. “So, are they letting pegasai out now?”

“Not quite.” Dazzle said. “We still waiting on Yttrium to come with supplies. They’ll be letting out everypony soon.”

“So, how come both of you were so late?” Marigold asked, glancing over at Bling.

“It’s a long story.” Bling answered.

“Do tell.” Florin said. “We are waiting, after all.”

“…Really? Napoleon said that? That doesn’t sound like him.” Florin said. “He loathes the Corrosion with a fiery passion. He goes on and on about how it messes up his plans to go to Celestia’s school. Are you sure he wasn’t forced to say that? Why would he be okay staying behind?”

For Dazzle, it made sense that he stayed behind. Either way, he would see his friends. She’d conveniently left out the parts where he revealed his crush on Vertigo, which would explain the confusion.

“It’s been a long day for all of us.” Bling said.

“The part about Vertigo makes sense.” Marigold said. “I haven’t seen the Hearts anywhere lately. I was beginning to wonder if something happened to them as well. They are probably at the hospital.”

“They are at the hospital.”

Dazzle nearly jumped out of her skin.

“Yttrium!” Coco said. Dazzle noticed that she had a notable spring in her step.

“Please tell us you bring good news from the hospital?” Montresor asked.

“Very good news! We are checking everypony for any straggling Corrosion.” Yttrium said. “Everypony will be out soon enough!”

“Splendid.” Montresor said. “Florin and I are getting a little antsy since Napoleon hasn’t shown his face yet.”

“He’ll probably be out in a jiffy.” Yttrium said. “Apologies if this is brief, but I mustn’t forget what I came out here for.” He pointed to Dazzle. “Mind if I steal Dazzle for a little bit?”

“Not at all! Go ahead!” Coco said.

“Thank you.” Yttrium bowed again before motioning for Dazzle to follow him.

Dazzle had an easier time wading through the crowds as Yttrium seemed to make a path for her. “Excuse me, Pardon me.” He would occasionally say as he pushed through.

As soon as they reached the doors, Yttrium said. “I wanted to thank you personally for helping Nurse Radius with the head count.” He held open the door―with his hoof, and not his aura.

“No problem. I should thank you for fast-tracking my request for volunteering.” Dazzle figured his favor was much more than hers. She knew how much of a nightmare paperwork was.

He fished in his saddlebags and pulled out a flashlight.

“What’s with the flashlight?” Dazzle said, noticing him levitating it in his green magic.

“It’s hard to explain on the spur of things.” Yttrium waved off. “Let’s just leave it at ‘I discovered something that could potentially be the key to the cure’.”

Yttrium approached the doors where a hazmat was guarding. He pulled out his ID card and presented it.

The pony in the hazmat stepped aside.

Right as Dazzle was about to follow him in, the yellow hazmat stepped in front of her.

“She’s with me. Let Dazzle in.” Yttrium explained.

“You know protocol.” The hazmat grunted.

Yttrium groaned. “Thank goodness Nurse Radius slipped this in my pack.” He presented another ID card. The hazmat stepped aside.

As Dazzle stepped inside, a nearby hazmat came up to them offering a hazmat suit for Yttrium. He complied as he slipped it on. Another pony came around, this time holding a lab coat.

“Don’t I need to get into a hazmat?” Dazzle looked over to Yttrium.

“Nope.” Yttrium said. “Trust me. I know for sure that earth ponies are immune. That, and it’s not going to spread now… It needs a little push of magic to do so.” He winked. “More on that later.”

Dazzle slipped on a lab coat. Again, just like the hazmat suit from earlier in the day, it was a pinch too big, but was the smallest they could muster.

“I should’ve brought my tiara.” Dazzle said.

“Corrosion called our names in a moment we weren’t ready. It’s our job to bring the hammer down on it.” Yttrium said, zipping up his hazmat and finishing up sealing the suit. His voice echoed. “Since you weren’t here for the demonstration, just follow my lead.”

Dazzle nodded.

“You ready to cure some Corrosion?” He asked.

“Ready when you are!” Dazzle cheered.

Chapter 30: Corrosion Cleanup

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Dazzle followed Yttrium through the crowd. More than ever, she wanted to speak with Napoleon and see how he was holding up. However, Dr. Fuse decided to take a route that skirted the edges of the crowd and into one of the hallways.

To the front of the commons, she could see Principal Bellows standing atop a desk. He cleared his throat.

First, the chatter of the crowd died down and then he began to speak: “As a precaution, there is a mandatory screening for Corrosion.”

Several grumblings such as ‘First we get hit with Corrosion and now this?’ were heard throughout.

A guard stepped aside as Yttrium led the way into the hallway. As they stepped through, Nurse Radius joined to his side. “We have everything set up.” She reported.

“Thank you.” Yttrium said. “Also, thank you for packing the ID for Dazzle by the way, it saved my rump.” He said.

“No problem.” Nurse Radius glanced at Dazzle. “Are you going to give her the low-down of the new procedure?”

“Yep.” Yttrium glanced at Dazzle also. “Sorry we are throwing you into the deep end, Dazzle. We just need as many hooves as possible.”

“Don’t worry about it.” Dazzle answered. “As you said, when Corrosion calls, we must answer.”

“Careful, Yttrium, before you know it, she’ll find the cure before you!” Nurse Radius snickered. She ran up to a door of a nearby classroom and held it open. Yttrium filed inside. Nurse Radius stepped by the door’s window and sat on her haunches.

“What is she doing?” Dazzle asked.

“Standing guard.” Yttrium levitated his flashlight and flicked it on. “The Principal is giving out instructions to go to the classrooms to get checked for any straggling Corrosion. Students and Teachers will be here soon.”

“Okay.” Dazzle said.

Dazzle trotted up to a makeshift station in the middle of the classroom. It had a tub filled with water, a couple of duffle bags set up on some desks, and several jars of neutralizing powder beside them. “I recognize some of this equipment, but not all.”

“That is for extreme cases. Just in case.” Yttrium said. “I doubt we’ll need to use it, though.”

As he said that, the first round of students started to file in.

“Just follow my lead.” He smiled and winked. He motioned for the students to make a line. In response, the teacher following them stepped aside and helped the class form a single-file line.

“They’re all yours.” Nurse Radius shouted as she stepped away from the door and into the hall.

“Thank you, Nurse Radius.” Yttrium waved goodbye.

“So, I’ll give you a low-down of the procedure.” Yttrium said as he motioned the first pony to come forward. He turned to Dazzle “If a unicorn comes up to you, inspect their forehead and their neck. Like this.” Yttrium’s flashlight hovered over the pony. Yttrium’s aura glowed green around his horn. As she was told, the shielding spell to protect him from any fizzling from Corrosion.

Which reminded her. “There is a question that has been weighing on my mind for a bit.”

“Ask away.” Yttrium said as the flashlight swiveled around and he inspected the neck of the unicorn.

“The school had a regulation that the complicated spell on your horn was placed on all unicorns who attended school here. How come it got my classmates?”

“The spell is basic protection. It’s like taking ibuprofen.” Yttrium said. He turned to the desk near him, scribbled a signature on a piece of parchment. “Name please.”

“Sky Whistle” The foal said.

He scribbled a little further and then gave it to the earth pony. “There you are.” He craned his neck up towards the line “Next!”

The next pony was a pegasus. “Okay, for pegasai, it’s quite different.” Yttrium intructed. “You need to inspect the ridges of the wings.” He shone the flashlight over the ridges of the wings. The colt’s feathers flared up.

“Don’t be embarrassed.” Yttrium said to the colt. “It’s a knee-jerk reaction.” He turned toward Dazzle. “Some feathers will be ruffled as you do this. Don’t be surprised when it shows up.”

“How will I know if there’s any Corrosion?” Dazzle asked.

“Remember when I took you into that patient’s room with the corroded horn?” Yttrium said.

“Mrs. Avocado?” Dazzle recalled.

Yttrium’s eyes hardened. “Shush! Remember you’re not allowed to disclose patient information without permission?”

Seeing Yttrium’s cold glare made Dazzle shiver. She remembered that type of expression too well. Her mother and father made that face when she acted out of line.

Yttrium’s expression softened. “Sorry for scaring you. It’s just that you can get into loads of trouble if you give out any information regarding our patients without permission.” He cleared his throat. “Anyways, the point is you’ve seen it before. Even trace amounts are hard to miss.”

“Gotcha.” Dazzle nodded.

“There is a spare light in that bag over there.” Yttrium said. “Get to work.”

“Thank you.” Dazzle said. She trotted over to the bag, unzipped it, and pulled out a flashlight. Dazzle shrugged as sat down on her haunches.

“Everypony who’s still in line can make a line for Dazzle!” Yttrium announced to the crowd. “Foals only though.”

The teacher standing to the side of the room gave her students the okay to split away from the line and form a new line.

Dazzle took a deep breath as the first foal came up. Unicorn. Which reminded her, was Mrs. Paprika and her class going to be sent to this room? Didn’t seem like it though. She didn’t recognize anypony. They must’ve randomized it enough so Dazzle had little chance of running into a friend.

Doing as Yttrium demonstrated, she inspected the horn and the neck. No trace, at least she hoped.

“Does my signature count or do you need to do it?” Dazzle asked. She recalled he signed a form and gave it to the pony they inspected.

“Of course! Almost forgot! Thank you for reminding me!” Yttrium jumped. He levitated a pad of paper over to Dazzle. “Your signature is valid as well.”

Upon first look, Dazzle found a lot of fine print. She carefully read over it, just as her father taught her. It was important that you weren’t signing something you didn’t agree with. There were a lot of ‘ifs, ands, or buts’ about the world of waivers and agreements.

“Don’t worry about that, Dazzle. It’s just saying that they’ve been cleared but they can’t share the pass with their friends.” Yttrium explained.

He was right about that part. “Hold on, almost finished.” She held out a hoof. She sighed in relief. No sign of responsibility on her part other than being honest that she didn’t find any trace of Corrosion. She stuffed the pencil in her mouth and signed the form. “Name?” She asked.

“Comet Flash.” The colt answered.

She signed and gave it to him, then gestured for the next foal to come up. Unicorn filly. Dazzle spat out her pencil and picked up the flashlight.

As time passed, clamor picked up. The silence that persisted was eventually butted out with whispers. Somehow, whispers made their way to audible conversation. One thing that caught Dazzle’s attention were the conversations about her.

She didn’t hear her name, but she did hear things like ‘what is a filly doing helping a doctor?’ or ‘she’s an earth pony, what is she doing in the school?’

She wanted to answer those questions, but she kept busy with her work. There was no time to waste, the sooner she got done, the sooner everypony would be out.

The next foal came up. A Unicorn with a brown coat and dark grey mane. She immediately recognized him.

“Well, this is a little odd.” Dusty said. “First you participate in the science fair, then you are helping run checks on Corrosion.”

“Yep. This week has been a little weird.” Dazzle flicked on the flashlight and carefully examined his horn and neck. She nodded to herself and set the flashlight gently on the ground.

“My question is how’d you get to help the doctors and nurses in the first place.? Gotta be one Tartarus of an internship.” Dusty said.

“Volunteer, actually.” Yttrium said with a smile, not taking his eyes off the pegasus he was inspecting. He nodded, filled out a note, and then gave it to the pegasus. “There ya go.”

“How do you sign up?” Dusty asked.

“Actually, it is an order from Princess Twilight Sparkle.” Yttrium clarified. He looked to the front, where a Nurse was accompanying a foal.

“Geez.” Dusty said. “With all these… quirks, are you sure you aren’t a unicorn?”

“Positive.” Dazzle said.

Dazzle noticed a foal and a nurse skirting the edge of the room.

Yttrium abandoned his post, leaving the next pony waiting. It was close, since he was almost done with a class of third-graders.

Dazzle could help but gawk.

“So, Dazzle, this is an extreme case.” Yttrium pulled the cap off the neut-powder bottle and proceeded to coat the foal’s wings. Or, at least the ridges. By how he handled it, it obviously didn’t need to be precise. Other procedures in the hospital seemed to be frugal and precise, however, this dousing was quite liberal.

“When you spot Corrosion, just let me know and we’ll check how severe the case is.” Yttrium said. “You’ll know when you see it.”

“Okay.”

Dazzle turned back to Dusty. “Oh! Sorry!” She took out the pad and pencil and signed the form for Dusty.

“No worries, Dazzle.” Dusty said.

Yttrium returned to his spot and resumed his inspection of the next foal. “I think you have the low-down of everything. If there is a question you have, just ask.”

“I don’t mean to be impatient, but how much more?” Dazzle asked.

“How many have you done?” Yttrium asked.

“I don’t know… uhm… forty?” Dazzle estimated.

“There are six of us in the Corrosion Labs, including you. Plus another eighteen or so from quarantine.” Yttrium said. “Your school is probably a thousand foals, plus fifty staff members but due to the fair, I’d push that to a thousand two-hundred―”

“About fifty per staff? Sixty if we are being generous?” Dazzle said.

Yttrium laughed. “Yes. We are almost done.”

Dazzle should’ve never left Coco alone. While Dazzle was busy helping Yttrium, foals and parents were being released from the school.

The ponies of the elementary eventually have become accustomed to Coco’s presence. At first, Dazzle and Coco turned a few heads when they year began, but at time went on, the gawking died down. It must’ve been because of the visiting schools that many foals took the opportunity to meet their celebrity idol.

At least that’s what Dazzle heard from the chatter.

Thankfully, Montresor, Florin, and Marigold abated the crowd for her, keeping the worst of the storm at bay.

Dazzle squeezed through the crowd and approached Florin. Upon closer look, Napoleon had stuck to her side. The reason why Dazzle couldn’t see him at a distance is because the sheer amount of students swarming Coco and her group.

“Thank goodness you’ve come!” Napoleon said. “When I heard that Yttrium took you inside, I knew we would be stuck here for a while.”

“I’m just happy to see my friend made it out okay.” Dazzle said.

“How was it, by the way?” Florin asked, butting into their conversation.

“It was good.” Dazzle said. “I really wished I had my tiara, though.”

“I forgot about that!” Napoleon said. “Anyways, can you help us with keeping the crowd back? Coco is on the verge of having a panic attack.”

Dazzle looked back towards Coco. If she was about to have a panic attack, she looked oddly composed.

“Sure!” Dazzle said.

Florin turned towards Montresor and shouted “Honey, Dazzle is here, go ahead and get a taxi!”

“So, I have some news for you.” Napoleon said. “I don’t know if you care, but Principal Bellows announced that no participant of the science fair was affected whatsoever. So, the science fair will continue after the school has been thoroughly sterilized from Corrosion.”

“Is that so?” Dazzle nudged him. “That’s great news!”

“Hey Dazzle!”

Dazzle spun around. Behind her were two foals: Dusty Mantle and Pink Sprinkles. However, by the crazy and starstruck look in Pink’s eyes, accompanied with a chuckle from Dusty, Dazzle knew something was up. Her instincts were to brace herself. And she was right. Before she knew it, Pink charged to Dazzle.

“OHMYCELESTIAOHOMYCELESTIAOHMYCELESTIA”! Pink blabbered. “You mean to tell me I’ve met Dazzle Tiara? The Dazzle Tiara?”

“Oh boy, now you’ve got her started…” Dusty smiled.

Pink pulled a camera out of her saddlebags. She swiveled to Dazzle’s side, holding the camera in green aura and said “Give me hoof-sies!” She held out her hoof.

Dazzle sheepishly pounded it.

Bling chuckled. “Sorry to sick’em on you, Dazzle. It’s just after I mentioned Coco and you, Pink freaked out.”

“Pink here is my fashionista friend.” Dusty said. “If she’d had known you were related to Coco earlier, you wouldn’t have heard the end of it.”

Pink was grinning from ear to ear. “Oh, my sisters are going to be jeal-lous!”

“Indeed they are.” A mare approached Dazzle. She had the same pattern of coating as Pink, but had a different eye color- Pink’s was green. The mare’s was purple. She came up to Pink and patted her on the head. “Not to mention that they’ll be jealous to hear that we are having dinner with Coco’s group of friends.”

“Wait-what?” Dazzle asked.

“I guess you were still in the school when we were making plans.” Florin said. “Once Napoleon got out, he brought along Pink and Dusty. After a little chat, the conversation got on the topic of food.” Florin gave Napoleon an endearing look. “Somepony has worked up quite the appetite.”

Napoleon grinned, a little blush forming on his cheeks. “At first, we wanted to go to our normal hangout, Café 80s, but we’d figure because of the crowd, we’d best be doing it at my apartment.”

“Ohho! Speaking of which!” Florin pointed to Montresor, who was motioning for them to come over.

Everypony in their group filed away from the crowd, some ponies tailing them as they fled.

“Easy, Florin.” Montresor held out his hoof to help his wife up into the taxi.

Dazzle noticed another taxi parked behind them. Coco hopped into that one.

Once Coco noticed Dazzle approaching, she smiled. “Long time, no see!”

“Sorry about keeping you waiting.” Dazzle apologized.

“I’m joking around!” Coco waved her off. She offered a hoof. Dazzle held onto her mother’s hoof and stepped into the taxi.

“Who are we riding with?” Dazzle asked.

“Marigold, Bling, Ms. Sprinkles and her daughter.” Coco said. “Since we can fit six maximum to a taxi, it worked out perfectly.

Marigold and Bling hoisted themselves into the taxi, with Pink and her mother trailing behind.

“I assume Napoleon and his parents are going with the Mantle’s?” Dazzle asked, as she skootched to make room for Pink and Ms. Sprinkles.

“Yep!” Coco said.

“You are doing oddly fine for having a paparazzi swarming around you.” Dazzle noted.

Coco sighed― A weak, airy sigh. “I’ll tell you later.”

Dazzle sat quietly next to Napoleon and Bling. While the three of them sat in silence, Pink and Dusty excitedly traded conversations.

“Wow! We are staying for a week in Manehatten!” Pink said as she glanced at items around the room. “You have a nice place here, Napoleon!”

“Thanks.” Napoleon briefly glanced at Pink Sprinkles before returning to his book.

Dazzle had been to his place before- especially during the times they worked on their group project. Florin and Montresor’s apartment was bigger than Coco’s, and for good reason. Florin and Montresor had a colt to take care of… that was three ponies at the moment.

The apartment was standard, with the flair of Florin’s tasteful décor. A picture of the family hung on the wall. By what she could tell, it was in the countryside, away from the city. Napoleon only looked kindergarten age when the picture was taken.

Other nooks were topped with flowers, such as lilies, that gave off somewhat pungent smells, but not overpowering. The couches had been made of soft, white cotton. Matching it, the light colors of sky blue and daisy yellow furniture, such as coffee tables matched it. Again, Florin had good tastes.

“You worried about Vertigo?” Bling asked Dazzle.

“Yeah.” Dazzle said. “She’ll be fine though. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine now.” Bling said. “Thank you for talking to me in Mrs. Lagoon’s office.”

“No problem.”

“Cocoa’s ready!” Florin chirped. “Pun not intended.”

Florin and Coco came out with trays. Coco came in the direction of the foals. She set the tray down and placed a cup in front of Napoleon. Then, to Dazzle, Pink, Bling, and Dusty.

“Thank you, Ms. Pommel!” Pink cheered.

Coco almost dropped her own cup. She quickly caught it and smiled at Pink “You’re welcome, Pink.”

“Wow, this is really good!” Mr. Mantle said after he took a sip.

“Coco sure does make a mean cocoa!” Florin said. She set the tray on the counter and gingerly took a seat.

“Easy, honey.” Montresor scooted up to her as she sat down. He lent a hoof, but she brushed it away.

“Expecting?” Ms. Mantle asked.

“Shh.” Florin said with a smile. She pointed towards Dazzle and her friends. “Not too loud, I don’t want them to know.” She whispered.

“So, how’s it like in Baltimare?” Coco asked as she joined them.

“Great, we enjoy the…” Ms. Sprinkles said.

Dazzle didn’t really pay any attention to the conversation after that. Pink and Dusty kept her distracted.

Napoleon slapped his book shut, which made Dazzle yip.

“You wanna see my room?” Napoleon asked.

Pink and Dusty turned to him. “Sure!” They answered in unison.

Napoleon got up and led the way, Dusty and Pink following them. Bling and Dazzle both shrugged at each other and trotted towards the room.

Napoleon pounced onto his bed as soon as he opened the door. “Welcome to the life of an Egghead!”

“Oooh.” Pink dashed up to his desk, which was cluttered with drawings. Above the desk, hung a poster of the periodic table with sticky notes on it. Dazzle noted it was funny that he added a sticky note for the newer discovered elements, such as Flerovium and Oganneson. Egghead indeed.

She lifted up a paper in her magic. “What is this?” she asked. It was a crude inscription of a hexagon with 3 lines sticking out of the corners.

“That’s Tri-Nitro Toluene.” He explained. “Or, as we know it… TNT!”

Pink gasped. “Wow.” She pointed to his flank. “How did you get your cutie mark?”

“U-uhm…” Napoleon scratched his foreleg.

“He got it by an explosion.” Dazzle answered for him. She figured it no harm since Vertigo and Bling already knew the story. “Did you notice how the hardwood in the other room was newer than the one in kitchen?”

“That slightly bugged me.” Dusty grimaced. “What did you react?”

“Hydrogen,” Napoleon smiled nervously.

“How’d you get your hooves on that?” Dusty asked.

“I read a book about spells that alter atom’s electrical and magnetic properties.” Napoleon said. “Surprisingly, splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen isn’t such a complicated spell, cost less focus than I previously thought.”

“That’s so awesome! You blew something up and got your cutie mark!” Pink said. “I got mine when I was helping my mom bake for a competition!” She presented her flank, a picture of various sprinkles- all pink. Some stars, some circles, as well as other shapes.

“I got mine when I cleaned my dad’s javelin he has up above the fireplace.” Dusty presented his flank, showing a javelin resting on ornate wooden hooks. He pointed to Bling. “You! Quiet one! How did you get yours?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.” Bling smiled “I was trying on jewelry with my mom. When I found the perfect earrings for her, it appeared right then and there in the shop. The shopkeeper congratulated me and decided to let my mom have it for free.”

“That’s cool.” Dusty said. “What about you?” He pointed towards Dazzle.

“Uhm…” Dazzle said. “Fairly same as Bling’s, but I got it when I picked out a tiara.”

Dusty nodded. “Cool.”

Dazzle felt a burn in her chest. She lied. The whole story, even if it was mundane, was a big fat lie.

“Want to hear a chemistry fun fact?” Napoleon asked.

“I’m more of a physics guy myself, but sure, shoot.” Dusty said.

“Wood only conducts electricity when it is alive or is soaked in a solution with baking soda.” Napoleon said. “It also makes cool grooves in the wood.”

Suddenly, the door swung open. “Hey Dazzle, we need to head home.” Coco said. “Besides, Ms. Sprinkles wants to see a dress that I mentioned.”

Dazzle sighed. She masked it as a sigh of discontent, but it truly was one of relief. She always felt uncomfortable when somepony asked her how she got her cutie mark. Gah… why was she good at being dishonest?

“Am I coming too?” Pink asked.

“Your mother is coming, so I assume so…” Coco said.

“See ya, Dazzle!” Napoleon waved as Dazzle exited the room.

“See ya!” Dazzle called back.

The sun was going down. The last caramel colors of sunset glowed and shimmered on the nearby windows of the city skyscrapers. Even though they couldn’t directly see it, the reflection of day’s last hours bathed the room in golden light.

“I can’t believe I’m actually in Coco Pommel’s house!” Pink said. She sipped from the Styrofoam cup she held in her hooves. The cocoa inside was still steaming. Obviously, Pink Sprinkles kept it as a keepsake, taking in every little swig she had with delight.

“Apartment, actually.” Coco corrected.

Ms. Sprinkles had a brand-new dress draped over her lap. Coco had been fashioning it for ages… at least that what Dazzle saw. Whilst she was doing homework, Coco would be working feverishly on her projects. But, this particular dress was special. In the background, Coco often rethought her process, even going so far as going back to square one, removing every little stitch she slaved countless nights for.

“Nonsense! From what Princess Twilight learned, in order to make a place home, you just need to invite some friends!” the Ms. Sprinkles said. “I’m honored to be your guest.”

“It’s my pleasure.” Coco smiled. “Thank you for indulging me in my handiwork.”

Ms. Sprinkles brushed the dress gently. “I can see why you are known for what you do. My question is, how long did it take you with the concept?”

“Not very long.” Coco said. “I’m just glad somepony likes it.”

Ms. Sprinkles smiled.

Pink yawned.

“Sleepy?” Coco asked.

Pink nodded.

“I agree, it’s been a long day.” Coco’s smiled dropped to a slight look of concern. “None of your foals got caught in the incident, did they?”

“Oh no!” Ms. Sprinkles waved her off. “Pink here is our only elementary student. She just happened to get dragged along by her project partner. What was his name again?”

“Dusty.” Pink said, setting her cup down carefully on the coffee table.

“That’s right! Dusty!” Ms. Sprinkles tapped her temple. “Pink here is just here for the ride, to see the sights. It’s Dusty that is chasing after that CSGU scholarship.”

“Sisters’ going be jealous when they find out about this.” Pink smirked.

Ms. Sprinkles chuckled. “Oh yes, they will!”

Coco chuckled nervously. “I’m not that much of a fashionista, just doing my job.”

“Oh, quit being so modest!” Ms. Sprinkles waved Coco off. “Everypony knows who you are! You’ve talked with Ms. Rarity, even having the guts to stand up to Suri Polomare.”

“I wouldn’t say that.” Coco said a little louder than usual. She squeaked and covered her mouth. “Oops, sorry, that came off a little too terse.”

Ms. Sprinkles shook her head. “You’re fine, Coco.”

Coco took a look out the window. The city was growing darker as the lights on the streets came on as well as the light of nearby offices and apartments came onto scattered portions of buildings.

“At least this long winter is coming to an end…” Dazzle said. “It means I can stay up longer!”

“Oh no you don’t!” Coco said. “Even though it’s still light out, we need to go to bed by seven!”

“Agreed. Pink here needs to get some rest. We have a big week ahead of us.” Ms. Sprinkles patted her daughter on the back.

“Aww man, I wanted to hang out with Dazzle!” Pink whined.

“Maybe tomorrow.” Dazzle said.

“So, Coco, are there any blankets we can use?” Ms. Sprinkles said. “Pink and I can take the sofa.”

“Oh nonono. You take my bed.” Coco said. “And Dazzle says that Pink can take hers.”

“Oh, you are awful kind, Ms. Pommel. But, where will you sleep?”

“Dazzle and I will sleep on the couches here.” Coco said. Before their guest could protest, Coco added, “Don’t worry about us. We’ve done this plenty of nights when homework was hefty and the last of the lines needed to be done.”

As they headed off, Coco went to a nearby closet and pulled out two blankets.

Dazzle hopped up onto the smaller couch. Coco took one of the blankets, unfolded it, and then draped it over Dazzle.

“I hope you were fine with me volunteering your bed.” Coco said. “I’m just trying to be a little more assertive.”

“You’re fine.” Dazzle let Coco tuck the blankets underneath her. Dazzle curled up once she was comfortable.

Coco trotted over to the other couch and draped the other blanket- a quilt that matched the one Dazzle was wrapped in. It had patchwork shapes with various designs. Dazzle often wondered how Coco was so talented to put the quilt together, even as a filly. Even though Coco complained about the flaws of it, she still kept it for times like these.

“You okay? Comfy?” Coco asked from the other couch.

“Yes.” Dazzle yawned.

“Good…” Coco said.

After a couple minutes, Dazzle could hear Coco snoring softly.

Dazzle couldn’t sleep. Something about her friend worried her. The Aviary Strain was curable, but then again, there was still a chance that she could… die. Dazzle ran the statistics in her head, trying to find comfort in the low odds that Vertigo would pass away. Though, she still could shake the feeling.

She had enough wrestling with emotions. She hopped off the couch and tapped on Coco gently.

“Hmm?” Coco’s eyes opened slightly.

“Coco, I can’t sleep.” Dazzle said. “I’m awful worried for Vertigo.”

“She’ll be alright.” Coco closed her eyes. “Go back to sleep.”

“I had a nightmare.” Dazzle said.

Coco opened her eyes. “I think I know just the cure for that.” she said. She extended a hoof from under her blanket. The blanket drooping over her foreleg like a robe. “You want to sleep by me, Dazzle?”

Dazzle shifted from side to side. “Well… I don’t kn―”

Coco shook her head. She reached out and embraced Dazzle. She helped Dazzle right by her side and positioned herself to curl up next to her. “No need to hesitate. We’re mother and daughter now, aren’t we?” She skootched over to her. “My, you are cold. No wonder you weren’t able to sleep.”

“You don’t mind?” Dazzle asked. “I hate to be burdensome.”

“You’re never burdensome, sweetie.” Coco said in a yawn-like manner. “Now, get some sleep. We have a lot to do tomorrow.”

Before long, Coco was back to snoring soundly.

Dazzle couldn’t help but feel warm next to her mother. She’d never had this before- sleeping next to her parent. Each time she got near her biological dad and mom, they would tell her that they had a busy day tomorrow and that her stirring would keep them up.

Somehow, in this place, no matter how busy Coco was, she would always make time for Dazzle.

Dazzle closed her eyes, and listened to the rhythm of her mother’s heart.

…And at last, she had a good dream.

Chapter 31: Vertigo's Optimism

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“It's fascinating! The ailment seems to centralize around one center of gravity.” Yttrium studied at the diagrams on the wall, each a skeleton of a pony with a red circle outlining a cluster of a spots.

Dazzle had no idea anything past that. The board was full of numbers and letters, some that she couldn't begin to understand. She did, however, recognize the standard bell curve. Normal Distribution, as her father taught her.

Once she pointed at a variable and asked what it meant. He said something about a constant ‘plank’ and how the disease was subject to magnetism. She wanted to understand, so she put her best hoof forward and started with the reading. At least she understood how the testing was done.

“Bring me culture five-A” He pulled a notepad out of the nearby desk and plumped down in his chair.

He was good at pulling stuff out by hoof since he got used to the fact that he couldn’t use his horn for most of the day. He was practically an earth pony since he forgot to use his magic in everyday routine, from eating breakfast to writing notes. Even during his off time, you would catch him not using magic.

She trotted over to a plexiglass cabinet. She smiled. She loved the name ‘plexiglass’. It rolled off her tongue nicely. She removed a plexiglass box with tape over it saying ‘5A’

Another mare glanced the box as she passed by.

“How's it going, Thermometer?” Dazzle asked.

The mare pulled out a box “Fine, Dazzle. How are you?”

“Good.” Dazzle said, looking into the box. It was filled with a shimmery pink aura. She ‘concluded’ (as that was scientific language she learned from Yttrium) that sample had done good since the aura didn't die.

She carried it over to Yttrium and set it on the desk.

He flicked a switch, and a red strand of light ran through the glass and into the box.

He looked at a display, and nodded, then scribbled down some notes.

“How did this one do?” she asked.

“A step in the right direction.” He held up a hoof.

Dazzle slapped it in response.

“Six-seventy-one point zero-two nanometers, six hundred thirty intensity. Remarkable.” He announced.

“That close? What the hay did you use?” She heard across the room.

“Dazzle here chose it for me.” Yttruim nudged her. “I got the aura color combo from her coat and mane- pink and magenta… At first, I thought it would dissipate. But, surprisingly, there is this one hole in the correlation we have. We should probably try some related auras.”

“Three weeks and you and your volunteer already made more progress than the past six months!” He folded his forelegs over the table. “Congratulations.”

“We haven't found the cure yet, Vanadium.” Dazzle pointed out.

“No need to be modest, filly.” Vanadium retorted. “Thanks to your finding, I will find the cure before you.”

Dazzle frowned.

“H-hey! No need to get your test tubes in a jumble!” Thermometer stepped in the aisle between them.

Vanadium trotted over to the board, erased a section of the graph and drew two lines descending in a trench to the bottom. “So, we’ve found a hole right here.” He tapped on the board. “Maybe it has something to do with the fact that there is this third component to magic auras- let’s name it resistance.”

“Throwing the postulate out the window that ‘resistance’ is correlated with strength or elasticity of aura.” Thermometer added.

“What did you say was the aura of your friend Vertigo, Dazzle?” Yttrium asked.

“She’s a pegasus.” Dazzle pointed out.

“Dead end. Darnit.” Yttrium cursed to himself.

“Though I do recall that Rose Masquerade’s aura to be red.” Dazzle interjected. She jumped. “Speaking of which, I need to check on her and help Nurse Transfusion with the daily rounds.”

“Leaving so soon?” Yttrium asked.

“Yeah, I got to get some hours on the floor.” She disposed of her gloves and scrubbed her hooves in the sink.

“Thanks for helping!” Yttrium said.

“It’s always a pleasure working in the lab! See you tomorrow!” She stepped into the tunnel where the glass slid around her. Jets spurted white powder with a mix of water, causing Dazzle’s mane to frizz up a bit. She didn’t care though. She hadn’t fixed her hair in a long time. It was long enough that her mane almost stretched as long as Fluttershy’s.

Once she stepped out of the tunnel, she shook herself off like a dog. Luckily, the hallway had a nearby drain.

Dazzle almost forgot. She turned around and pounded on the glass. Luckily, her hoof was dry enough that it didn’t smudge the glass. “Hey Yttrium! I wanted to ask about Vertigo―do you think I can have a friend visit her?”

“Creed?” Yttrium asked. His voice was muffled behind the glass.

“Unicorn.” Dazzle answered.

“No then.” Yttrium frowned. “Bad idea. She still needs a good four weeks of treatment before any unicorn can visit. Even then they will need tier three precautions to even step in the room.”

“Understood.” Dazzle nodded. She pointed towards out the doors. “Going now! Seeya!”

“Have a good one!” Vanadium shouted from the other side of the lab, somewhere out of view.

Dazzle trotted towards the bulky doors.

As soon as she stepped outside the doors, she saw Doctor Globin writing down notes on a clipboard. Without looking away, he asked, “Anti-Corrosion bath?”

“Yep.” Dazzle answered.

He levitated a clipboard towards her, in which she caught it and held it steady in the crook of her foreleg.

She studied the schedule. After helping to do post-incident checkups, a lineup of several ponies, all of the names she didn’t recognize- and for good reason, Nurse Transfusion was doing the ponies specifically from her school so Dazzle could be honest about her recordings. Safety Protocol.

“Oh, Vertigo requested me again?” Dazzle asked as she read the nearby block.

“Yttrium has been busy as of late. She likes him taking care of her, but she twisted a couple hooves to request you come in.” Doctor Globin pointed to the next block. “Wild Card and Rose Masquerade are special requests also, and we’ve filled the rest with others that you need to see.”

“Sounds good.” She hoofed the clipboard back to him.

She proceeded out another group of doors, where the waiting area was at. Nurse Transfusion inspected a teacher’s horn. “Okay, you’re good.” she turned to the paper sitting atop a medicine cart next to her. She picked up the pen in her mouth, put a checkmark next to the name and put the pen back into a holster.

Dazzle took a seat. A line had been forming.

“Geez, you’re late.” Nurse Transfusion said as she inspected the ridges of a pegasus’s wings.

“Sorry, Nurse Transfusion,” Dazzle said.

“Dawdling with Yttrium again?” Nurse Transfusion asked.

“He’s made progress with finding the cure.” Dazzle said as she picked up a small flashlight-like object from the cart next to her.

“That’s good to hear,” Nurse Transfusion said. “Maybe you can spend more time in the cardiac department.”

Dazzle motioned for a unicorn to come up. She turned on the light. With the aid of a one-tenth of a joule spell, it allowed the light to illuminate any pockets of altered biology pockmarked by Corrosion. After doing a 360 around the horn, she asked. “Name?”

“Perforated Sheets,” the unicorn answered back.

Dazzle searched the list and found it. She picked up the pen and checked it off. “You are good to go, Mr. Sheets.”

Another Unicorn came up.

Rinse and Repeat.

Cirrus Strike. Pegasus. No sign of Corrosion. She marked his name off the list.

Regal Jewel. Unicorn. No sign of Corrosion. She wondered if she missed something a little while back.

“Dazzle?” A voice asked behind her.

Dazzle turned around.

“I’ll switch you. Get your rounds done.” Doctor Globin said.

“Already over?” Dazzle said.

“Well, I guess you can stay while I go do your requested visits.” Doctor Globin chuckled.

“Nono. I was just saying how time flies.” Dazzle stood up and headed for the rooms.

Dazzle had taken care of the first set of rounds. Saving the best for last, she trotted towards Wild Card’s room first. Afterward, she would return to the Heavy Precautions part of the hospital. That way, she could save time when going to Rose and Vertigo.

“Hey Dazzle,” Nurse Radius greeted.

“Morning.” Dazzle answered back.

Nurse Radius joined her side. “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but Mrs. Avocado passed away last night.”

Dazzle turned to her. “What?”

“Corrosion proved lethal. Yttrium also told me that the news would come better from me.” she said.

Hearing this news wasn’t helping. She’d just barely got over the fact that Vertigo contracted Corrosion. The fact that her first Corrosion patient put up a fight for over six months before dying showed the mortality of it all. Losing one friend was enough. She didn’t want to lose again.

She had to find that cure. Progress was made at a quicker pace, yes, but not quick enough.

“I’m sorry, Dazzle.” Nurse Radius patted her on the back before trotting off into a different hallway, back to the Heavy Precautions section of the hospital.

Dazzle proceeded on to Wild Card’s room. She tried her best to smile.

“Afternoon, Dazzle.” Wild Card said as she entered the room.

“Hi,” Dazzle said. “How are you doing?”

She trotted over to the monitor to check if everything was alright- his breathing, his heartrate, blood pressure. She looked at the bag hanging from the hook filled with blood. On it, it read: Blood type AB positive.

“Great! I wrote a little more about my character, Steel Veins!” Wild Card tapped on the paper on his desk. Although I can’t quite place how he gets pasts the bad guy’s trap.”

“What’s the trap?” Dazzle took his water jug and trotted over to the sink to fill it up.

“His super-weakness. Water.” Wild Card said. “He can’t swim.”

“Oh.” Dazzle scratched her chin. “You’ve stumped me.”

“Hmm. Just going to take a little while to figure out. I was thinking that he punches a stairway out of the pool of water, but I don’t know how he can hold his breath for that long.” He turned to Dazzle. “Are you okay? You seem a little sad.”

Dazzle froze. Guess that he saw right through her façade.

“Just having a hard time.” Dazzle said. She set the water jug on his desk.

Wild Card leaned closer. The equipment on wheels rolled forward and his IV and other lines were pulled taut as he skootched toward her.

Dazzle sighed. “My friend is sick and in the hospital.” She managed. She wanted to mention that one of her patients passed, but Wild Card was still so young. Death wasn’t something you mentioned to a little colt casually.

“Will she be okay?” Wild Card asked.

“I don’t know.” Dazzle said. “She’s very sick.”

“Hmm.” Wild Card pulled a hoof to his chin. “Sometimes all I can think about is how I’ll never get better. Been waiting for a heart for a bazillion years.”

“It must be hard on you.” Dazzle said.

“It is.” Wild Card said. “All I can do is keep waiting.”

“How do you keep waiting?” Dazzle asked. She backed off her tone on the last bit. She noticed her old pretentious self was surfacing.

“I don’t know. I just want to be happy, and so I am.” Wild Card said. “I know I didn't choose this. But I know that I can stay happy no matter what and that can't be taken away. Sometimes, it only makes sense to be happy. After all, happiness is the best medicine.”

Dazzle didn’t consider it. Happiness seemed to flee every moment she noticed it. She barely got her friends, but now, they were being torn apart because of some stupid disease.

“Dazzle?” Wild Card asked. “I often wonder, why do you wear that crown? Is it because you are a queen here?”

Dazzle chuckled. If only he knew. “Can you keep a secret? A Pinkie Promise Secret?”

“Yeah!” He nodded eagerly.

“You need to keep it a secret though… a Pinkie Promise Secret!” Dazzle said.

“Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!”

“Okay. Here’s my secret.” Dazzle figured it was safe by now. She sanitized her hooves at the nearby dispenser and then proceeded to lift the tiara off her head. A little dizziness overcame her, but for the most part, the wooziness was going away with each passing application.

Wild Card’s jaw dropped. “WOW! How did you do that?”

“Enchantment.” Dazzle said. She popped the tiara back on. To distract her from wooziness, she focused on her words. “You probably don’t see foals your age wandering the hospital. But, because I have an enchanted item that allows me to grow to an adult immediately, they allowed me to volunteer here.”

Wild Card shifted in his hospital bed. “I’m kinda embarrassed to ask, but can I try it on?”

“Sure!” Dazzle took it off and held it out to Wild Card. She really had to reach now since her filly hooves could only reach so far. “Although I’ve tried it before with another friend. The aging spell doesn’t seem to work on anypony but me.”

Wild Card took it and propped it on his head. Dazzle held her breath for a bit, but as expected, no effect.

“Aww… it didn’t work.” He took it off and hoofed it back to Dazzle.

Dazzle finally grasped it after reaching and put it back on. “Ah, that’s better.” Dazzle said once she popped back into her mare form.

“Wow!” Wild Card pulled out paper. “I gotta write in a character that helps Steel Veins! I call her Doctor Dazzle!”

“Uhn-Uh.” Dazzle shook her head. “Remember, you promised to keep this a secret?”

“Aww… I had an idea! One that could help the hero out of the trap!” Wild Card pouted.

Dazzle couldn’t resist those adorable, pouty eyes. “You know what? I’ll make you a promise.” Dazzle leaned closer. “I will do all I can to help you get better.”

Dazzle hesitated a little before going any further. For his condition- it would require a heart transplant. He lived his whole life in the hospital, under aid of magic to help him. To promise such a detail would be dangerous, but she felt bad for him. He needed the magic of friendship, and he wouldn’t be getting that here. For now, she wanted to be his friend. Maybe a little magic could help him.

“As soon as you are out of the hospital, I will allow you to share my secret.” Dazzle finished.

“Wow! Really?” Wild Card asked.

“I will have no use for this tiara after I find a cure for my friends and that also includes you.” Dazzle said. “I hereby promise that you will get better under my care, cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”

This was a gamble, but according to the statistics that she observed in the lab, he cure for Corrosion loomed on the horizon. It also was very unlikely that Wild Card would stay waiting for a donor for much longer. Soon enough, those chances would turn up.

However, that didn’t matter. She saw it in his eyes. The look of determination, of hope. Just the feeling of the moment itself made Dazzle have chills.

“I gotta go take care of other patients now.” Dazzle said as she stepped out. “I guess I’ll see you again soon!”

“Will do!” Wild Card pulled his tray closer to him and started to jot down the rest of the adventures of Steel Veins.

As soon as Dazzle entered Rose Masquerade’s room, she was greeted by a pleasant surprise. She took it as another sign that the cure was within reach.

“It’s finally nice to see you!” Rose greeted cheerfully.

“How’s it going, Rose?”

As Dazzle trotted across the room, she jumped as Rose’s line of vision followed her. Her eyes were no longer fixed in one position nor had the cloudiness from before.

“YOU HAVE YOUR VISION BACK?!” Dazzle shouted.

“Guess you didn’t catch onto my clever pun.” Rose Masquerade giggled. “It’s nice to SEE you!” She widened her eyes, emphasizing the ‘see’ part.

“H-How?” Dazzle asked.

“I honestly don’t know.” Rose said. “Somehow, someway, my vision came back piece by piece. I wanted to celebrate with you, but I was on the backlist for requesting you.”

This brought up a new viewpoint. However, Dazzle asked. “How’s your magic?”

“I can read but cannot spell.” Rose answered cleverly again. “It’ll take a bit more for my horn to be cured of the dendrites.”

Dazzle noted that in her head. Yes. Vision can be recovered, but the Unicorn horn was more sensitive to the disease.

“I’m going to coat your horn in the pH powder by the way.” Dazzle said, pointing to the jar of white powder above her.

“I know. I requested you specifically for today.” Rose smiled.

Dazzle washed her hooves in the sink, covered her hooves with nitrile gloves and reached for the jar.

“It’s honestly a marvel that I get to taste a little of what Mare-ison Bergeron looks like. It’s even more grandiose than I’ve envisioned. Not to mention the work of complicated magic.” Rose started. She giggled to herself again. “Last time I saw you- you were a filly. I would say you’ve grown, but I’m sure you get that one a lot.”

“You have no idea…” Dazzle said. Ever since the play, the playwrights― especially Florin, Montressor, and Marigold― teased her with that pun. It even went over Napoleon’s head for a while until she showed her secret.

“How is Coco doing? I haven’t seen her in a long time…” Rose asked.

“Fine. She’s just busy with her Spring Line.” Dazzle said. A flicker of a memory passed through her thoughts. That little incident with Suri Polomare. She kept her mouth shut about it though.

Dazzle unscrewed the lid. She took out a cloth bandage, soaked it in the sink and wrung it. Holding it out in one hoof, she sprinkled the powder on it with the other hoof. Finally, she reached over and wrapped the dampened cloth around Rose’s horn.

“That’s good to hear.” Rose said.

“Hey Dazzle?”

Dazzle spun around. “Oh, Nurse Radius! What do you need?” Dazzle took off her gloves and disposed of them in the marked magi-hazard can. Dazzle squeaked as the can popped as it shut.

“The pH bath for Vertigo Heart is scheduled in five minutes.” Nurse --- said. “It’s an inconvenience that Ms. Heart requested you, so please don’t be late.”

Dazzle turned to Rose. “I gotta go. Do you need anything else?” Dazzle coated her hooves in the powder and washed them over the sink.

“Nope! I shouldn’t keep ya. I’m satisfied with just seeing you.” Rose said. “Now! Go on! Do what you need to, Dazzle!”

Dazzle got into plastic scrubs. She honestly didn’t mind the hazmat suit a little while back, in fact, she preferred it over itchy scrubs. After getting on the attire, she proceeded over to the heavy precautions side of the hospital.

“Right on time.” Nurse Radius said. Her voice was muffled behind a respirator. Her wings were encased in a glass protector filled with green aura. Alongside her, she pushed a cart with two ceramic tubs filled with milky fluid: The pH bath.

They trotted down the hallway. Glass rooms with plastic enclosures passed them by, until they came to a particular room.

Nurse Radius unzipped the plastic enclosure and waved for Dazzle to go through.

Immediately, Vertigo greeted her. “Dazzle? Is that you?”

Dazzle nodded. Obviously, she hadn’t shown Vertigo her tiara. She had to be careful to who she told the secret to, and lately, she was being very liberal.

“For a minute there, I thought they denied my request again.” Vertigo said.

“You struck lucky this time!” Dazzle said.

Nurse Transfusion wheeled the cart over. “Can you remove the bandages, Dazzle?”

Dazzle nodded. Vertigo stretched out her wings towards Dazzle. Dazzle undid the bandages. As she got closer to the inner part, she started to notice the blood clots on the bandages. Dazzle held her breath as she got closer, holding back a retch as she uncovered the first fleshy part of Vertigo’s wings. They were raw and featherless. She knew she wouldn’t get over the revolting nature of featherless wings, no matter how many pegasai patients she ran the procedure for.

Nurse Radius wheeled the cart closer and motioned to the tub. Obediently, Vertigo dipped the raw wing in the solution. As Vertigo did so, she winced and gritted her teeth.

“Now, the other wing.” Nurse Radius instructed.

Vertigo took a deep breath as she dipped her other wing into the bath. She hissed and squeezed her eyes shut. In the middle somewhere, Dazzle heard a faint whimper.

“She’s healing actually pretty quickly.” Nurse Radius noted, pointing out the lack of pockmarks and Corrosion burns on her wings. “I mean, faster than most pegasai that come through the hospital.”

“How quick do you think I’ll be?” Vertigo asked, taking her wing out and holding it out to Dazzle. Dazzle dried it off with a towel and re-bandaged it.

“Two to three weeks, give or take.” Nurse Radius rocked her head back and forth. “Usually the healing process takes about a month.”

“I’ll be off, another patient is on my agenda.” Nurse Radius proceeded towards the door. “Need anything else Ms. Heart?”

“No. Just want to talk to Dazzle for a couple minutes.” Vertigo said.

Nurse Radius nodded and slipped out of the plastic enclosure.

Once Nurse Radius was out of sight, Vertigo chuckled. “It’s finally good to see you! Also, I thought the Nurse was crazy when she told me you were a mare!”

“I know.” Dazzle said. “I guess Bling’s the only one left who doesn’t know the secret.”

“Wait… you mean Napoleon knows?” Vertigo sat up straight.

“Mmhmmm.” Dazzle nodded. “I showed him when we were doing our science fair project.”

“I heard about that.” Vertigo pointed to Dazzle “How’d the science fair go? Did he get his letter?”

“No results yet. The school is still being sprayed down for any Corrosion.” Dazzle said.

“Bummer. I thought they would’ve gotten everything done by now.” Vertigo said. “There is really nothing to do around here.”

Dazzle hadn’t stopped to consider how bored Vertigo must’ve been. She was up to her neck in hospital duty ever since the incident. Napoleon had kept busy with spending time with Pink, Dusty, and Bling.

“Speaking of Napoleon, can you tell him I love him back?” Vertigo said outright.

Dazzle kicked herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. When nothing but a flare of pain greeted her, she wiped the obvious dopey look off her face (Vertigo was hiding a smile behind her hooves).

“Really? That quick?” Dazzle said.

“Yep. I decided that just saying it would be the best option.” Vertigo said. “Spending time alone has given me time to think. I figured that I might not get another chance, so I said it.”

The spool of bandage slipped out of Dazzle’s hooves. Before it hit the ground, she caught it. She sighed in relief.

“I will do that then.” Dazzle said after she regained her composure.

“I guess that is good payback for the time you played that prank on me!” Vertigo grinned.

“What prank?” Dazzle asked.

“You slipped out once you told me about Napoleon!” Vertigo explained.

“Oh, right.” Dazzle said. “But seriously, you feel that way about Napoleon? I would’ve thought you and Bling were a thing…”

“Oh no, Bling and I are just friends.”

“Friends that spend a lot of time in the clouds together.” Dazzle teased. She finished up the wrapping and snipped the spool off with a scissor.

“Fine. Be that way.” Vertigo said. Dazzle noticed a little shade of red developing on her muzzle. Vertigo continued. “Remember the time we became friends? I almost crash landed on you.”

“Right.” Dazzle smiled. “I’m glad that happened honestly.”

“Same here.” Vertigo said. “Can you keep a secret though?” her voice grew softer.

“Sure.” Dazzle said. After miming through the Pinkie Pie movements, Vertigo took a deep breath.

“The day that I crashed into you was no accident.”

“What?” Dazzle said in a soft voice, being careful not to shout it out. It was a Pinkie Promise, after all.

“It was no accident.” Vertigo repeated. “The crash was no accident.”

“Really?” Dazzle said. “Wait… does that mean you crashed into us on purpose?”

“Nono. That’s not what I meant.” Vertigo said. “I mean, when I saw you on the swing set next to him, I gawked too long. Not looking where I was going, I nearly crashed into another foal.”

“Okay...” Dazzle’s mouth twisted. “What do you mean then? That sounds like an accident to me.”

“Nono. There’s a little more to it.” Vertigo said. She sighed. “I’ll just say it. I’m jealous of you.”

“Jealous? Why would you be jealous of me?” Dazzle asked.

“I’m jealous of a lot of things.” Vertigo clarified. “You crack the Egghead’s outer shell, befriend a bully who has become my flying buddy, you are even Coco’s daughter! The Coco Pommel!” She folded her hooves and slumped back.

Dazzle never seen her like this. Then again, maybe the time alone had broken a couple things. Came to think of it, Vertigo’s mannerisms right now reminded her of her past self. A little frustration unchecked created by boredom can cause a whole lot of problems down the road.

“Don’t worry, I think I get you.” Dazzle said. Hopefully relating to her would warn her about taking the path of envy. “I feel the same thing― if there’s anypony I’m jealous of, it’s Napoleon.”

Vertigo sat up. “Wait… you are jealous of Napoleon?”

“Yeah,” Dazzle said. “Playwright parents, good head on his shoulders. Most I can do is do Statistics. He can do anything he sets his mind to. I’m kinda trapped in a box of a singular talent.” Dazzle pointed to her cutie mark. “I earned my mark when I was being cruel and ‘asserting my dominance’ over other foals, as my parents wished.” Dazzle said.

“Really?” Vertigo gasped. “I thought you said you picked out a ti―”

“That was a lie.” Dazzle said. “I’m telling you this now because I see that you are going down a very dangerous path. I’m also going down the same dangerous path I swore never to take again.

First, I was jealous of one of my classmates, named Applebloom. She had a kind and loving family. Broken, yes, but close together that nothing could separate them. I thought I was over it when I left Ponyville, but now I’m repeating the same cycle…

Every time I see him and his family, I wish I had parents like his to begin with. If Florin and Montresor were my parents, then I would be very different than I am today. I wouldn’t have been mean or cruel to anypony. He was raised in a way that encouraged him to step out and show off what he’s made of, yet be kind to everypony he met.” Dazzle finished.

“Well, you are in good hooves now!” Vertigo waved her forelegs up. “You’ve got Coco! I guess you deserve to have a good parent since all your life you’ve only had bad ones.” Vertigo said. “That is something to celebrate.”

“You’re right.” Dazzle smiled. “Are you still jealous of me?”

“A little, but in a good way.” Vertigo said. “You’re my friend, after all.”

Dazzle started to trot away. “Thank you, Vertigo, I needed that.”

“No problem!” Dazzle said.

Before she could exit, Vertigo shouted over to her.

“And don’t forget! Tell that Egghead I love him!” Vertigo said.

Chapter 32: Awards

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Dazzle didn’t really like staying at school late. Most of the time it was because Ms. Cheerilee had given her detention for the day, and she couldn’t return home until she completed a tedious assignment. Probably because she knew of what mean things Dazzle and Silver could do to the Crusaders.

But now was different. Coco was with her, along with Florin and Montresor.

As they walked through the east doors, one of the ushers had stepped in front of them. “Participant names?”

“Napoleon Dynamite and Dazzle Tiara.” Napoleon said.

The usher swished the pen (probably checking their names off the list), smiled, and instructed, “Follow me.”

“We are on the first row!” Napoleon said while the rest of the school clamored about. It strained one’s voice to speak above the din of chatter. “Do you know what this means?”

“We are participants?” Dazzle teased.

He punched her in the shoulder. “You have no idea! First two rows are designated for the top ten!”

Considering their placement, Dazzle couldn’t argue with Napoleon’s logic. The usher placed them at the end of the first row. Dazzle glanced back at the audience and waved to Coco one she saw her. Bling had to tap her on the shoulder to get her attention. He pointed towards them and waved with Coco.

Up on the stage, Principal Bellows started to speak into the microphone. “Now that presentations are done, we’d like to announce the winners!”

Napoleon shifted nervously.

“We have had a rough week with the outbreak, but thankfully, we’ve been cleared to run this awards ceremony!” Principal Bellows. Out of the three schools we had Thirty-two projects!”

The audience stomped their hooves.

“We thank all of those who participated in the competition. We are especially proud of all those who have gone above and beyond their school work and taken the initiative to complete their projects!” Principal Bellows continued. “I could go on all night, but I will allow our three judges to take the stage to announce our winners!”

Principal Bellows took a step down to the stage right. Yep. Dazzle remembered that from her times helping Coco with the Theatre.

Three ponies, two mares, and a stallion took the stage. She recognized the last, as she previously spoke with him: Bastion Yorsets.

The mare in the middle stepped up to the microphone. “Good Evening Mane-hattan!”

The audience answered back eagerly with a convoluted “Good Evening!”

“You ready to hear who placed top three?” She asked.

The audience cheered.

“Woah! Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, Swift Final!” The other mare stepped up to the microphone. “We forgot to announce what the top three winners will receive!”

Bastion stepped forward. “While Swift Final and Critical Review are bickering, I’ll just say it! The top ten will receive a plaque engraved with their achievement and some commentary the judges have for it.

“The top three will also be accepted with full-ride scholarships to Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns!” Swift Final cut in. “We have a lot of names to talk about, should we get started?”

Fifth place had just been announced.

“I was impressed with how centered they were on safety!” Swift Final commented. “Admittedly, we’ve had our share of explosions in the labs of our school, so we need ponies emphasized on safety! Who knew that you could edit the elasticity of glass and brittle objects and do so without losing key chemical capabilities!”

Bastion took a step up to the stand.

Dazzle noticed Napoleon tense up. For good reason too. The judge that visited your project first gave the report. He really wanted to place at least third so he could score the scholarship. Now, so close, he could almost taste victory.

“Speaking of keeping things clean, our fourth-place spot goes to a Napoleon Dynamite and Dazzle Tiara!” Bastion started.

Napoleon and Dazzle stood up from their seats.

“Both team members demonstrated skill in working together to create a common item- soap! With an enchantment to insta-dry and a review of Meadowbrookian Alchemy, this goes over the importance of how something so simple yet so important to keep society healthy!” Bastion explained. “I recently visited with the great Doctor Fuse the head of the pioneer for the cure for Corrosion. He found it fascinating how something so simple as the second Meadowbrookian Law was forgotten in the hustle and bustle to find a cure. He resolved to focus on the Meadowbrookian Law. With this focus on simplicity, it’s no wonder this project placed top four!”

Swift Final stepped up again. “At our Third Place, we got Caramel Kisses and Celestial Swing!”

As both of them sat back down, Dazzle turned to Napoleon and asked. “Hey, you okay?”

Napoleon glanced at her with bittersweet smile. She recognized the façade, the feeling. He was trying his best to smile even though his hopes just got shattered. “I’ll be fine. We’ll talk afterwards.”

“For our first place, we got Dusty Mantle and Pink Sprinkles with their simplification of advanced Starswirlian arcanes! We are talking shields!” Critical Review announced. “Here’s a fun fact! In actuality, Bastion Yorsets purposely abstained his vote. Why? Because this is his nephew! But of course, even with that handicap on the vote, the we saw fit to award him with Gold! He truly earned it!”

Dusty and Pink bowed towards the audience. After applause, they took back their seats.

“Again, we thank all who have participated in the competition!” Principal Bellows said. “We advise after the ceremony is over to ride safely home! We look forward to next year’s competition! Good night Mane-hattan!”

Due to the lateness of the evening, everypony in the assembly was antsy about getting out and getting home. Dazzle and Napoleon waded through the crowds searching for Coco, Florin, and Montressor.

“Hey Napoleon? Is right now a good time?” Dazzle asked. She was nervous about having him open up, but she figured there was no better time than the present.

Napoleon turned to her and smiled― this time not a bittersweet one, but a genuine smile. Something changed. “Actually, very well. I had a moment of clarity!”

Dazzle and Napoleon exited through the doors. The dim light of caramel sky waned over the buildings, sheding the courtyard in just enough light to see ponies milling about.

“How so?” Dazzle asked.

“I realized what is truly important to me! My―”

“You did good, Napoleon! I’m so proud!” Florin said before she hugged him.

Dazzle hugged Coco, taking this a great opportunity to do so.

Bling carefully approached Napoleon. “How you feeling?” he asked.

Napoleon began, “I’m―”

“Pardon me, Mr. Dynamite?” A voice asked behind them.

Dazzle and Napoleon spun around. “Mr. Yorsets?”

“I don’t want to make this public. As such, I trust you can keep it private also.” He started. “Ms. Sprinkles has declined her offer for the full ride to CSGU. She’s planning to go to beauty school here in Mane-hattan.”

Napoleon’s jaw dropped. “You mean―?”

Bastion Yorsets reached into his coat pocket and held out an envelope to Napoleon. “By default, this goes to you now.”

Napoleon reached out to it carefully. Bastion pulled his hoof back. Napoleon’s smile faded for a second.

“I’m just playing with you.” Bastion said. “Don’t worry, take it!”

Napoleon took it from his hoof.

Bastion started, “In actuality, I picked you for my top vote in extraordinary form in magic. So call this nepotism, but the first day you were here, you helped my Nephew, Dusty through a lot of things. You welcomed him into the school. Even when you could see that his project could trump yours by a longshot, you offered a hoof to help because you could.”

“H-how did you know?” Napoleon said.

“Dusty told me what happened.” Bastion smiled. “So, here I extend the honor of saying, I welcome you to Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. We need fillies and colts just like you in our school. After all, you are talking the Princess of Friendship coming from this school. We unicorns often forget that friendship is magic, and without friendship, magic doesn’t exist.”

Bastion saluted “I’d de needing to head off and catch my chariot. Los Pegasus Competition waits for nopony. With that, I bid you farewell!” He slipped into the crowd, giving a glance back to Napoleon. “I look forward to seeing you this upcoming semester!”

Without a second to spare, Napoleon tore open the Envelope and tears flooded into his eyes. “Dear Mr. Dynamite, we welcome you to Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns.” He read. “Please take the time to register. You will be accepted for a full-ride scholarship!”

Immediately, he leapt and hugged Dazzle. Dazzle froze at first, but hugged her friend back.

“Thank you, Dazzle! I couldn’t have done it without you!” Napoleon sniffled.

Chapter 33: The New Crusaders

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-Early April-

Dazzle woke up to a hoof prodding her. Her eyes slowly opening, she saw a foggy image of Coco.

“Five more minutes,” Dazzle rolled over.

“C’mon, Dazzle.” Dazzle felt Coco tap her hooves on the edge of the bed. “It’s spring break for you! Surely you don’t want to spend all of it sleeping!”

“More sleep, thank you,” Dazzle grumbled as she buried her face in the pillow.

“You slept most of the day yesterday!” Coco said. “C’mon! get up!”

Dazzle glared at Coco. She noticed Coco was grinning ear to ear. “You’re acting a little funny this morning.” She observed. Usually Coco was a still a little groggy from getting up also.

Without another word, Coco clutched Dazzle’s hoof and dragged her out of her cocoon of sheets. Dazzle felt the slight cold nip her, but not as much. It was the usual when getting out of bed.

Dazzle got to her hooves and trotted with Coco out. She sniffed the immediate aroma of Coco’s cooking. Smell of bread baking and the sharp smell of spice.

Biscuits and Gravy. Dazzle couldn’t complain. Coco’s breakfasts were always good.

When she trotted down, the hallway, Coco seemed to have a quicker pace than usual. When Dazzle tried to catch up with Coco, she turned the corner and then…

“SURPRISE!” A crowd said.

Dazzle just about slipped on the hardwood. Coco caught her.

“What?” Dazzle asked as she regained her balance.

“Happy birthday, Dazzle!” all of them joined in unison.

“You can’t forget you own birthday, silly!” Coco said while ruffling Dazzle’s mane.

Dazzle just gawked. It was Florin, Montressor, and Marigold, along with the Hearts, and Napoleon and Bling.

“Hey Dazzle! Come sit by us!” Bling said while patting the couch cushion.

Dazzle made her way over to the couch. Napoleon sat on one end, and Bling on the other. She took the open seat in the middle.

“Wow! You turn twelve today!” Bling cheered. “I wish I was twelve!”

“Give it a couple months,” Marigold said. “You’re almost there, Bling-Bling.”

“We are going to have a group breakfast this morning.” Coco said while trotting over to the kitchen.

“And after that, we’ll play some board games!” Napoleon pulled out a binder filled with papers. “I even brought Ogres and Oubliettes!”

“Egghead,” Bling teased.

“Just wait until you roll a one! I will not have mercy on your character!” Napoleon teased back.

Bling chuckled.

“After that, I have a spa day reserved in the afternoon.” Florin trotted towards her. “It’s about time we fix that ratty mane of yours.”

“Wow!” Dazzle said. “This is so nice of all of you!”

Florin pointed a hoof at Coco. “Thank Coco. She planned the whole thing!”

Dazzle glanced at her mother, who was setting up the table with plates. Coco sheepishly smiled briefly and turned back to what she was doing. Dazzle hopped off the couch and rushed over. Dazzle about tackled Coco, but Coco regained balance along with the balanced china she was holding.

“Thank you!” Dazzle embraced Coco.

“You’re welcome, Dazzle!” Coco hugged her back. “Florin, Montresor, and Napoleon got a present for you, along with Marigold and Bling, and the Hearts. You can open them when we get back from the spa.” Coco went back to setting the table.

“Sounds good!” Dazzle said. “Although, speaking of the Hearts, can we visit Vertigo? I think she’s past the contagious phase by now.”

Coco finished up by placing the bowl of biscuits on the table and the gravy boat on a hot pad.

“That sounds wonderful.” Ms. Heart said as she trotted towards the table and took a seat. “She really must miss us.”

“What time are you thinking?” Coco asked. “We have a little time before the spa, or after.”

“Before,” Dazzle said. “We shouldn’t delay visiting a friend.”

“Right you are!” Napoleon said.

“Breakfast’s ready!” Coco announced.

“Unfortunately, you will have to wait in the waiting room until she comes out.” Dazzle instructed Napoleon, Bling, and their families. “Only Vertigo’s parents are allowed past these doors.”

“Aww. But I want to see her cutie mark!” Napoleon said.

“You’ll just have to wait a few seconds longer, Napoleon.” Dazzle said. She motioned for the Hearts to follow her.

Vertigo’s Parents walked with her through the doors. Down the hallway a little bit, they came to a tunnel. Dazzle stepped through and held her breath as white powder jetted onto her coat from above.

“Just step inside, and hold your breath. This is to protect you from dermal contact with the Corrosion.” Dazzle instructed.

Mr. and Ms. Heart followed suit. Promptly, Nurse Transfusion and Nurse Radius held out a glass container. Both Vertigo’s parents bowed as the Nurses fitted their wings with the protective cover.

“Alright, we are ready to go.” Dazzle led the way towards Vertigo’s hospital room.

“How’s she doing?” Asked Ms. Heart.

“A lot better.” Dazzle said. “You will need to continue to let her wings heal, but within a month, she’ll be back to flying.”

Once they entered the room, Vertigo spat out her colored pencils and held out her hooves. “Mom! Dad!”

“It’s great to see you again, sweetie!” Ms. Heart said.

After a long embrace, Ms. Heart began, “First things first! We want to see your cutie mark!”

Proudly, Vertigo pushed the roller table away and whipped the blanket away from her flank. She displayed her cutie mark with pride.

“Oh, that is amazing, sweetpea!” Her father said. He turned to Dazzle. “Is it okay if I pick her up?”

“It should be fine.” Dazzle said “Mind her wings though. They are still tender from the final pH bath treatments.”

Mr. Heart nodded. Carefully and tenderly, he lifted his daughter onto his back. “Your friends are waiting for you. Want to go see them?” He asked.

“Boy, do I wanna!” Vertigo pointed towards the exit like a captain of a ship. “Onward!”

As they trotted to the exit, Vertigo started, “So, it was really odd to see my friend Dazzle as a mare.”

“It’s odd for us too.” Ms. Heart looked back at Dazzle.

Dazzle grinned sheepishly as she followed them out.

“Dazzle is a great nurse!” Vertigo said. “She helped me during when times were lonely!”

Mr. Heart looked back at Dazzle and mouthed ‘thank you’.

‘You’re welcome!’ Dazzle mouthed back.

“What would you like to do for your cutie-mark party, sweetpea?” Her father asked.

“Ooh! I want to invite Napoleon, and Bling, and their family! Oh! Little Cookie, and Jade Tail and…”

“Woah, that’s a lot of foals!” Mr. Heart answered. “Let’s just start with inviting the ones that are here.”

As soon as they burst through the doors, Napoleon and Bling rushed over.

“Lemme see! Lemme see!” Napoleon blurted.

“Geez… you’re so impatient.” Bling nudged him.

Napoleon blew a raspberry at Bling.

Ms. Heart set Vertigo down. Vertigo happily skipped towards Napoleon and strutted in front of him. “Ta-da!”

Napoleon jaw dropped. He just about fell over, but Bling lent him a shoulder to lean on.

“I’m glad you like it,” Vertigo giggled.

“How long until you can fly again?” Bling asked.

Vertigo turned towards Dazzle.

“Two or three weeks, give or take.” Dazzle answered.

“Enough about me!” Vertigo said. “How did things go at the science fair?”

Napoleon scratched the back of his neck.

“Napoleon got fourth place.” Bling solemnly said. However, like a wind-up toy he sprung back to life with an upbeat in his tone. “But, since one of the winners declined the offer to go to CSGU, Napoleon got his scholarship!”

“That’s great!” Vertigo hug-tackled Napoleon.

“OOOF! Uhm… thanks, Vertigo.” Napoleon said.

“You doing okay?” Vertigo asked. “I’d thought you’d be excited!”

“I am! Well… I actually did a lot of thinking…” His ears drooped. “I realized that I’d be leaving my friends behind.”

Vertigo’s casts lowered with her wings. A while ago, her wings were propped up in excitement. But, now, she realized Napoleon’s train of thought. Dazzle marveled at how deep of a thinker Napoleon was. She noticed he was a bit reserved over the past couple days. He spend a great deal weighing in the pros and cons of taking to his dreams.

“I kinda want to decline also and stay here.” Napoleon said. “Ever since I was little, I dreamt of going to CSGU… I thought it would be a no-brainer when I achieved my dreams. All my life, I put academics first. I didn’t care for anything else but getting into Celestia’s school. But now, I find it to be the hardest decision in my entire life.”

Dazzle felt a familiar shock of sorrow wash over her. Napoleon had quite the dilemma now. Either go to Canterlot, like he always wanted or stay with the friends he made in the very short span of three months. It reminded her of leaving Silver Spoon behind to go on a leap of faith to Mane-hattan. Even if it had almost been a year, those long, painful feelings were still fresh and sharp.

“Don’t you dare, Napoleon.” Bling cut in.

Napoleon turned to the Bling. “What?”

“Don’t you dare.” Bling repeated. “You’ve worked too hard and dreamed too much to give up now.” He sighed. “I would’ve been glad to be rid of you in the past.”

That statement earned him a nudge from Marigold.

Bling smirked at his mother. “But now, since you are my friend, and friends care about each other, I don’t want to see you go either.” He trotted up to Napoleon. “However, a true friend wouldn’t want you to give up something you enjoy for them. You can go. I want you to chase your dreams.” He placed a hoof carefully over Vertigo’s shoulder, careful not to poke her wings. “Vertigo and I will always be here. Dreams don’t wait.”

All three of them joined together in a hug.

“I will never forget you guys!” Napoleon said. His voice was mellow, yet had the hitch characteristic of holding back a sob.

Dazzle knew what it was like to leave friends and go to an unfamiliar place. It was scary, walking a path without your friends to support you. But she knew that Napoleon would be just fine in Canterlot. Suddenly, she got an idea.

As soon as they let go, Dazzle suggested, “If it helps, all of you can write letters to each other!”

“That’s a great idea!” Vertigo cheered. “You gotta tell us all about the things you are learning!”

Vertigo must’ve caught onto the fact that Napoleon loves to share his knowledge.

“And if you need an honest opinion about something, I’ve always got your back!” Bling said.

Napoleon smiled. “Will do. You need to tell me about your crusades here in Mane-hattan!”

“Wait… Crusaders?” Bling asked. “Can we do that?”

“I think so… Babs officially took me in as a Crusader way back when. Since she is no longer the leader, I probably can take all of you in!”

“That should be it!” Napoleon said. “However, we need some re-branding. We can call ourselves the New Crusaders of Mane-hattan!”

“I’d like that idea!” Bling said. He pointed to Napoleon “Since you came up with the name, you should be our leader!”

“What about Dazzle?” Vertigo asked, pointing to her. “She’s the one who brought us together. Shouldn’t she lead?”

“I appreciate the offer, Vertigo,” Dazzle began. She knew she had to answer quickly for sake of allowing Napoleon to take charge and grow in the magic of friendship. In which, she formulated her words carefully. “But I’m merely the glue that brought us all together. Napoleon has been the one to take charge―” She winked for good measure “―he was the one who led the science fair project after all.”

Napoleon smiled― although kind of awkwardly.

Bling smiled and looked at Napoleon. Napoleon was also beaming. The three of them lifted their hooves up in the air.

Coco nudged Dazzle “Go! Join in with them!”

Napoleon held out a hoof. The others joined in, and Dazzle joined her hoof in.

“New Crusaders of Mane-hattan!” Napoleon said.

“New Crusaders of Mane-hattan!” The rest cheered in unison.

Chapter 34: Spa and Presents

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“My, I can’t believe you made Rogue Gold fall in love with Synergy Star!” Bling complained.

“That was actually pretty funny.” Dazzle suppressed a laugh. Bling had acted all gutsy and tough, saying that the mini-boss that Napoleon set up was lame. After having his flank handed to him, he decided to insult the mini-boss out of spite, but rolled a one. Napoleon took the liberty of making his character and the mini-boss a couple.

“I told you ‘wait until you roll a one’.” Napoleon stuck his tongue out at Bling.

Coco opened the glass door to the spa.

“Thank you, sweetheart.” Florin said as she trotted in.

“Thank you, Coco.” Montresor tipped the hat he was wearing before following his wife inside.

Napoleon, the Hearts, Dazzle, and finally Bling and Marigold stepped inside. Dazzle stayed behind to catch up with her mom.

“Hello, welcome to Mane-icure Spa of Mane-hattan,” Two ponies at the desk greeted them. They kind of reminded Dazzle of Aloe and Lotus back in Ponyville. She would go there often with Silver Spoon to relax. Especially in the middle of summer.

Florin flipped open a brochure, and searched through the contents. “I know just the thing!” She turned to Dazzle and pointed to a hairstyle in the brochure. It showed a filly with wavy hair, like her mother used to do her hair.

Dazzle shook her head.

“What? No?” Florin asked. “Which one do you want?”

“I have bad memories of that hairstyle.” Dazzle looked through the contents. “How about that one?” Dazzle chose the one that said pixie cut under it.

“You sure?” Florin asked. “I have bad memories for that hairstyle actually.”

Dazzle nodded. “I want to try something new.”

“Okay, pixie cut.” The spa pony at the desk noted that one down.

“Make that three more.” Florin said. “I know for a fact that Dazzle has better taste than I do…” She pointed to Coco and Ms. Heart.

“I wouldn’t say that…” Dazzle cut in.

“Oh no, Florin, I’m going to try something else.” Coco said. Her smile was a little too wide for Dazzle’s liking.

Coco pointed to a hairstyle in the book.

“That? Really?” Florin’s jaw popped open. “You don’t come across as that type of pony, Coco. Are you going through a mid-life crisis already?”

“What did she pick?” Dazzle asked.

Florin waved the brochure towards her and pointed out to a hairstyle that seemed crazy. Absolutely crazy, it was spiked and going in all directions, like the style of some Wonderbolt’s mane-styles, but a little rattier.

Coco’s grinned sheepishly as her tan cheeks grew rosy. “After a couple months of Dazzle not brushing her hair, I just wanted to try something out.”

“Well, whatever you are going for, I’ll go with you.” Ms. Heart said. “Two pixies and two rockers.” She called out to the spa ponies. She leaned towards Coco and whispered. “Thank you for choosing that. I don’t think Iron Heart would approve if the idea came from me.”

“I heard that!” Iron Heart shouted over.

“Heard what?” Bling asked.

“Nothing, Bling-Bling,” Marigold said. She stood up at the desk and happily added, “I’m going to do the standard washing today.”

“What about the boys?” Dazzle asked.

“They told us that they’ll stay behind,” Florin said. She turned towards them, who have taken their seats already. “Right, Monty?”

“Eeyup.” Montresor nodded.

“Alright, follow me upstairs,” One of the spa ponies said. She motioned up a staircase, leading up to a landing, and then another flight that led to the second floor. Once Dazzle came up, she gasped. The whole room had row upon row of barber/hair-stylist equipment. The place was busy and alive full of clamor and mane-dressers that rushed to and fro to get their services done. A window stretched from wall to wall on the far side of the room, outside it, you could see the building across the street. From the looks of it, the department store already was preparing for the summer sun festival in a month or two.

“Dazzle!” Coco tapped on her shoulder.

Dazzle spun around.

“You’re the guest of honor, so you go first,” Coco motioned to attendant, who had a chair prepared for her.

Dazzle trotted over and hopped into the seat. The attendant lowered the chair down using the hydraulic step that was placed at the chrome base. “I need to help the others out. Sit tight, and the dresser is on her way.” She rushed over to Coco first. From the conversation in the back, the attendant wanted to get to Coco first because… well… the magazines would be after her and her new hair style. Even more so, the attention the hair dresser would get from doing the honors…

Dazzle rocked her hindlegs back and forth as they hung off seat. She gazed into the mirror, an action that she didn’t do too often. Her mornings consisted of hurrying through the bathroom. She would brush her teeth in a hurry, not staring back at her reflection for too long. From a half-remembered nightmare, she recalled a mare in the mirror that crawled out and attacked her.

“Hi, welcome to ―” A filly greeted before stopping dead in her tracks. “Oh, it’s you.”

Dazzle’s gaze in the mirror shifted over to the filly behind her.

From last time, she was sporting a different style in her hair. Her green eyes stared Dazzle down.

“You work here? Aren’t you too young?” Dazzle asked.

She pointed to her cutie mark. “At first, my family thought I was good at chopping apples. Nope. Turns out I’m good at barber work.” She scoffed. “Who knew, right?” She continued, “Thankfully, the owner of the shop saw my talent, and so, now I work here.”

Dazzle nodded. It was quite similar to how she got into the hospital volunteering.

“So, if I got it correct, pixie cut?” Babs asked, trotting towards the drawers below the mirror. “Just need to clarify, because there is no going back once I start chopping.”

“I’m sure.” Dazzle said.

Babs pulled out a pair of scissors, and a trimmer. She plugged the trimmer into a nearby outlet, and set it on the cabinet. Babs wrapped a tissue paper around Dazzle’s neck and then buttoned up the cloth to make sure hair didn’t get on her coat.

Within a minute, Dazzle felt Babs take the first chop of the scissors. As she watched the first bundle of long hair fall to the ground, she contemplated taking back her decision. The strands of purple and white hair looked sad on the ground, the long years of how long it took to grow it out, now cut short- literally.

“Ehm, so how are you doing?” Babs asked.

“Fine.” Dazzle answered. “How are you?”

“Good.” Babs said.

She felt the firm tug of Babs’ hooves and then the release of the scissors. Firm tug… then a release. Each motion traveled up her spine and across her skull.

After a long moment of silence, Dazzle added, “We visited Vertigo today. She’s doing fine after the Corrosion.”

“Hmm.” Babs nodded.

That didn’t work. Dazzle thought a little jab would cause a little more reaction, but Babs didn’t do so much as sniff at it. She added, “It was quite the scare when the Corrosion hit the school, huh?”

“Yup.” Babs snipped another few strands of hair.

Dazzle couldn’t help but feel tense at this interaction. Usually in an awkward situation, as her parents taught, is to muster up a lot of grace and walk away. Unfortunately, she found herself in the interesting position of being unable to escape since her haircut was only half finished.

Dazzle continued. “How long have you lived in Mane-hattan?”

“All my life.” Babs answered. “How long have you been here?”

“Almost a year.” Dazzle said.

“You are pretty darn lucky that Coco took you in.” Babs said.

“Yes, I am.” Dazzle owned up to it. She sensed that Babs was taking jabs at her also.

“Lemme guess, you got kicked out of Ponyville because one your stunts went too far?” Babs asked.

“Uhm, yep.” Dazzle chose to answer simply. It was a fact of the matter that she didn’t want to go through the story again, especially not for Babs. Babs wouldn’t listen- she’d even go so far as call Dazzle a liar. Besides, her summation of it was true enough. Babs would take it as it was. She had learned over the past few months that there was a time to stand down.

“Serves you right.” Babs replied.

Dazzle grit her teeth and sighed. “I’m sorry for the way I treated you back in Ponyville, Babs.”

Babs paused. She shook her head and rolled her eyes. “Are you?”

Dazzle did her best not to react. For one, she was cutting her hair, even the slightest movement would jostle her enough that a mis-snip would make it onto her mane. For two, Babs would read it that it was bothering her.

“Look, I came here without―”

“Without what?” Babs said. “Without friends by your side?” She spat. “I’m sure as soon as you get trust of the entire school, you’ll abuse that power again.”

“I’m not that way. I’ve changed.” Dazzle said.

“Oh, I know how you are. Manipulative. Pretty around those who have power, and then cruel to those who you believe are your inferiors.” Babs answered. Dazzle felt her tugging become stronger, like she was about to rip out her hair.

A thought came to Dazzle’s mind. Something that might be able to change Bab’s mind. In time. “Have you spoken with Applebloom lately?”

“Yeah, got her cutie mark.” Babs said. “I guess that is why you came here. There were no other blank flanks to harass.”

It was useless. Babs had her mind made up. Honestly, Dazzle didn’t blame her. The way she was treated when she was visiting wasn’t so much of a warm welcome. All Dazzle’s life, she’d been taught to assert herself at school, at social interaction, to be the best of the bunch, the way her parents treated her was no less of how she treated Babs when she first came to Ponyville. She was just passing that line on, and it was all her fault.

“How can I prove it to you that I mean friend and no longer foe?” Dazzle asked. She bit her lip. Dang. Her mother used that card to gain allegiance and loyalty by bargaining her way in.

Babs grumbled. Like a wind-up toy, she sprung to life. “Oh! I got an idea! How about you disappear?”

Dazzle’s heart sank. She wanted to retaliate, but she figured it would only make the situation worse. Besides… Florin and Coco’s giggling could be heard from a couple stalls over. She didn’t want to put a damper on their day off.

Dazzle thought about it a little more. Maybe Babs was right. She didn’t really belong here. Sure, she made some friends, and brought them together, but that was only a little push. Was she truly making friends so she could protect her hide and use her influence for her own gain? Perhaps she was. What made her feel better was when she was around Vertigo, Napoleon, and Bling. Was she just doing this to feel better?

“I can disappear.” Dazzle said. “If you want me to stay out of your way, I will. If you don’t want to see me, then I will make sure I’m not scene.”

Babs paused. A twist in the corner of her mouth gave away. In her composure, Babs said, “That sounds good to me. You have a deal.” With a quick final snip, Babs undid the cloth cover and the tissue paper. She took out a hairdryer, plugged it in, and then dusted off the last of Dazzle’s hair.

“There ya go. Done!” Babs said.

“Thank you.” Dazzle nodded.

Dazzle trotted over towards the sounds of cackling Coco and Florin. Once Dazzle peeked around Coco’s stall, her jaw nearly dropped to the floor.

Coco’s mane had been redone in the way that Twilight’s was when she came back from the spa around the time after her tree got blown up and the castle appeared. To see Coco with this new style unnerved her. It was unlike Coco in every which way.

“Oh-ho! Hey Dazzle!” Coco giggled. “I’m not used to your new look. Come on up!” She turned towards the stylist. “If that’s alright with you, of course.”

“Not at all! Go ahead!” The Stylist said, waving a tan hoof caked in gooey translucent gel.

Dazzle took a step up and looked in the mirror. She noticed a couple tears welled up in her eyes, but not enough to fall. She sniffed and wiped a hoof over her eyes.

“You okay?” Coco asked.

“Yeah… just…” Dazzle paused. “Just hay fever.”

“Ah, I see.” Coco said. She looked in the reflection. “So, Ivory Shine, what do I need to do to maintain this style?”

“Oh, it’s not too hard.” Ivory said. “You know how you sometimes get static-y hair after sleeping in your bed?”

“Yes.” Coco said.

“Just go from there. Run a little gel and then go crazy with your mane-brush.” Ivory finished, miming the action. “Just in time too! You’re done!” She took of the cover and the tissue paper.

Ivory took the handle of a nearby mouth-held mirror and angled it so Coco could see the back.

“Looks good!” Dazzle said.

Coco smiled. “Well, let’s see how Florin is doing.”

“Present time!” Coco chimed in the middle of Bling’s roll.

Bling cursed under his breath as the D-20 landed on a three.

“Bling...” Marigold growled.

“Yes ma’am.” Bling sat up straight like a stick.

“Watch your language.” Marigold said before rummaging through her saddlebags. She pulled out a wrapped present and held it out to Dazzle.

“May I?” Dazzle looked to Coco.

“Don’t be silly, it’s your birthday!” Coco said.

Dazzle slowly took it and unwrapped the box carefully. Underneath the wrapping, she read a logo saying “Rose and Marigold’s Jewelry.” She lifted the ornate lid and found the present tucked over the folds of red felt.

A tiara, only this one was different. Instead of shiny silver, it was gold. She lifted it out and placed it atop her head.

“Ah, back to how it was when I first met you. You look better with a tiara on.” Marigold said.

“Hold on, one sec!” Coco rushed into the hallway.

“Gold is very expensive to work with, thankfully Napoleon was able to lend a hoof in helping us make this.” Bling explained.

“Wait, you made this?” Dazzle replied.

“Yup, we could’ve filled it with Tungsten, since the densities of Gold and Tungsten are th― OOOF! HEY!” Napoleon scratched his mane and batted an eye at his mother.

“Okay!” Coco came rushing back out of the hallway, holding a mirror in mouth. She came up to Dazzle and allowed her to see her reflection. The new look stared back at her. Amazing. For some strange reason, she liked the new look of a pixie cut and a golden tiara.

“As Napoleon was saying, he suggested Tungsten to cut back on cost, but because of its high melting point, it is hard to work with.” Bling said with a nod towards Napoleon. “It was my first time working with metal, so it was adventure for the both of us.”

Napoleon snickered. “No explosions, just in case you were wondering.”

“Thank you!” Dazzle said.

“You’re welcome, Dazzle.” Marigold said.

Florin trotted up to Dazzle, holding the gift in her mouth by the ribbon. Dazzle accepted and carefully unwrapped it. A book― no… a magazine. She read the title: Coco Pommel and Mare-ison Bergeron: who is the masked mare?

“It took a while for me to convince Coco that not all celebrity gossip is bad.” Florin said. “Just think of it as your journal… from another pony’s perspective.”

Dazzle shook her head and smiled. “It’s great, Florin, Thanks!”

“That’s not all… here’s another journal entry for you!” Suddenly, Ironheart approached her and pulled a present from behind his back. It was a wrapped present with another magazine wrapped on top and inside the bow. However, it wasn’t a celebrity gossip magazine, but a little more refined. A scientific journal, as Yttrium had shown her.

“Corrosion Cure on the horizon: breakthroughs and breakouts” Dazzle read as pulled the bow loose.

“That’s not all. Dig a little deeper.” Ironheart said.

Dazzle ripped through the wrapping paper and opened the box. Inside, she pulled out a microscope along with a couple petri dishes.

“What?! Lucky!” Napoleon said.

“You don’t have one?” Dazzle asked, a little in shock. She would’ve thought with all the instruments strewn around his room that there would be a microscope buried underneath a heap.

“No.” Napoleon answered.

“Don’t worry, we’ll share.” Dazzle winked.

Napoleon and his parents smiled.

Ironheart continued. “Oh, you don’t know the full capabilities, this one has an enchantment on it so that it can zoom all―”

“― the way to atomic level.” Dazzle chuckled. “Sorry, couldn’t help myself. Yttrium has shown me how to operate this microscope.”

Ironheart shook his head. “Surprising, as always.”

Lastly, Coco came with a gift, holding it in the same way that Florin carried it.

Dazzle slowly opened it, slightly giddy to see what Coco had in mind. A white labcoat, only smaller. Dazzle slipped it on.

“I tailored it so it would fit to your needs.” Coco trotted up and then tugged it. Suddenly, a flap came out of a trim of the lab coat, and then Coco rolled it out. “It was hard to make it seem seamless, but I did what I could.” She smiled. “You can adjust the coat from filly-size to mare-size and vice-versa with a simple tug or tuck.”

How ingenious. Coco was right. Nopony would see the alterations unless they were really paying attention.

---

“Did you have a good birthday?” Coco asked, peeking her head into the room.

“Yep,” Dazzle said. She yawned.

“Glad you had fun.” Coco said.

Right as Coco was about to flick the light off, Dazzle interrupted, “Mom?”

Coco turned to Dazzle. “Yes, Dazzle?”

“Something’s bothering me.” Dazzle said. “Remember that feeling that I had around Hearth’s Warming? It’s back, but it’s talking different.”

Coco trotted over to Dazzle’s beside and sat down at the foot. “What is it saying?”

“It’s something that the hair-dresser said to me while we were getting our hair done.” Dazzle said.

“Ivory? What did she say?” Coco asked.

“Not Ivory. The other one, the one that did mine.” Dazzle said.

“I didn’t see her.” Coco said. “I’m sorry. What’d she say?”

Dazzle shook her head. “Coco, are you sick of me?” A tear fell from her eye.

“OF COURSE NOT!” Coco rose from her seat and clung to Dazzle. “Why would you even think that? Is that what she told you? Who is she?”

“Her name is Babs, and before I came to Mane-hattan, she acted like my friend… then yelled at me and…. pushed me in the mud.” Dazzle said. Her tongue twisted and she choked on her words. Why did it come out that way? The way it came out was nothing short of irresponsible. True, Babs did that, but she didn’t want to mention the part that she picked on Babs. Why did she bring it up anyways, it was her fault, not Babs. Babs was just telling the truth.

“Your classmate? What is she doing working?” Coco said.

“It’s the same case with my job and Yttrium.” Dazzle explained. “I’m sorry for bothering you. Forget that I said anything.”

Coco paused. The room was flooded with silence. Only the lights outside her bedroom window were the ones to show that time was passing.

Finally, Coco said softly, “You know, I think I might have just the remedy.” Coco swiped a pillow from Dazzle’s bedside. “First, you press your muzzle into the pillow.” She fluffed up the pillow and put it over her face. In a muffled voice, she said, “Then, you scream.” Coco screamed into the pillow, most of it muffled out, but what Dazzle could hear was just above a moderate-noisy high-pitched scream.

Coco took the pillow off her face and held it out to Dazzle “Here, you try.”

Dazzle took the pillow and pressed her face against it.

“Don’t hold anything back, let it all out in one go.” Coco instructed.

Dazzle belted out a scream as much she can. She emptied her lungs, and her vocal cords burned with high-pitch squealing. Her mother, Babs, her mistakes. She hated them all, she wanted to be rid of them, each second, she could feel her vessel deflating like a balloon. From heavy to light, she just had to let go of the things she bottled up inside.

Finally, she finished, and lifted her muzzle from off the pillow.

“Feeling better?” Coco said.

“Yeah, actually…” Dazzle said.

Coco giggled. “I learned that from Rarity. She came to visit me shortly before you came to Mane-hattan. I told her how I was feeling, just like you are feeling, and then showed me how to manage my emotions.” Coco played with her spiked and flowing hair. “I was having a very hard time, and then she came just in time. I had a hard time dealing with criticism, but what she told me is that I can vent my frustration as long as I don’t take it out on anypony else―” She cupped a hoof over her mouth and hushed to a whisper “―Or anypony’s else’s property for that matter.”

“Th―Thank you.” Dazzle said. “I actually feel a lot better now.”

“The life of an artist is always rough, you need a let-out somehow.” Coco said.

Dazzle smiled.

Coco bit her lip and latched onto the dropped pillow. She took it and smacked Dazzle in the muzzle with it.

“Hey!” Dazzle picked up her other pillow and hit back.

Coco wiggled her snout after she got hit. “Oh, you clocked me good there!” She retaliated with another hit.

“You’ll pay for that!” Dazzle giggled as she swung.

Coco dodged and parried. “Pillow fight!”

Amidst the hit of fluffy pillows, laughs, and play-screams, Dazzle felt something she hadn’t felt in a long time. It was small, almost forgotten, but it resurfaced with every pound in her heart. For a start, it felt good. She felt like she belonged.

She was loved.

Chapter 35: Midnight Oil

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The hum of the sewing machine often calmed Coco. As she worked on the summer styles she was about to reveal in a new line, her mind was going a million miles per hour. Should I try to add this trim to add character? Should I keep it plain? Is it symmetrical?

Another thought came to mind… something completely unrelated to sewing.

It felt as if she was being watched.

After she finished a stitch, she glanced at that doorway. Finding nothing but a darkened hallway, she shrugged and resumed what she was doing. Could’ve been Dazzle sneaking around again to get a glass of water… or could just be her imagination. Either way, she needed to get this done.

Still though, she couldn’t shake the feeling. A shiver ran up her spine as she gave it more thought.

“Burning the midnight oil?” A voice asked.

Coco yipped and spun madly around looking for the source. In the doorway stood a tall mare. The moon had just shifted enough that its beams shrouded the figure in silver light. Coco could not mistake who she was.

“Princess Luna! What do I owe the honors!?” Coco leapt out of her seat and bowed.

“The honor is mine.” Luna bowed. “I’ve got important matters that I need to discuss.”

Her horn glowed; scooting Coco’s desk chair close to the bedside. “Have a seat. This meeting is going to be personal.”

Coco took her seat on the wooden chair. Luna sat her haunches down on Coco’s bed.

Coco thought of warm thoughts. She usually snuggled up in a blanket or two last time the Princess came to visit her in this state.

Through the doorway, a soft, plush, yellow quilt came floating through. Coco reached for it as soon as it sailed overhead like a foal reaching for the cookie jar. Without another reservation, she wrapped herself in it and looked at Luna.

Luna had a slight smile. If she wasn’t trying hard to keep her composure, Luna would’ve been grinning ear to ear.

“I take it you are lucid right now?” Luna asked.

“Just taking preparations. I’m sorry, but in all honesty, I haven’t practiced in a long time.” Coco brushed off some lint off the blanket.

“Well, it’s good that you’ve made yourself comfortable, we are going to start with a sensitive topic.” Luna opened the drawer next to Coco and pulled out a red envelope. She held it out in front of Coco. “Why do you still have this?”

Coco’s blood chilled. She averted her eyes.

“Uhn-Uh.” Luna shook her head. “You know better than to cower. Hasn’t Diamond Tiara taught you anything?”

“That’s old me… I’m fine now,” Coco answered hastily.

“Then why haven’t you discarded it?” Luna asked.

“Haven’t gotten around to it…” Coco said.

“I have my doubts.” Luna set the letter back on her desk. “Coco… we both know that Diamond Tiara’s arrival was divine intervention.”

Coco took the letter, opened the drawer, then tucked it back in its hiding spot at the bottom.

“Furthermore, I couldn’t have predicted Diamond Tiara coming to Mane-hattan,” Luna continued, “If I may be so bold, I have to ask why you cling to the past when the future is brighter than you can imagine?”

“You keep telling me that.” Coco closed the drawer. “I know I should, but how can I believe you when a dream of mine will never come true?”

Luna shook her head. “Dreams come true in the most unexpected ways. Be careful what you wish for.”

Luna took a look around the room, then suddenly, her expression softened. Her horn lit, and a picture slid off the wall.

Luna figured it out.

After taking a gander at the picture, she hooked it back on the wall. With a softer tone, she gently said, “Pardon my presumptions. I sensed something off, something particularly dangerous to have lingering, but I didn’t know it was about… recent events.”

“I keep asking myself whether I’m going in the right direction.” Coco pulled the blanket up closer. She felt her lungs constrict as she held back a sob. “Did I do something wrong?”

“I do say, both sides had their tempers raised, but nothing too damaging.” Luna said as a spark of light arced away from her horn. “Yttrium has his reasons.”

The light burst into a window of light, showing like a painting… a moving painting. In the image, Yttrium was sitting at a desk, but not his. Across the desk was a stallion. Coco recognized him immediately. The head of Mane-hattan North Hospital. His boss. By the looks of it, his boss wasn’t happy.

“What is this?” Coco asked.

“Possible future, but for now, this a glimpse of the nightmares Yttrium is having.” Luna explained. “Dreams have an uncanny ability to become reality.”

“Are you saying that this a glimpse of the future?” Coco asked.

Luna shook her head “No… or more accurately… very unlikely. In this one, he loses his medical license because of a faulty counter-curse.”

“Faulty counter-curse?” Coco asked.

“Are you familiar with the outbreak at Diamond’s school?” Luna asked.

“Hard to forget,” Coco answered while trying to stop her hiccups in between sobs. “Yes.”

“Well, the outbreak had several repercussions.” Luna explained. “One of those is the increased demand on finding the cure. Are you familiar with the amount of stress he is under?”

“Dazzle mentions it to me sometimes. She says that the progress in the labs is going faster and faster,” Coco said, thinking for a moment, starting to wrap her head around what Luna was trying to convey.

“This is just one of the many factors that went into the unpleasant situation a couple days ago.” Luna’s horn flickered. “Let’s start with what we know. Why were you upset?”

Coco’s jaw hung open. This was sudden… she was put on the spot. “I ―I don’t think that will be necessary now.”

“First step of making sense of a situation is to tell yourself what you saw and heard. What you were feeling.” Luna said. “Then, we can make sense of it.”

Coco sighed. “I was upset because it seemed that he was neglecting me. Then, when I finally got some time with him…” Coco stopped, then drew a breath. “I blew up.”

Luna motioned the painting.

The image shifted to Yttrium. He briskly trotted towards the waiting room. Following to his sides were his colleagues. He saying something, but Coco couldn’t hear. However, from the expression on his face, she could tell he was frazzled. He thundered through the doors and started speaking to a pony across the room.

It was her.

“Coco, now’s not a good time! I have a lot on my plate!” Yttrium shouted at her.

“Yttrium, it’s been weeks since you’ve had a break. Don’t you think you could spare some time for me?” Coco asked.

Coco winced. She remembered she mustered up all her strength and assertiveness to stand her ground and counter the common excuse.

“Coco! You need to get out! I need to find this cure before I lose my mind!” Yttrium said.

…Only to have it go a complete different direction.

Luna’s horn flickered and the painting froze. “After that, a couple hurtful words were said. Of course, he tried to be civil, but once you called him ‘Selfish’ ‘Arrogant’ ‘Self-Important’, he just left the room.”

“I was just angry that he was making his career more important than me. I didn’t mean most of that stuff.” Coco wiped away tears from her eyes. “I had no idea that he was stressed.”

“It doesn’t end there.” Luna’s horn glowed. A newspaper materialized and flopped on Coco’s lap.

Coco brushed her wet hooves on the blanket before picking it up and read it aloud. “Doctor Yttrium Fuse and Designer Coco Pommel― Quid Pro Quo.”

“This is what Yttrium successfully managed to prevent, Luckily.” Luna explained. She motioned to the painting again. It repeated the same memory, but this time it followed his colleagues as they rushed off. As the approached the end of the hall, several ponies with cameras and notepads swarmed them.

“This batch of reporters have had several sources say to them a random theory: Diamond had been spotted entering the hospital. Mare-ison Bergeron had been spotted through the windows of the hospital’s fourth floor. However, this didn’t seem to have any grounds since most of them were blurry. Some tabloids have some theories. But the most popular theory suggests that you are Mare-ison and spend time on the fourth-floor trading ―” Luna cleared her throat. “ehm― favors so Diamond can be credited as a part of the team when the cure is found.”

“That’s preposterous!” Coco said, slamming the newspaper onto the hardwood.

“I agree. However, after Diamond was reported to be helping out Doctor Fuse check for any straggling Corrosion during the Mane-hattan Elementary outbreak, more and more ponies have bought into the false theory.” Luna shook her head and sighed. “It’s funny, they expect Doctor Fuse to be careful, yet the press is not careful, trying to prove one paranoid theory as fact, and dismissing all logic.”

“So, you say this is not possible anymore?” Coco said. “I mean, how does it escalate to that in the first place?”

“Your old enemies― Suri Polomare is the tip of the iceberg― will stop at nothing to perpetuate a rumor and assign it as truth,” Luna said. “The more supporting evidence, like seeing you and Yttrium in the same room could be taken the wrong way.”

“So, we dodged an arrow?” Coco asked.

“The fact that you weren’t bothered by news reporters should be a sign enough.” Luna nodded. “You should be fine as long as you stay away from that hospital until things cool down.”

Coco wrapped her blanket around her forehooves. “All this thinking that he was trying to avoid me, when in reality, he protected my reputation and his. I feel awful now.”

“Don’t worry, it is just a misunderstanding.” Luna said.

Coco paused and thought about it a little bit. “Can the damage be repaired? What can I do to apologize?”

“It’s not as big of a deal as you are making it out to be. Write a letter… and this time make it a good one! Give it to Dazzle before she goes to volunteer so you can make sure he gets it. From there, you can continue your conversations in private,” Luna suggested. “Your secret is safe with me. Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”

Coco snickered. The Moon Princess using a Pinkie Swear. She’d seen everything.

“For what it is worth, I’ve never met two ponies that are as hard-working as you two. Right now, as we speak, he has taken an unexpected sleep while running a sample.” Luna said.

Suddenly, the painting flickered and burst into tiny sparks.

“Oh! Speaking of which, one of his colleagues has woken him up!” Luna said.

“That poor stallion.” Coco observed. “Sleep deprivation is the worst.”

“As is you. Guess what?” Luna said with a slight smile. “You are sleeping right now on your sewing table. Fortunately, there is nopony in the house except for Diamond who is fast asleep.”

Coco saw flashes of light, a blink of visions and pieces, like flipping through a magazine real fast. She caught onto a couple images- Dazzle, with some other foals… a tree… a dark chasm, a jar being smashed on the ground.

“Pardon me, Coco Pommel, the dream next door bled into this one.” Luna said as she caught her breath. “Something has changed dramatically. You know what? Hold onto the letter for a little while longer. You will need it shortly.”

“What is going on?” Coco asked. “I saw you and Dazzle… what is ever occurring in her dream of hers over there?”

“Forget you saw anything. I underestimated the strength and vividness of her dreams as of late. You weren’t supposed to see that.” Luna shook her head.

“Please, Luna.” Coco clasped her hooves together. “She woke up screaming the other night. I want to know what is going on.”

“You have your troubles, she has hers. A filly’s nightmare versus a mare’s nightmares. Not a good mix.” Luna said.

“I’m her mother! I have a right to know.” Coco flinched after she said that sentence. Maybe this assertiveness thing wasn’t the best thing to be trying right now.

Luna paused. Coco froze in place. She’d done it now… yelled at one of the Princesses… she braced herself.

“You two have really bonded, haven’t you?” Luna smiled. Wider than last, notably.

“Let’s just call our relationship ‘divine intervention’.” Coco waved her hooves in the air in quotations. She snuck in her sigh of relief, and stood up straight in front of the Princess.

“Okay, I will only show you the important parts. You must promise not to intervene unless I tell you to.” Luna instructed.

“Cross my heart…” Coco mimed through the actions

Luna bowed. “Ready to merge?”

Coco nodded.

Chapter 36: Reaching Out

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-Late April-

“Here ya go… Shh!” Vertigo slipped an envelope into Dazzle’s saddlebags.

Dazzle had her ups and downs with letters. Whether she was sending it or receiving it, she found the waiting to be the most unbearable part. It was just a fact of the times she was living in; due to Corrosion, no more receiving the post via insta-delivery. Letters had to be delivered on hoof for the time being.

Today, oddly, she found herself in the unique position of being the mailmare. Or, more accurately, mail-filly. Coco had given her a letter the morning of, telling her to deliver it to Yttrium when she clocked in for her volunteering job.

“Okay… why the hush-hush?” Dazzle asked.

“And make the other foals jealous? As much as I want to invite everypony, my parents want this to be a small party…” Vertigo said, rolling her eyes playfully. She set her lunch on top of the table.

Vertigo’s elation seemed to smear onto Dazzle like zap-apple jam. Well, any day of the week you’d find Vertigo’s joy contagious. Today, however, was more than usual. This was her moment in the sun, after all. Who wouldn’t be happy to have their life go back to normal after being cooped up in a hospital bed for weeks?

She’d liked parties as much as the next foal, but ever since the incident at her cute-ceanera she’d never stop cringing. She didn’t want to crash another party. Maybe she’d convince Coco that she was sick the day of. But, then again, Vertigo looked so happy and really wanted Dazzle to come. She couldn’t rob her of the happiness she deserved, especially after these turbulent couple days.

“You’ve been getting quite the attention today, Vertigo!” Napoleon pointed to a group of students approaching their table.

“I’d say! It took me ten minutes to get to this table!” Vertigo answered.

“May we see your cutie mark?” Fair Wind asked.

Vertigo winked at Napoleon and then got up from the table. She strutted. “Ta-da!”

“Wow! That’s cool!” Bulk Buster shouted. “How did you earn it?”

“Pulled off a dive and got Corrosion!” Vertigo answered nonchalantly.

The group took a step back.

“Is that why you have the wing sleeves on?” Fair Wind observed.

Dazzle knew that Vertigo must’ve been warm with those wing sleeves on. She certainly felt warm with the white sweater she had on.

“Don’t worry. I’m not contagious.” Vertigo chuckled. “I would take them off to prove it, but last foal that saw started throwing up.”

Bling shook his head. With a mouthful of food, he said, “Don’t ask.”

“I trust ya.” Bulk Buster backed away. “Anyways, thank you for letting us see your cutie mark, Vertigo!”

“Always welcome! Have a good rest of your day!” Vertigo waved as they trotted off.

“I feel bad for Caramel Crunch.” Bling said. “At least we got out of quadratics homework.”

“Bling, you know if you have a problem with homework, you can ask me to tutor you,” Napoleon said.

“You go off on tangents!” Bling complained.

“Hey! I do not!” Napoleon whined.

“Do to! I’d bet you are biting your tongue right now trying not to crack a joke about trigonometry!” Bling countered.

Dazzle snickered. “Alright, you two, that’s enough. Lemme change the subject. Any prospects for the New Crusaders?”

“Dang it! Forgot about that!” Napoleon closed his book and shoved it into his pack. “Sorry, Dazzle, but I’ve been slacking on the job.”

“It’s only been a week. Don’t beat yourself up about it.” Dazzle waved off. “Vertigo?”

“The one good thing about getting my cutie mark is that it attracts the foals that don’t have theirs yet.” Vertigo frowned. “Though I forgot to ask their name.”

“You know their faces though, right? I’ve got the opposite.” Bling asked. “I’ve asked around. Nettle Kiss, who is in fourth grade, Lilypad Dusk, another fourth, and Sandy Diamond, fifth grade.”

“Gee, that helps…” Napoleon punched him in the shoulder.

“I know, but I heard that they like to hang out in the library.” Bling rubbed his shoulder. “It’s worth a shot, right?”

“Well, we’ve got time.” Vertigo lifted her covered wings and pointed. “I’m ground-bound for another three days.”

“What are we waiting for then? Let’s expand our horizons!” Napoleon said.

Upon entry, the librarian shushed them. Immediately, Dazzle and her friends hushed to a whisper.

“Is that them?” Napoleon asked quietly, pointing towards a group of foals tucked away in a corner.

“I believe so,” Bling whispered. “They match the description, but there is only one way to find out.”

As Bling and Napoleon approached them, Vertigo and Dazzle tailed them. Vertigo leaned over to Dazzle and whispered “Do you think it’s a good idea to start with three? Is that too much?”

Dazzle shook her head. “I befriended Napoleon and you on the same day, so I can’t see why not.”

“Are any of you Lilypad Dusk?” Bling asked.

One of the fillies eyed them cautiously. Through dark gray hair, her yellow eyes peeked through the fringes. “Uhm, yes? What do you need?”

“We heard that you might be here ―Yow!” Napoleon rubbed his ear.

Bling had bopped him on the head. “Please excuse my friend,” He said apologetically.

“Look, if you are here to do Bab’s bidding, just spill it.” The filly next to Lilypad Dusk waved her light green hoof in dismissal.

“Nono. I’m not here to do that…” Bling backed up.

“Sure you are.” The filly rolled her eyes.

“Uhm, Nettle, I think Sandy wants to say something…” Lilypad Dusk said.

Both of them turned to the last filly. She had a tan coat with electric blue mane. Shakily, and quietly, she asked “If you don’t mind me asking, what happened to your wings?”

“Oh! Glad you asked” Vertigo sprung to life. “Remember the Corrosion Outbreak?”

Sandy nodded.

“So, before everypony started to fizzle, I was pulling off a dive with Bling.” She nudged him. “All of a sudden, I felt my wings burning.”

Sandy gasped.

“But, when I landed to the ground, Bling pointed to my flank. Somehow, someway, my cutie mark appeared in the middle of that!” Vertigo strutted in front of them. “I was caught in the center, but I’m one of the first to recover.”

“Wait. You mean to tell me that you got you cutie mark recently?” Nettle Kiss asked.

“Yep!” Vertigo answered. “Although it’s been a good month. I needed to wait since I was stuck in the hospital.”

“Can you help us get ours?” Lilypad Dusk blurted. She covered her mouth as Nettle scowled at her.

“Sure thing!” Napoleon jumped in. “How about let’s start with some basic chemical compounds?”

“You’re scaring them, Napoleon.” Bling nudged Napoleon. “Let’s take it slow. We should start with getting to know them.” He turned back towards the three fillies. “What have you tried?”

“Oh, uhm, I don’t really know… homework?” Sandy Diamond answered.

“I’ve played some hoof-ball, but that’s about it.” Lilypad Dusk said.

“Oh, don’t you worry about it!” Vertigo said. “It took me a lot of time to get my cutie mark, but the best part of it is just to have fun trying new things!”

“Like what?” Nettle asked. Dazzle could tell that there was a shift. Her tone had gone from uninterested to curious.

“Wow. Comes to think of it, we should’ve thought of that before we came here.” Vertigo tapped her chin. “Nothing comes to mind at the moment.”

“I heard that Cloudsdale is going to give us some snow this weekend.” Bling said. “Anypony up for a snowball fight?”

Lilypad and Nettle shook their heads.

“I like to be outside, but not in the cold.” Lilypad said.

“I agree. Excuse Bling. I think he just wants to have a snowball fight since he’s the only one that can fly at the moment.” Napoleon pointed to Bling’s wings, then Vertigo’s.

“I guess I can get a little carried away…” Bling scratched the back of his neck.

“I do have a suggestion though,” Napoleon said. “Notice their creeds: Unicorn, earth pony, and earth pony.” He pointed to Lilypad Dusk, Nettle Kiss, and Sandy Diamond respectively. “Since the majority of you are earth ponies, I think Dazzle should pick out an activity… She’s an earth pony… after all.”

He leaned towards Lilypad Dusk. “I hope you are okay with that.”

Lilypad smiled and shook her head. “Totally alright.”

“I love your sweater, by the way.” Nettlekiss motioned to Dazzle.

“Oh uhm… Thank you.” Dazzle said, scratching her foreleg.

All of them stared at Dazzle expectantly, eager to hear what her input was. She was dumbstruck, but at the same time, the attention drawn to her shocked life into her. An idea came to mind.

“How about… uhm… cooking?” She figured that was a good go-to since Coco had a knack for it. Take it from the expert, if anything. “I know a pony who can help you!”

Lilypad Dusk nodded. “Sounds good to me!”

The other two nodded. Each managed to affirm with either a ‘Sounds good’ or ‘I’m in’.

“I will need to ask my mom if it is okay if I have friends over for the weekend.” Dazzle said. “Just two days away. I will tell you if she gives the ‘okay’ tomorrow.”

All three of them traded looks. Lilypad Dusk nodded. “Where will we meet though?”

“Oh! I know!” Vertigo cut in. “Why don’t you join us at our table for lunch?”

Sandy Diamond let out a gasp. “Really?”

“Really! Really!” Vertigo nodded.

“More company would be good.” Napoleon said.

“The more the merrier!” Bling added.

“We are almost out of time, but we’ll show you the table where we sit.” Dazzle suggested, glancing at the clock. “That way you won’t get lost.”

“Great idea!” Vertigo said. “Follow us!”

All six of them slowly made it for the library doors. They kept their voices down since the librarian made it clear that they overstayed their welcome. The librarian glared at them while stamping the cover of some books on the turn-in cart.

Through the hallways, Dazzle kept to herself while Bling, Vertigo, and Napoleon chattered with the three recruits. Ironically, Napoleon was the one to start it off, beginning with his favorite topic: books. Bling gave him a hard time for it, but altogether, Napoleon found his teasing in good humor.

Lilypad Dusk and Nettlekiss joined into the conversation after Vertigo asked them a couple open-ended questions. As they pushed open the lunchroom doors, the din of chattering ponies forced them to raise their voices.

As they made their way through the cafeteria to show them the table, Dazzle accidentally made eye contact at the far end of the lunchroom. A colt that had raccoon eyes. She looked away, figuring that staring would provoke him and give him a reason to growl at her.

Then, again, she felt her heart tug at her. She shouldn’t treat him like an animal. She looked back at him. This time, he was busy, closing his eyes while munching down on the spaghetti and wheatballs served for lunch today. He seemed peaceful, which was odd for his nature. Something about him had changed, but she didn’t know what exactly.

Wait a second… he didn’t have his cutie mark yet… which meant… No. That was just plain crazy.

“Dazzle, are you okay? You seem to be out of it today…” Napoleon tapped her shoulder.

Dazzle looked back to Napoleon. “Yeah, I’m just tired. I’ll be fine.”

Napoleon shrugged and continued towards the table.

Back to her thoughts, Dazzle dove deeper into the swirling thoughts in her mind. I was just like him. I got my opportunity, and I’m ever so grateful for it. Doesn’t he deserve a chance? Then again, how would she approach him?

“Hey Dazzle, you got that?” Bling asked.

“What?” Dazzle asked.

Bling chuckled. “We were just making final preparations. We’re going to meet here tomorrow. Will you let us know when your mom gives the okay?”

“Oh! Yeah! I will!” Dazzle said.

“Great!” Bling and the others trotted towards the doors.

Vertigo tailed behind them. As she passed Dazzle, she said “Hey, silly, the bell is about to ring! Don’t want you late for class!”

“Oh! Right!” Dazzle ran towards Vertigo and exited the cafeteria.

Right on que, the warning bell rang, meaning that all the students currently had three minutes to get to class.

As Dazzle saw her friends rush off to their classes, she reflected. All this happened for her. It was time to share it with others. Maybe that would satiate her ingratitude.

Perhaps she could approach him tomorrow and ask if he wanted some help with his cutie mark. Didn’t hurt in asking, did it? Afterward, if he said yes, that was half the battle. Asking the Crusaders would be the extra hard feat, but if it payed off, it could make him very happy.

Tomorrow. That’ll be the most remarkable day in her life.

Hopefully.

A soon as Dazzle approached the nurse’s station, Nurse Transfusion galloped towards her. “You need to follow me.” She instructed sternly.

Dazzle nodded before following Nurse Transfusion. Probably checking on a patient that need immediate care.

She heard clamor from the nearby waiting room. As they passed by, Nurse Transfusion stepped through the containment for the Corrosion side of the hospital. Weird. Nurse Transfusion usually liked to stay in the cardiac department.

If it wasn’t a patient, then what was urgent. One look, then, she knew where they were headed.

Nurse Transfusion motioned for Dazzle to go inside Yttrium’s office.

Dazzle quietly trotted in.

“Were you seen by the crowds?” Yttrium asked as he set down his pen.

Nurse Transfusion shook her head.

“Okay. Dismissed.” Yttrium instructed. He held out his hoof. “Have a seat, Dazzle.”

“Am I in trouble?” Dazzle asked as she took the seat and set her bags down.

“Nono.” Yttrium said. “I just need to talk to you regarding the lab work you’ve been helping me with.”

“Did you find a cure?” Dazzle leaned forward. Maybe. Just maybe. Light at the end of the tunnel.

“Close to one, but I need a few more things proven first.” Yttrium said. “No, I need to tell you about the future of your volunteer work.”

Dazzle paused.

“For safety reasons, I will need to have you stay at home for a little bit. I will send you a letter when it is safe to come back.” Yttrium said.

“Something happen in the labs?” Dazzle asked.

“Nothing with the labs.” Yttrium shook his head. “I just have to let you go for a bit.”

“B―But am I going to be able to come back?” Dazzle asked.

“I cannot guarantee that,” Yttrium said. “Also, can you tell Coco that she needs to stay away from the hospital for safety reasons?”

“Uhm. Okay?” Dazzle raised an eyebrow. Suddenly, she remembered! “Wait a minute! I have something for you!” She reached into her saddlebags and took out Coco’s letter. She held it out gingerly.

Yttrium accepted and opened it. Through the light, Dazzle could see the words on the other side of the page. Curvy, yet conserved, as Coco’s writing usually was.

Yttrium looked up from the page. “This is good to hear. I thought she was mad at me forever.”

“What happened?” Dazzle asked.

“I guess she kept this little quarrel in private.” Yttrium said. “So, a week ago, she came to see me, I couldn’t spare the time, so I sent her off. Naturally, she was frustrated with how many times she was dismissed. In this letter, she mentions that she now understands what I was trying to do.” He leaned back in his chair and pointed out the door “Did you notice the ruckus in the waiting room?”

“Yeah… actually.” Dazzle said. “What was that about?”

“Those are reporters… and not the good kind.” Yttrium said. “This is the reason why I want you to stay away from the hospital for a while. If they discover you are Mare-ison Bergeron, things will get more convoluted from here.”

Dazzle understood. Just like Napoleon had said, Florin wanted to keep her pregnancy in private since the tabloids eat this stuff up. She had her share of secrets too; Mare-ison for one, Coco being her mother, Silver Spoon, her biological parents. Stuff that Coco and every one of her friends did their best to keep out of reach of rumors and gossip.

Dazzle looked to the photo to the side of his desk and smirked. “Now we are on the subject, what is the story behind you and Coco?” She pointed towards it.

“You are as bad as the press!” Yttrium teased. He shook his head. “Luckily, the press will not venture into the Corrosion section of the hospital, so we don’t need to worry about any eavesdroppers. That… and my colleagues are close friends. We share secrets together.”

Dazzle sat upright in the chair.

“So, long ago, when Coco was a filly, she broke a foreleg, and had to get a cast.” He motioned to the picture. “Something about a sewing machine. Anyways, I was a volunteer, just like you, but in the skeletal department.”

“Skeletal department?” Dazzle asked. “What made you choose that?”

“I was eager to learn about any system, and the place that they put me in was in the skeletal department.” Yttrium raised his eyebrows for effect. “Call it fate, I guess.”

“…Anyways, I was often exhausted since most ponies admitted to the hospital and sent to our department in were bigger than me. Mostly Athletes. Hence, more muscles… more weight.” Yttrium snickered. “However, one day, a filly came in. Coco. I was just glad to be assigned to somepony who I could lift better than the others.”

“I’d bet,” Dazzle said.

“Anyways, as she healed up, we got to know each other. But, by the time she was given the choice to heal up at home or spend an extra week in the hospital, she stayed the extra week. I’d bet you are familiar with how often a patient is woken up?”

“Yep.” Dazzle said. “At two-hour intervals.”

“She chose to stay even though she would be constantly bothered. When it came time for her discharge, we took a picture, she gave me her mailing address, and everything has progressed from there.”

“Wow!” Dazzle said. This reminded her of the patient she was getting attached to: Wild Card. However, she flinched when she thought about it more. He was at least four years younger than she was. Eww.

“I know it seems like a cheesy thing, but since then, I’ve been inspired non-stop!” He said. Suddenly, he surged to his hooves. “I should write another letter, this time, pass it through snail-mail!”

“You should!” Dazzle said.

“Sorry if this had been majorly cheesy, Dazzle. I’m just happy that this whole misunderstanding is sorted out.” Yttrium looked at the picture. “Maybe I should take it down from my office, keep it at home?”

“Don’t worry about it.” Dazzle said. “Here’s a little secret: if you feel bad for having a picture of her in your office, you should see the picture of you hanging in her room!”

“That makes me feel a lot better actually. I’m not the only one going crazy!” Yttrium crossed his eyes playfully.

“Not a problem.” Dazzle snickered. She hopped out of her seat. “Don’t delay to invite me back when you think the coast is clear!”

“Don’t worry, I won’t! Just please be careful not to run into reporters!”

“I’ll avoid them like the Corrosion!” Dazzle answered back as she slipped out the door.

Chapter 37: Trepidation

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Unnaturally, Dazzle was unnerved. Her self-commitment to talk to Underdog had went unfulfilled. She saw him earlier that morning, but for some strange reason, her reservations about approaching him had hindered her plans… they didn’t exactly have the cleanest of histories.

Dazzle wrapped herself in her sweater, thinking to herself. An after-thought came to mind as she stared at her lunch: What would Coco think if she didn’t finish her lunch? She barely touched her daisy sandwich…

Although her fear of Coco nudged, it was drowned out by the greater thought eating away at her all this morning: How would she approach Underdog?

She itched her foreleg.

“Hiya Dazzle!” Vertigo greeted, taking the empty seat between her and Napoleon.

Dazzle snapped out of her trance, turned to her friend, and waved. She smiled. What would Vertigo think?

“…speaking of which, any word from your mom, Dazzle?” Bling turned to Dazzle.

Dazzle glanced over at Bling. Strangely, Nettlekiss sat next to him, while Lilypad Dusk and Sandy Diamond tailed to the end of the table.

“Oh… uhm… Good news! My mom said it was fine!” Dazzle said quickly.

…It was quite a night. She had to step carefully, or in this case, use charisma to convince Coco. Gosh, she hated using her smooth talk to persuade, but altogether, Coco was excited to hear that Dazzle was inviting friends over.

After… a good screaming in pillow session of course. Coco still had to release some tension. What annoyed Dazzle a little bit is how Coco had trouble forgiving herself for something as petty as yelling at Yttrium and calling him names. Dazzle made it clear that Yttrium didn’t hold grudges. It was just a huge misunderstanding.

She was surprised at how open Coco was in comparison to her. Sometimes, she wished she could mention more of her troubles, but Coco had been stressed with her fashion lines as it is.

“Dazzle? Dazzle?” Napoleon waved a hoof in front of her.

“Wha-what?” Dazzle stuttered as her thoughts came reeling back to reality.

“We were just asking if you think it is okay to go to the go to the library after school today?” Napoleon asked. “I think we might as well help them discover the joy of reading about something they enjoy!”

“S-Sure!” Dazzle said, trying to process what Napoleon said.

“Well, might as well. Next week, we show them some flying when Vertigo is recovered,” Bling said.

“You have yourself a deal, bud!” Napoleon held out his hoof. “Shake on it?”

Bling thrust his hoof into Napoleons and shook him firmly. “Deal!”

Their contrasting personalities never get old, Dazzle thought. Maybe a little time in the books wasn’t such a bad idea. It would certainly give her a little more time to work with. She shouldn’t procrastinate it though…

“Dazzle, you okay?” Napoleon asked. “You seem out of it today…”

“Oh, yeah. I’m fine. Just tired from last night.” Dazzle yawned for effect.

Napoleon squinted at her sweater. “Aren’t you going to take your sweater off? you look uncomfortable...”

Dazzle itched her foreleg. “I… uhm….”

“I agree. Weather is getting warm,” Vertigo said. “These wing sleeves are uncomfortable, but I can’t take them off.”

“Dazzle, is there something you want to tell us?” Bling eyed her up and down.

“Okay! Fine! Something’s been on my mind lately…” Dazzle relented. “I was thinking of inviting Underdog to the group, but I was going to wait to tell you after I asked him.”

The group fell silent. Dang it! She said the wrong thing, didn’t she?

Silence hung in the air. Dazzle saw eyes darting back and forth between the Crusaders, like when a teacher is searching for a foal to call on.

“I… uhm… I need some time to think about it,” Napoleon said, breaking the silence.

“For me, it’s a no.” Nettlekiss quickly jumped in.

“Why?” Dazzle asked.

“Underdog has a history with a lot of ponies.” Nettlekiss explained. “One time, he, Candy, and… erm… Bling hurt Sandy by spreading… ehm… let’s just say a batch of nasty gossip about her.”

“Yeah, remember that. Sorry.” Bling averted his gaze.

“Don’t worry about it. You’ve changed,” Nettlekiss said. “I’m not so sure about Underdog though.”

“I know what’s he’s done. I’m not diminishing the fact that he had his share of rough ends… But I get the feeling that he’s changed. Sounds crazy, but I think we can find good in him.” Dazzle reasoned.

“She does have a point. Bling used to be my tormentor, but now, we are best buds. Shouldn’t we give Underdog a little benefit of the doubt also?” Napoleon nudged Bling.

“That’s just it. He’s two-faced.” Bling spoke with a voice to address the group, but specifically, he made direct eye contact with Dazzle, though she could see his irises shaking. “You think I was bad when I was picking on Napoleon? You’ve got it comin’ to you, he’s going to take that blade of compassion and stab you in the back with it.”

Dazzle itched her left foreleg under her white sweater.

“I’m all for giving him the benefit of the doubt, Dazzle, but since we have foals to help like Nettle Kiss, Lilypad Dusk, and Sandy Diamond, bringing in the school bully would be putting a parasprite in a basket of fruit.” Vertigo looked to each of them respectively. “I think we should wait when we can help him one-on-one.”

“Sadly, I have to agree with Vertigo,” Napoleon said before Dazzle could say anything. “I agree that we should help him, but not now. He might get tempted to pick on Sandy, Nettle, or Lilypad again.”

Dazzle closed her mouth. She stared down at the table. They made compelling arguments. She could understand their reservations. “I understand. I’ll ask him once we are done getting your cutie marks.” She smiled at the trio. “Sorry for the jarring question. Shouldn’t have asked.”

“Don’t get me wrong, Dazzle. It’s a great idea…” Bling admitted, “…but now is not the time.”

Dazzle called that good enough. It took all her energy to pop the question and the feedback she received was better than she thought. Not right now… but in the future.

Strangely though, she felt a void in her. Something that wasn’t matching up right. Something tugged at her to help Underdog now, but logic told her that it was better to leave it be for a little while. They would get to him eventually.

Dazzle walked home. Normally, any foal would experience some apprehension walking home alone, but strangely enough, Dazzle found it calming.

Maybe it was because the Crusaders lifted a burden from her mind today, telling her to not worry about it for now. Once she knew that she didn’t need to do it now, the anxiety lifted off her like a weight of a textbook.

Or… maybe it was a fact that walking home was a special occasion. Once she and Bling parted ways, it was just three blocks until she reached Rosily Hotel. Getting out of routine was kind of fun, considering mixing up the normally mundane task of getting home.

Coco normally picked her up, but with such an important order as this one, she and Florin had to tag-team it and sell it to the manufacturer. Summer was just right around the corner, especially with school coming to a close for summer break.

Dazzle couldn’t help but be giddy. This summer would be the last time that Napoleon would have before taking off to Canterlot to attend CSGU. With that on the Crusader’s hooves, they wanted to make the most of their remaining time together. After that, their interactions would be reduced to simply letters going to and coming back from Canterlot. Ultimately, it would be super slow to reply since all letters had to be delivered my ground travel now.

Speaking of ground travel, ponies of all creeds bustled through the streets. Everypony had to get acclimated to a world where everything was no longer automatic. It seemed to awaken everypony to a sense of what was really important in the world: each other.

As she weaved through the crowds, she took her time and admired the city lights. Even in the shadows, the luster of the sunshine reflecting on the sides of the buildings bathed her world in a golden light. Amidst all her trials, she was reminded often to take everything in… or at least that’s the advice that Napoleon gave her.

She looked down an alleyway. Strange, she didn’t know one was here. Could it be a good shortcut? Given the fact that it had no traffic, it might be a viable option. It wasn’t glamourous, but it wasn’t downright disgusting either. Backdoors of nearby businesses were recessed on one side, while on the other, were the fire escapes of the apartment complex next door.

Might as well. Couldn’t hurt to check it out, right? Homework was light and Coco wouldn’t be home for another hour.

As she passed through, she heard some sniffling. Looking to where it was coming from, she reeled when she found the source.

“Underdog?” She asked, making sure her eyes didn’t deceive her. He was sitting on the asphalt ground, his pack leaning against the wall of the building.

He glanced at her and wiped a hoof over his snout. “Go away.” He said firmly, turning back towards the wall.

Dazzle was quick to comply. Knowing his personality, he could lash out on you at any moment.

As she turned to start going down the alleyway again, something in her heart tugged. Like the time she was running for class president back in Ponyville. She mistook that feeling as something her parents taught her was the ‘fire of ambition’.

She learned later that it wasn’t. It blossomed when she rebuilt the playground for the school fillies and colts. It grew and grew until it filled her. It was no fire of ambition, but the tug of a heartstring, knowing that the pony she is speaking to needs a little help. Maybe that was the missing piece. Maybe that’s why she felt numb.

She spun around and carefully approached Underdog. Studying him, she peered closer and found him clutching a piece of fabric. A white and dark blue checkered cloth.

Having no idea what she was doing, she held a hoof out. “May I have a look?”

Grumbling, he clutched it tightly, trying to keep it away from the dirty ground.

Dazzle figured her ‘puppy eyes’ would work for the occasion.

“Fiiiiinnnne.” Underdog groaned. He held it out to her.

Dazzle held it carefully. As she felt the soft fabric, she saw an image embroidered on it.

Only one word could escape her mouth, like the words were being stolen from her mouth from the wind. “Candy.”

He snatched it back. “Yeah, yeah. Like you would care!”

Dazzle thought of a response in her mind. Something gentle, since Underdog wasn’t in the best of moods. However, something in her mind surfaced, a nudge of her old self. Brashness. She suppressed the thought, as saying it would only make the situation worse.

“I-I didn’t see you after lunch.” Dazzle started, figuring cutting to the point would only provoke him further.

“Yeah.” Underdog waved dismissably. “Go on. Report me for skipping class like you know how to do.” He turned away from her.

Brashness kept pushing through her mind. Everything in the very core of her seemed to fight the shell that she spent many hours casting to make sure she showed kindness.

“I’m not going to.” Dazzle said. “I just didn’t get the chance to tell you that I wanted to help you earn your cutie mark.”

“Yeah, like that’ll magically fix all my problems…” He rolled his eyes.

“Look, I want to help.” Dazzle said, pressing a little harder.

“Yeah, that’s what they all say. Then they abandon you to go join another group.” Underdog’s voice grew in hostility. “You wouldn’t understand because you’ve been the ‘nice filly’ that nopony can hit because you didn’t do anything wrong. You’ve never hurt anypony.”

“Actually, I do understand.” Dazzle said. “I used to―”

“Yeah, missus, ‘my life is perfect and I have to rub it in everypony’s else muzzle’.” Underdog cut in.

A flurry of emotion swirled in Dazzle. Anger contending against Guilt. For a long time, her anger had dominated her being, using it as the fuel to utterly destroy anypony who stood betwixt her and the paths of ambition. For the second part of her life, she understood the damage it done. What Underdog said was the truth. Wasn’t it? Was she doing all this because her life was supposedly perfect and the void she felt was just her easing back into old habits?

“I need you to trust me.” Dazzle offered her hoof.

He slapped it away and spat, “TRUST? TRUST? YOU COME ALL THE WAY HERE TO TALK TO ME ABOUT TRUST?”

Dazzle didn’t bother to wipe off the spit from her face. She stood her ground, but let her smile fade away. She knew what to do next. Whenever a pony yelled at her, especially Cheerilee, she would stand her ground, rebelliously and contemptuously.

“You’ve never felt what it was like to have a friend backstab you as soon as she got a ticket to the top! You’ve never felt what it is like to have the other friend refuse to take a stand and spend her days flying while you are pinned to the ground, helpless. You’ve never known what it is like to fight your whole life to get by!” Underdog stared at the scarf. “Right as I’m given a break, and finally have a true and loyal friend to be by my side, Corrosion kicks in and steals her away from me.” He clutched the scarf in his hooves and looked to Dazzle, eyes filled with tears.

“…You’ve never felt what it is like to have your best friend in the hospital, fighting for her life! I can’t do anything, while you sit here, play doctor when the Corrosion hits, and get all your wishes granted to you.”

“You have an infinitely better life than I have!” Underdog threw his hooves up in the air “You and Coco, even if you aren’t blood related, the both of you are happy ponies!”

Underdog stared at the scarf. Teardrops fell from his eyes and onto the scarf. “Meanwhile… I sit here, wondering if I’ll ever see Candy again...” He looked to Dazzle with tear-filled eyes. “You have a perfect life. Why are you so lucky?”

Dazzle itched her forelegs. That question had crossed her mind a million times. Why are you so lucky? Here you are in Mane-hattan, living the high life with a designer while your best friend back at home is suffering for what you’ve done. You don’t deserve any of this!

She never found a good answer to lay all those concerns to rest, but she found a good way to curb how she felt. Tell her story and confess that she wasn’t the filly that everypony made her out to be.

She began, “My life is in a better position than it was a few months before… I can tell you my secret, but first, you need to listen. Are you ready to listen?”

Underdog lift his eyes toward her. He nodded his head slowly.

“Before I came here, I was just like you, jealous of another pony because of how happy she was with her family. I acted like a brat for all my life, and I can’t make up for that fact.” Dazzle began. She took a deep breath and sighed “When the time finally came that my parents had enough, they disowned me. Luckily, I was given a second chance, and sent away to Mane-hatten.”

“You’re lying… You couldn’t have been a brat.” Underdog said. “You are Dazzle, one of the nicest fillies at Mane-hattan Elementary!”

“That’s me trying to make up for all the mistakes I’ve made. Ask the Principal or Ms. Paprika. Both of them have documented accounts of what I’m saying. But that’s beside the point.” Dazzle felt the itchiness of tears forming in her eyes. “I’ve realized, no matter what, no matter what I do, I cannot undo the damage that I’ve done. I’ve made fun of ponies who don’t have their cutie mark, gossiped about them, manipulated them, even made fun of a filly for her disability. After a while, my best friend back in Ponyville, Silver Spoon, told me that she had enough and walked away.”

…At that moment, I knew I needed to humble myself and talk to those I hurt. Ironically, it was the Crusaders… the original Crusaders. There, in that quaint clubhouse, I learned an important lesson. If you want respect, you first have to show it. If you want to have friends, you first have to be one. They helped me to realize who I truly was. Then, after that, I helped Ponyville Elementary rebuild their playground.”

Underdog sat with wide eyes. She could see a small smirk in the corners of his muzzle.

“Unfortunately, with every action, there is a consequence. Furious at my disregard for business funds, my parents decided to kick me out of the house. Though blurry, I was told by my butler to come to Mane-hattan and find Coco. Everything has been great since then,” she continued.

Her ears flattened. “Back at home though, my friend, Silver Spoon is paying for what I’ve done. She sacrificed so much to be by my side, even though I haven’t been the most loyal. That is the pain that I must deal with. You see, this good luck and better life isn’t because of what I’ve done, it’s been given to me so generously through my friend who helped me begin and find my way. You see, Silver Spoon gave me this chance, and I’m not going to waste it.”

“I― If what you’re saying is true… and I’m convinced you couldn’t make up a story like that… I’m so sorry for treating you the way I have” Underdog sniffled. “I hope you’re not lying though.”

“All is forgiven, Underdog,” Dazzle smiled. “I was once in your shoes, and I’d give a million bits just to know I was forgiven. Let it be proof enough that I braved talking to you.”

Underdog chuckled. Dazzle had never heard a genuine, cheery, and airy chuckle from him before. Normally, he only showed pleasure when he was about to do something devious or made a snide remark. But right now, Dazzle took it in. She made a new friend and he was genuinely happy.

Carefully taking a step forward, with lowered ears and curious, yet anxious eyes, he asked. “Is… uhm… you know… your offer with helping me get my cutie mark still on the table?”

Dazzle laughed. “Of course it is! I just need to talk to the Crusaders… our Mane-hattan ones… before you come.” She put a hoof on the side of her muzzle and whispered in his ear, “Because… well… they’ll never believe me.”

“I don’t blame them.” He snickered.

“I can’t guarantee how fast you’ll get yours, though,” Dazzle admitted. “We are still working with three fillies and none of them have got their cutie marks. But I guess it’s been only been a day.”

“I’ve tried many things to get mine.” Underdog shook his head. “Though I’m ready to give it another shot. Any chance is as good as I―”

“HELP! THIEF! THIEF!” A mare shouted.

They spun to the source of the shouting. Down the alley and across a busy street, they caught in the nick of time a filly running with saddlebags in her mouth and a mare in hot pursuit.

Dazzle and Underdog both looked at each other. As a smirk crept on each of their faces, a feeling inside her bubbled up and rose.

She looked Underdog in the eye and just like that, she could tell that they both had the same crazy idea.

Chapter 38: Pursuit

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Dazzle took off down the sidewalks weaving through the ponies milling about. Some were running, some were walking, but altogether, Dazzle was thankful that she was small. Some would yelp in panic, some were too busy gawking at what was occurring, and some would shout at them to be more careful. Dazzle knew better though. This was a rough and tough town. Now, this time, she needed to be rough and tough.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Underdog coming up to her side before weaving through another patch of rough crowd. He wrapped the scarf awkwardly, since the other three legs were hard to balance on.

The second time Underdog was to Dazzle’s side, he quickly said “We are losing them! Quick! Follow me!”

Dazzle found it easy to keep up with him, but she wasn’t prepared for when he dove into the street. Coco had always taught her to be far from the edge, but this was madness.

“Dazzle! Quick! They’re getting away!” Underdog shouted once he crossed to the other end.

“But there are carts!” Dazzle shouted. “How am I sup―”

“Dazzle! Live a little dangerously!” Underdog coaxed.

Dazzle took a careful step across the road.

“Oh, for Celestia’s sake!” He ran across the street, just in time as a cart nearly hit him the Flank. No wonder he had so many scars... Well… no time like the present for her to get some more.

“How do I cross without getting run over?!” Dazzle shouting in panic.

“Count! We have two seconds before that cart from that Crosswalk comes here!” Underdog waved towards the traffic. “It’s all timing. If the cart hasn’t got past the white bars of the crosswalk, you are safe, anything past that is asking for it!” He took her by the hoof and charged to the other side of the road.

Dazzle squeezed her eyes shut. She felt the rushing wing of passing carts behind her. Nearly tripping as she took the final step up onto the sidewalk’s threshold, she opened her eyes.

Underdog pointed down the sidewalk, towards the mare and the filly who were a good two blocks away.

Dazzle’s heart never seemed to catch a break in this. The rush of adrenaline coursed through her veins as she weaved past ponies. Every part of her body screamed for her to stop, but at least this made her feel alive. Anything to dispel the numbness if only for a second.

They were gaining. No longer two blocks away, but closer to one. She felt bad for disregarding traffic, but once she saw the filly up ahead with the saddlebags disrupting traffic to make a getaway, she had to worry about the task at hoof: Underdog and her completing the grueling task of catching a thief.

Half a block. Underdog was ahead of her, it made it easy for her to navigate the crowd since most were parting from the impromptu parade: a filly, followed by the mare, followed by Underdog, and finished by Dazzle.

Quarter block. So close. In an instant, the filly dove straight into traffic, taking a diagonal route to the other side of the road. Underdog dove into traffic the same way, leaving behind the mare, who did not dare to jump into the bustling streets.

With a deep breath, and with all the focus she could muster, she dove into the belly of the beast. Quickly, she passed by Underdog who narrowly rolled out of a gap as a cart rear-ended another. This was a good sign that she was near.

She saw a blur of color- gray coat and lime green mane dash past. Acting on instinct, she pounced for it like a lion sinking its claws into a gazelle. She nicked the filly in the flank.

Her hooves didn’t find purchase in the filly’s back though. She felt the rug burn of friction on her frogs. Throwing her more off balance, something knocked the wind of her. She struggled to brace as her hooves met the road. As she struggled with disorientation, her hooves grinded against the blacktop. The felt the grainy gravelly surface slip and slide underneath.

As she struggled to regain her balance, a hoof reached out. She quickly clung onto it. The hoof pulled her towards the other sidewalk.

Once the dizziness wore off, and she caught her breath.

“You okay? You just got T-boned by a cart!” Underdog shouted.

“Yeah, yeah…” Dazzle waved him off. “Get her! You’re so close!”

Underdog shook his head and motioned to her barrel. “You’re hurt!”

Dazzle noticed the red stripe of blood inking in and running down her sweater. She grit her teeth and got up.

Underdog pushed her back down. “Stay down!”

“She’s getting away!” Dazzle shouted.

“No, she isn’t.” Underdog held up a pair of saddlebags. He chuckled. “Dazzle, you are one crazy filly. That dive was both stupid and awesome.”

“What?” Dazzle asked. “HOW?”

Underdog pointed towards the other corner of the street. “Check and mate.”

On the other corner, through blur of the passing carts, Dazzle saw the filly pinned down with some type of aura. A Unicorn bystander was using a spell to hold down the filly.

Suddenly, a mare came up to them. “Thank you for helpi― oh Celestia’s mercy!” The mare screamed.

“Can you get help?” Underdog smiled sheepishly. “My friend is a little feisty, and I cannot leave her unattended.” He held out the saddlebags. “I believe this will help.”

The mare smiled nervously, fastened her saddlebags back and then galloped off.

“So… where was I?” Underdog said with a look of worry yet light-heartedness in his eyes. “You are a crazy filly, Dazzle. Once you knocked her in the flank, she yelped and dropped the saddlebags. It gave me enough opening to kick her to the curb, pick up the saddlebags, and drag you to safety.

“HEY! YOU OKAY?” A stallion asked. He stared down at Dazzle and gasped. “Oh no!”

Dazzle shook her head. “Can I get up?” She lifted a hoof up, but a sharp pain danced down her rib cage. “Augh! That can’t be good.”

“It’s probably a huge blood blister that popped or something.” Underdog said. “Not fond of complex medical terms. A-Braze-something.”

“Abrasion.” Dazzle finished, recognizing the term from her scholarly chats with Yttrium.

A crowd was gathering by the second. Some ponies chose to look away. Dazzle didn’t blame them. She dared a glance at her side, seeing the fabric of her sweater slowly being soaked in blood.

“Wait… kid! Your flank!” the stallion from the cart said.

Underdog checked his side, which began to glow faintly. His eyes widened. “No way! How in Equestria did that happen?”

Dazzle swiveled around, carefully trying not to arch her back or twist her barrel. On Underdog’s flank, as bright as day was a brand-new image of a paw print over the image of a shield. On one side, it was taking a hit, marked by a couple five-sided yellow stars. On the other side were a couple pink hearts.

“Thank you Dazzle!” Underdog shouted. “I would hug you, but ya know…” He smiled. “I know you said it might not happen anytime soon, but isn’t it funny that it happened now?”

“Yeah.” Dazzle said. “It’s been a crazy day.”

Suddenly, medical ponies, some that she recognized came rushing in. “Okay, mister, tell me what happened.”

The stallion from that cart jumped in. “She got hit by a cart.”

“You’ve should’ve seen it! This was hectic!” The mare from before jumped in. “These two helped me get back my property!”

The paramedic gestured to the rest of his team. “We’ll get her into a stretcher.”

Dazzle took a few breaths and focused on breathing. This was fun. Sure, it was hard to focus with the commotion, but altogether, she felt like she did something right.

As she was loaded into the cramped ambulance, she started to regain her bearings. That actually happened! She was sure that she wasn’t dreaming. The pain, the detail of the ambulance’s interior, Underdog. All real.

While paramedics rushed back and forth outside, Underdog scooted to her bedside, or technically… stretch-side. “Thank you for everything. I owe everything that happened today to you.” He said, leaning on the edge of the stretcher.

“Nah. I just encouraged it,” Dazzle said. “It’s your day in the sun. It’s not everyday that a colt gets his cutie mark!”

A paramedic entered the back before the doors slammed behind her. The ambulance lurched forward, speeding down the streets of Mane-hattan.

The paramedic donned a ventilator over Dazzle’s muzzle. Dazzle took a few breaths and calmed her. Her heart slowed.

“This will only pinch a bit.” She tugged on her sweater sleeve.

Dazzle knew what was happening. They were going to put an IV in. “Wait! Stop!”

But it was too late. The Sweater sleeve rolled up. The paramedic paused for a second to process what she was seeing

Underdog’s smile dropped off his face. “What in Equestria?!”

Chapter 39: Alone

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As soon as Coco saw the messengers at her door, her mind fell apart to panic. Like a house of cards, she stood tall and composed, but due the state of mild stress she was in, just the slightest agitation would cause her to break down. Thankfully, Florin was with her, collaborating with her on their next project. Both of them had barely come back from their presentation. Summer line was almost upon them, and they had to make sure everything was in tip-top shape.

Coco felt her heart torn every which way in that taxi. No sparing a second, Florin smiled and comforted Coco, helping her to take some deep breaths. Coco was ever thankful for that.

What Florin couldn’t do, however, was stop the whirling thoughts in her mind. The words were burned into her skull, a crystal-clear memory as messengers passed the note to her by as they rushed downstairs. The first thing that her eyes came across. “Coco Pommel, we regret to inform you that there has been a major accident.” She read through the letter, stomaching the descriptions of where Dazzle was injured. At the bottom, signed Doctor Globin. How peculiar. What was he doing in the ER?

The whole ride through town was swift as it was also a blur. She felt detached from the world. The fears of whether her new line would be a success or a flop drifted away as only one thing came to the forefront of her mind: Dazzle.

As soon as she exited the cart, some guards posted nearby marched to her side. Coco found this strange until she noticed droves of reporters trying to push into the hospital. A barricade full of guards kept the sea of never-ending questions from stepping any closer. As soon as one of the guards noticed Coco they waded through the crowd and guarded her as the other guards fanned out to push back the flood. Thankfully, she reached the emergency room doors. Respectfully, her escort guard reached and held open the door.

Inside, a mare in scrubs looked up from a clipboard. “Coco?”

“That’s me,” Coco affirmed, keeping her upright posture, trying hard not to tremble.

“Follow me back,” The nurse instructed. “Doctor Staunch is expecting you.”

Deeper into the hospital she followed. As she did, she looked around. Passing by alcoves that served as waiting rooms, she saw nopony familiar until…

She immediately recognized one of the foals. He was the bully that beat Dazzle up a couple months back. There he was, with a mean smirk on his face, sitting in a plush chair in the waiting room. Now, what was he doing here? Did he have to do with anything with the injuries? Judging by the look on his face, he might have something to do with it, probably taking pleasure in what he did to Dazzle.

Coco had the itch to confront him. Wait… should she? Would she snap under the pressure as she fumed?

“I’ll wait out here.” Florin patted her on the shoulder before she could make up her mind. Florin took a seat in the waiting room.

Maybe Florin would get some answers. She thought nothing more of it as she entered the office of a doctor. He focus was brought to the fact that she was led to a different office than Doctor Globin’s… Weird, wasn’t he the one that sent out that letter?

“Thank you for meeting with me, Ms. Pommel.” The doctor held out a light gray hoof. “I’m Doctor Staunch.”

Coco shook his hoof and took a seat. As she looked around the room, she found it to be stuffed with medical instruments and papers strewn everywhere. In itself it was a sizable room, but with all the clutter it made the room feel a lot smaller than it actually was.

“Pardon my mess. I don’t come in here often. I’m always in the ER anyways…” Doctor staunch settled down in his seat. “Let’s get to it though, has anypony talked to you about what happened yet?”

“Doctor Globin has shared the injuries with me, but didn’t tell me what happened.” Coco firmly stated. “Although I skimmed over his notes. Could you fill me in?”

“She got hit by a cart.” Doctor Staunch said.

Coco gasped. “Is she going to be okay?”

“Yes. Nothing fatal and can and will be mended on her own in two weeks.” Doctor Staunch said. “Most she’ll need to take is a prescription ibuprofen.”

“Did that foal outside in the waiting room push her into oncoming traffic?” Coco asked, she shifted in her seat, trying to keep her composure. When she got her hooves on him, he would regret―

“Nope. In actuality, he dragged her out of traffic once she got hit,” Doctor Staunch answered. He smiled. “It’s a long story that we don’t have time for. I’m sure that the foal outside could answer your questions though.”

He took some papers from the side of the desk and set it in front of Coco. “I do have a couple questions for you though.”

By the grim look on the Doctor’s face, Coco could tell something was off.

He pointed to the diagrams, showing the frontal, side, and dorsal views of a pony. From what she could see, she saw that the gash that Doctor globin gave a brief overview about how the main gash stretched across the barrel. However, something else caught her eye. Circles around both forelegs. To the side, crammed in the margins were scratchy, short notes she couldn’t even begin to decipher.

Doctor Staunch’s expression changed. He pointed to where she was looking at. “Now, this will come off as blunt, but is there any trouble at school? Has she been acting funny?”

“No. Not at all.” Coco shook her head. “Is something the matter?”

Doctor Staunch sighed. “We discovered abrasions on her forelegs also, but these ones are unlike the ones caused by cart… These ones are clean, straight, and appear to be self-inflicted.”

“You mean to tell me―” Coco gasped. So that is why Dazzle insisted in wearing her sweater even though spring was ending.

“I know this is a lot to take in, Ms. Pommel,” Doctor Staunch began. “But since you are listed as the first contact, we need your permission to allow her to go through therapy. She hasn’t said much regarding the subject, but there is stuff that she isn’t telling you.”

Dazzle? Keeping Secrets? To this aptitude? She could wrap her head around some of it, but there was a time to let it all come out. Maybe she could talk to Dazzle after a warm bowl of soup.

“Our records show you are familiar with our therapist, Dr. Glass?” He asked.

Coco nodded. “Very well, actually.”

Doctor Staunch pulled out a sticky note and clicked his pen. “I will recommend her to be the therapist for Dazzle. Are you comfortable with that?”

“If you think it’s a good idea, then I would be more than willing to setup appointments with her.”

He made note of it. “Since all of the above abrasions are shallow, we are able to release her from the hospital in forty-eight hours.”

“Oh, that’s good to hear.” Coco said.

“I’m always happy to pass along good news,” Doctor Staunch said. “In the meantime, we will need to check on her and make sure nothing has changed.” He got up from his chair, tucked a stack of papers under his leg, and trotted towards the door. He held it open.

Coco got up from her seat. “Thank you.” she bowed as she exited.

Coco made her way down the hall. As soon as she made it to the inner waiting room, she saw Florin right next to the colt from before. Florin spotted her and waved at her to come closer.

“Hey, Coco! Underdog here has quite a tale to tell!”

The night had come and the apartment had grown cold. Outside, the weather raged as the last hurrah of winter pounded on the windows and face of the building. Coco had her fireplace when the first winds of Cloudsdale warned of the incoming storm, but the warmth’s reach stopped midway through the hallway, leaving her bedroom and work area as cold as a Wendigo’s heart.

Coco was already restless with the tasks of the day. She figured she could go back to sewing and finishing up the line, but no inspiration was flowing through her. True, she could force herself to continue on and work and maybe her muse would cooperate. But, the combination of cold and isolation prevented her from doing such.

She could’ve gone to Florin’s earlier, but not thinking of the storm, she passed the opportunity to go with her friend. She figured she could get some of her tasks done at home, even when something in her heart told her to keep by Florin’s side. She was half-tempted to brave the storm and head over to Florin’s, but she knew that by now the whole family would have gone to bed. Especially considering that Florin was expecting and had to take it easy.

Mostly, Coco didn’t know how much she missed and needed Dazzle until tonight. She wanted Dazzle to come home tonight… Unfortunately, she had to wait until Sunday. Like a foal anxiously waiting for Hearth’s Warming to arrive, it seemed like the hours squeaked by slowly and every second felt like an eternity.

She had to be content with it anyway. Dazzle needed some time to recover from the accident. Coco knew that she would be selfish for keeping Dazzle from her recovery. After all, the poor thing had more issues than scratches.

As Coco thought of Dazzle, she was reminded of something that she needed to do. Prepare the kitchen for Saturday. Dazzle’s friends were still coming over. Underdog was making sure of that.

Coco made her way towards the kitchen and decided to prep the baking equipment. Somehow, someway, on top of her crazy schedule, Dazzle had talked her into letting her friends come over tomorrow and make chocolate chip cookies. Supposedly an activity that could potentially have some of them earn their cutie marks.

Coco at first thought it was highly unlikely that one of them would get a cutie mark in cooking, but she agreed for the simple fact that she enjoyed cooking, maybe she could perfect her craft by showing others how to cook.

Of course, after the events of today, the feat of earning a cutie mark, especially with Dazzle around, didn’t seem like longshot. She couldn’t believe the story. Underdog, one of the school bullies that beat her around was now thankful for her when he got his cutie mark. A cutie mark in the same day that a friendship was formed. Maybe that was the secret.

Anyway, somehow, they dodged a lot of carts in order to catch a thief. Dazzle got hit in the process, but Underdog dragged her out. Somewhere in between, he got his cutie mark.

As Coco wiped down the mixing bowl, she couldn’t help but think that maybe his mark appeared when he pulled her out of the middle of the road. It was the most likely.

Coco set the mixing bowl down on the table with the rest of the utensils.

Florin was equally excited for him. Who wouldn’t be though? The colt just got his cutie mark, and in a chaotic way, nonetheless.

Coco turned back towards the living room. She was done with the dishes and would like nothing more than to rest next to the crackling fire.

As she walked, her mind reeled back to the concerns and mixture of emotions that Underdog was expressing to her. Surprisingly, even though he had so much to be happy for, he still felt bad that Dazzle got hurt in the process.

Florin clarified to Coco that Underdog helped Dazzle not move after being hit. He knew that if she moved after an accident like that, she would be furthering the damage done. He also kept her calm even though something like this could be fatal.

The conversation went on to him asking more if Dazzle was okay. Coco mentioned that she was able to get out tomorrow afternoon, so that was good. However, there was something that Coco caught in his eyes that spoke silently to her.

He saw the cuts on her forelegs. He knew. He must’ve saw. Most importantly, he was worried for her.

Coco was worried also. But, as if he were reading her mind, he quickly turned the subject around, not wanting to go into further detail. He mentioned he had a friend in the hospital too, and he needed to go see how she was doing.

Before he left, Florin said her goodbyes, but let the activity that Dazzle’s friends were doing tomorrow slip, expecting he was one of the invitees. He turned around, and said he heard nothing of the matter. Coco half-expected the conversation to turn sour after that, but one thing led to another, and Florin invited Underdog to tag along.

As Coco settled on the couch, she wondered how the events of tomorrow would pan out. Mixing Underdog with those set of foals could be quite disastrous, but Florin insisted that he’d come. Coco guessed that she shouldn’t worry about it. Florin always had her back.

As Coco nestled in the couch, her mind mulled over a memory. She remembered the warmth of Dazzle as she and her rested on the couch after the Corrosion hit the school.

Coco got up off the couch, flinching at the hollowness of it all. The worry and emptiness that Dazzle had felt for Vertigo had manifested itself in Coco. She now felt her pain. It was an odd connection and one that she didn’t want to think about at this time.

Probably a good time to get to bed.

She poured water over the fire, feeling the apartment fall a couple degrees with every drop.

As she progressed into her room, she couldn’t help but feel the tugging at her heart, like an impression from before: reach into her desk for that letter. She knew that she couldn’t dig it out, for it would release old, darkened feelings. Why would she want to bring it out?

Still, though. She couldn’t shake the feeling that she might need it soon.

Going over to her desk, she reached inside the drawer carefully. Carefully enough that she wouldn’t prick herself on stray needles. She set the envelope on the desk.

Temptation started to swirl around her as she looked at it. Perhaps she could finish the job and mail it tonight.

No. She couldn’t. It was just a day and another without Dazzle.

Frustrated, she shoved the letter back into the drawer and climbed into bed.

Spreading the blankets over her, she curled up.

Inside the shell of her blankets, thoughts started spreading through her mind. Inside of her, she felt like she did something wrong. What was with that letter anyway? Nothing of great importance… it would just have as much impact here as it did elsewhere. Either way, it would eventually find its way to her family and friends.

But Coco was always paralyzed in her own bed. She closed her eyes and began to take a couple deep breaths.

Tears came to her eyes.

In a lonely apartment, braving a storm inside herself, Coco cried herself to sleep.

Chapter 40: Holding On

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Coco smiled as she read the newspaper this morning. It would be great news to share with Dazzle. With these hard times, she knew it was important to focus on the positive. Just as she thought of it, she saw Dazzle walk through the living room, making her way to the kitchen.

As Coco cleaned up the kitchen, she smiled, and tossed a newspaper onto the counter, sliding in front of Dazzle. “Looks like you and your friend made the paper.”

“Thief’s plan foiled by foals: Underdog of the streets,” Dazzle read aloud as she paused next to the counter.

“Underdog couldn’t stop talking about it the other day. It was sure hard to focus on cookies.” Coco laughed. She put the dirty utensils into the sink. “Luckily, we got a good batch in. Unfortunately, no cutie marks, I guess we need you here.” She flashed a smile for good measure.

Dazzle didn’t respond. Instead, she stood captivated by the paper, reading the paper.

“Goes to your head a little bit, doesn’t it?” Coco said. “In my experience, one positive review can dispel the dark clouds of criticism.”

Dazzle pushed the paper away. Tears were slowly coming to her eyes. “I don’t― I didn’t deserve this.”

“Surely you do! Just take a look at what the paper said!” Coco motioned to the text. “You managed to be agile enough to catch up with the thief, even risking injury to help out.”

Dazzle faced away from the paper. She leaned against the counter. Nervously, she rolled down her sweater sleeves.

“Want a cookie?” Coco offered. “We have leftovers!”

“Not right now. I need breakfast,” Dazzle said as she started for the pantry.

“Nono.” Coco held up a hoof. “I do admit, cookies seem improper for breakfast, but would you like French toast?”

“Uhm, sure.” Dazzle said.

Coco pulled up a chair and motioned for Dazzle to have a seat. Sighing, Dazzle obliged.

Satisfied, Coco donned an apron and started the stove. She whisked a mixture of milk and the powder from a nearby kit.

A prolonged silence filled the kitchen, minus the noise of the whisk scraping the bowl as Coco mixed. Coco figured she had to be the one to say something, but didn’t know what to talk about. The weather? Wait! The weather! Cloudsdale had a surprise for Mane-hattan.

“So, Cloudsdale sent out a report that they have a surplus of snow backed up at the weather factories.” Coco said. “Something about the fact that their work was slowed down due to safety precautions. Thankfully, the crops all over Equestria seem to be resilient.”

“Yeah?” Dazzle said.

Coco dipped the bread into the mixture. “Yep. So, dress warm tonight. We are about to receive the last grips of winter.”

“Okay.” Dazzle answered back. “By the way, thank you for mending this sweater.”

Coco looked back to the white sweater she was wearing. She worked hard to bleach the red out of it, thank goodness she used a material that cooperated with the wash well. That, and a couple stitches, the sweater was good as new.

However, she hoped that she could figure a way to mend the pony wearing it. Mending a sweater was one thing, mending a broken spirit was another. The doctor had been vague about the details, but one thing she knew for sure. Keep talking. Establish trust. Once that trust was there, tender loving care would come next.

“Since the weather will be a cold one, I’m going to run to the store to get some ingredients for soup,” Coco said. “You want to come?”

“No,” Dazzle mumbled. “Not really.”

“Why? Coco asked. “I thought you liked shopping with me… used to be one of your favorite pastimes…”

“I’m… just not in the mood,” Dazzle said.

“Not in the mood?” Coco asked. “I would leave you here, but then again, what if I get caught up in the storm? I might need some help…” She figured that talking about vulnerability would be a step in the right direction. The statement was technically true. The storm might delay her.

“I… I’m just tired, that’s all,” Dazzle said.

“Uhm Okay,” Coco said. “I guess I’ll figure something out.”

Coco laid in her bed. The was nothing like curling up and reading a book. She managed to get backlogged enough on books lent to her from Rarity that she practically had a book monster sprawling out from her shelf. When it came to Rarity, you would think she’d be into romance novels, but beyond that, Rarity had an affinity for mystery. Ever since the incident with Wind Rider, Rarity earned her spot as a mystery novel enthusiast by clearing Rainbow Dash’s name.

As she shifted in her covers, wondering who stole the diamond pendant in a midnight heist, her stomach growled.

“Oh! Better start dinner!” Coco placed the spare piece of cloth she used as a bookmark where she stopped and hopped off the bed.

Her hooves echoed on the cold hardwood floor. Outside, a snow storm raged. Not quite a blizzard… but still a storm that a pony wouldn’t like to be caught in. Dazzle had some wisdom in not making a grocery store trip, otherwise, the storm would’ve soaked them through.

She decided to take a detour. Check on Dazzle and see how she was doing. She rapped on the Bedroom door. “Hey, Dazzle? I’m about to start dinner. You want to help?”

Coco’s heart gradually sped up when nothing but silence greeted her. The faint peppering of snow could be heard gathering on the windows accompanied by the ensemble of the wind rushing down the streets outside.

“Dazzle?” Coco said, wedging the ajar door further.

Please be asleep. Please be asleep. Coco took a few steps forward, her forelegs starting to tremble. As she approached the bed, she found no occupant.

Coco started to speak a little louder. “Dazzle? Sweetie? Where are you?”

She started towards the kitchen, hoping that Dazzle might’ve fallen asleep on one of the sofas.

Strike two. Where could that filly have gone?

Her heart nearly stopped as she saw an envelope atop the kitchen counter. Galloping now, she picked up the envelope. On it, it had the words ‘Mom’ on it. She ripped it open and started reading the contents.

Her eyes raced back and forth across the paper. Every so often, the words would be muddled by warping of water. With a quick skimming, her eyes locked onto the keyword she needed most: Rooftop.

She booked it out the door not bothering to lock the door behind her. Don’t be too late. Don’t be too late.

She burst through the stairwell and up the grated stairs.

Her mind was going a million miles per hour.

Finally, she shoved her way towards the roof doors and burst into the cold air.

Flurries of snow flew everywhere. The whole world around her seemed encapsulated in a white fog. She could only see to the edge of the nearest buildings. Then, she saw it.

Coco's heart pounded as her eyes witnessed a ghost― a shadow from the past.

"DAZZLE! DON'T YOU BUCKING DARE!" Coco shouted as she rushed forward and pulled Dazzle away from the edge.

"Just leave me alone!" Dazzle said as she pounded on Coco.

Coco clung onto Dazzle, every fiber of her being forming an iron grip around her.

Coco carried Dazzle away from the edge. In the process, Coco almost tripped over the firepit, the form of it hiding under a blanket of snow. Despite the obstacle, Coco still held on tight to Dazzle.

“LET GO!” Dazzle thrashed. “LET GO!”

Coco, not sure what else to do, did what she did out of desperation. Her grip changed. She pulled Dazzle closer to her and wrapped her hooves around her.

“Dazzle!” Coco choked on her words. She couldn’t believe what she was about to say…

“If you jump, then I jump too!” Coco breathed out. Her words were eerily smooth as they came out of her mouth. It glided out of her mouth, seeming more like instinct than actual thoughts.

Dazzle stopped punching and kicking. She looked up to Coco with a mixture of confusion, shock, and tears in her eyes.

Coco squeezed Dazzle tight. So tight, she could feel the slow, eerily calm heartbeat of Dazzle. “Dazzle, I have a confession to make. I haven’t told anypony this, and I don’t know why I haven’t told you.”

Coco took a deep, icy breath. The mixture of the humidity and the cold in combination with the knots forming in her throat made it feel like she was drowning. Managing to muster up strength, she continued, “Dazzle, the reason why I let you into my life so quickly and without hesitation is that the night you came, I was preparing to leap off that very edge. I’ve stared down at that gaping chasm for a long time before mustering up the energy necessary to finally make the jump.”

Dazzle embraced her back. For a long time, she stayed there, even amidst the biting frost of the snow touching their hooves.

“I-I had no idea.” Dazzle sobbed. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault. I should’ve been there to listen.” Coco sniffled. “That’s what I longed for more than anything. Just to have somepony listen to my troubles… not solve them, but to console me with the hard times I was going through.”

“Will you listen to me?” Dazzle asked. The poignant question hung in the air, catching Coco unprepared. Her mind was drawing a blank, yet her heart was speaking for her.

“I will.” Coco said with a smile. “Just as long as you come down with me to dinner. I think I changed my mind to Apple Fritters.” She motioned towards the doors. “Come on. Let’s get out of the snow.”

Chapter 41: Truth

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Coco tied on her apron. She said nothing on their trip down the stairs, since she knew that little talk could only make the situation awkward. Both of them dried off with a towel, and promptly, Coco switched the heater on to extra high. No chance of catching a cold.

As a bonus, she preheated the oven. Any warmth seemed welcome at this point. While the oven warmed up, she diced the apples.

“I hope it’s not too personal, but what was going on around that time that made life miserable?”

Coco appreciated cutting to the chase a little more.

“Well, I’ve might’ve mentioned bits and pieces to you,” Coco said. “Do you know about the history between me and Suri Polomare?”

“More than I’d like.” Dazzle scowled. “I know that your troubles only started after she stole Rarity’s designs. Randolph also says that he helped you through legal trouble with her.”

“Tip of the iceberg.” Coco tsked. “My therapist, Doctor Glass, which you’ll be seeing soon, helped me understand that my emotional rut was most likely an after-effect of stress. There is this phenomenon that when a pony gets stressed for long periods of time, then when the smoke of their tumult finally clears… the pony feels empty. Something about being used to stress all the time, and without it… they feel empty. They start looking for something to fill that void.

Coco looked over her shoulder. “Have you ever felt that way?”

Dazzle nodded, although Coco saw it was kind of uncertain.

When she didn’t say anything, Coco motioned with her hoof “Come on. Whatever is on your mind, just spill it. That’s why we are down here anyways…”

“I guess there was a lot of stress transitioning into my new life here in Mane-hattan,” Dazzle said. “Things have been stressful still, but not as much as before.”

“What are you stressed about?” Coco asked as she mixed the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.

“Nothing much. Just schoolwork and friends.” Dazzle answered.

“Well, the school year is coming to an end with summer break right around the corner.” Coco pointed her spoon towards the calendar. “That, and if your friends are stressing you out, you can tell them.”

Coco laughed. “Something I had to learn from you is that if Florin, Montressor, or Marigold were making me uncomfortable, I need to speak up.”

“No, it’s not as if they are making me uncomfortable, all I’m saying is that there is so much to do,” Dazzle said. “Especially with Napoleon leaving for Canterlot at the end of August. Want to get as much time with him in before we are separated.”

Coco noticed that Dazzle put emphasis on the word ‘separated’. Maybe she could build from that. “Is him leaving have anything to do with this?”

“No.” Dazzle said.

Dead end. If Dazzle was telling the truth, then she didn’t identify the problem. If Dazzle was lying, then calling her out would only make it worse.

“Well, actually, maybe…” Dazzle said. “It has nothing to do with him other than… reminding me of something I did.”

“Oh? What happened?” Coco asked.

Dazzle paused. Quietly, she spilled, “It has to do with what I did back in Ponyville.”

Coco set the teaspoon of lemon juice. She turned around and took a seat at the table. “You’ve mentioned from time to time of what you did back in Ponyville. Randolph has also mentioned some of the details also. I just wanted to ask, is this the reason why you feel this way?”

“Kind of,” Dazzle said, tracing a line in the ground with one of her hindlegs. She winced. “I regret what I did back there, and I know all the time from you that no matter what, I cannot fix it, but as long as I change today, that is enough.”

From the sounds of it, Dazzle understood that Coco was trying to help, but she wasn’t― or didn’t know― how to let go of the past.

“If I take it correct, you still have nightmares of what you did?” Coco asked.

Dazzle’s eyes widened. “How do you know that?”

“I have them too,” Coco admitted. “Luckily, Luna helps me out when things are particularly ugly.” Coco shuddered. “I have nightmares about the defamation and attacks that Suri directed at me after I helped Rarity. She knew a pinch too much about me and used it to make sure my life was miserable. I have yet to overcome the particular nightmare where I’m standing in civil court, all alone with the jury’s disapproving eyes as the judge sentences that thirty percent of my designs and profit goes to Suri along with community service.”

Sometimes, I remember what Randolph has done for me and managed to get me out unscathed. Other times, Suri turns into a bat pony and bites my neck.”

“Bites your neck?” Dazzle asked incredulously.

Coco laughed. “I read way too much classical horror for my own good. I should stop reading those before bed.”

Dazzle smiled.

“From what I can tell though, is that yours are more intense than mine.” Coco said. “I feel awful when I check on you and your pillow is soaked through with tears. Although, nothing compares with the scare you give me when you scream yourself awake.”

“Yeah, I remember that,” Dazzle said. “I had a real doozy there.”

“I’d bet.” Coco walked over to Dazzle and playfully bopped her on the head. “What are your nightmares about?”

Coco listened closely as Dazzle poured out the nitty gritty details. From facing an evil version of herself to being blasted by some type of spell. What caught her attention, was that she mentioned that Silver Spoon and Vertigo were in the dream. Not just as projections, but as an entire merged dream. She thought it not too farfetched since Luna had her take a look into what was happening. She wanted to mention what she saw, but doing so would be counterproductive. It was her little secret, after all.

“Tell me about Silver Spoon.” Coco requested. “I’ve never met her, but from what I can tell, she’s very important to you. Especially since Luna had her exclusively with Vertigo.”

Tears came to Dazzle’s eyes.

“Wait… I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to talk about a sensitive topic…”

“No. It’s okay. You have a right to know.” Dazzle wiped a hoof across her muzzle. “She was my best friend. We’ve known each other since we were toddlers. Even though I had my shortcomings, she was always supportive. What I couldn’t have expected is that she helped me find the better way to be kind.

I was running for Class President, but she had mustered enough courage to not vote for me since she knew I would use it to hurt others. From then on, it sent me spiraling into a self-search. Talking to others about how I feel and the path to correcting my mistakes. I owe it to her that I’m sitting in this apartment here. I had the chance to flee my old life and pursue a new one her in Mane-hattan. All because of her. I couldn’t thank her more.”

Coco smiled. It’s good to know how much of a friend Silver Spoon was to Dazzle. She was about to comment, but Dazzle’s expression turned gloomy.

“Unfortunately, she wasn’t so lucky and had to deal with my actions back at home. Then, I received a letter a week ago. I was wondering why she wasn’t getting back to me, but then Randolph told me what happened.” Dazzle looked up at Coco with tear-filled eyes. “She tried to take her own life.”

Coco gasped. She reached across the table and took one of Dazzle’s hooves.

Dazzle sniffled. “Now, she is in the hospital, being nursed back to health. Randolph knew my next reaction was to go back to Ponyville and help her, but he warned me that the whole town is plunged in a tumult because of her attempt― Ponies fighting for and against her, justifying or condemning her actions.

The worst part is feeling for her, but unable to help her out. I don’t deserve any of this. I have a great life here in Mane-hattan, while my friend is paying the price.” Dazzle looked up at Coco with tearful eyes. “I felt helpless to help out a friend, so I planned the jump. Draw attention to what I’ve done and hopefully take the blame off her. I’ve ruined her life, so It’s only natural I try to help the best way I can.” Dazzle sighed, taking a deep breath as the hiccups started to come.

Coco trotted to her and hugged Dazzle. “Dazzle. I just want to let you know that you are an amazing pony. I’m sorry you can’t help your friend! But, just think how your friends would feel if you were suddenly gone!”

“After all I’ve done, I doubt they’d―”

“No, Dazzle, I won’t let you talk that way.” Coco said. “Let me prove it to you. Napoleon has learned to put himself out more now because of you. He has come up to me and mentioned how thankful he was that you reached out and got his nose out of the books.”

“Yeah, just one…” Dazzle said.

“I’m not finished!” Coco stamped her hoof on the table. “Vertigo is thankful that you helped her get her cutie mark. Bling is thankful you gave him the benefit of the doubt. Yttrium has mentioned how helpful you’ve been at the hospital! You wouldn’t believe what Underdog said to me in the waiting room while the doctors were clearing you!”

“What did he say?” Dazzle asked.

“He just adores you!” Coco said. “He was talking about how fearless you were to follow him to catch the thief, and how strong you are! If I’m being honest, I think he has a crush on you!”

Dazzle paused a moment.

“Don’t take your friends for granted,” Coco instructed. “The best thing you can do is lean on your friends for help. Likewise, the worst thing you can do is stay silent.”

I’ve made a lot of friends along the way. Florin, Montressor, and Marigold picked me up around the time that Suri was suing me,” Coco explained. “Without them, I would be in deep financial and career trouble.”

Coco heard the oven beep. She jumped to life and put the fritters in the oven.

“Before we have fritters, I need you to make me a promise. A Pinkie Pie Promise.” Coco insisted.

“Uhm… okay.” Dazzle said warily.

“I need you to promise not to die on me,” Coco said.

“C’mon, Coco. I’m not an Alicorn.” Dazzle joked.

“You know what I mean.” Coco shook her head playfully and sighed. “I need you to promise never to try taking your own life again.”

“Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye…” Dazzle monotonously said as she went through the motions and sealed it.

“Good! Now we can have some apple fritters!” Coco tapped her hooves against the tile, waiting for the timer on the microwave to go off. It wasn’t long now. Suddenly, like a light going off, she remembered something… Of course! That’s what the Princess meant!

“I’m going into my room to fetch something,” Coco said.

Coco rushed over to her bedroom, rummaged through her drawer, and pulled out a red envelope.

Hold onto the letter for a little while longer. You will need it shortly. Luna’s words echoed in her mind.

Knowing this was the exact time that the Moon Princess had meant for the letter to be used, and not destroyed, Coco realized with a feeling of déjà vu of how clairvoyant Princess Luna was.

She solemnly trotted back to the kitchen and gave Dazzle the Envelope. “Please keep this private. I don’t want anypony else to know of this struggle.”

Coco took a backseat, leaning on the counter, ready to open the microwave once it was done heating up the glaze.

Dazzle’s eyes raced back and forth as she read each line of the letter. Teardrops formed in her eyes as she covered her mouth.

“Coco…” Dazzle whispered airily, dropping the letter. “No…”

“Yes… my suicide note,” Coco said. “There is a lot more to the timing of your arrival than meets the eye.”

“Why would you write things like this? Your artwork is beautiful!” Dazzle said.

“I was going in a direction where I felt I’ve done all the things I could do. Inspiration ran out. I hit a huge artist’s block.” Coco explained. “Right as I was about to give up… BOOM! Divine intervention. You came into my life.”

Dazzle leapt up from her seat and hugged Coco.

“Thank you for choosing life.” Dazzle sobbed. “Without you, I’d be dead.”

“Same regards to you,” Coco said. “We depend on each other. Meant to meet. Not a coincidence.”

The microwave beeped.

“Now… let’s enjoy some apple fritters.” Coco said, pulling away and reaching for the microwave.

Chapter 42: Help

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Luna blocked the inferno hurtling towards Diamond. With a wave of her horn, a glassy aura surged upward like a wave crashing on a cliffside. Diamond flew back in the recoil as the inferno shattered the barrier upon impact.

As soon as her hooves hit the ground, Diamond shakily regained her balance. She felt the ground tremble underneath her as the shock wave rolled through. Even if she was dazed, she felt an interesting affinity for the earth underneath her. It felt as solid as her soul, but as moldable as water.

“Liar! I’ll chop her wings off!” Demon Dazzle threatened. She turned towards Vertigo with fury in her eyes. Demon’s horn lit ablaze.

The chains shrunk and Vertigo let out a pained yelp. Vertigo bit back on her lips as tears welled up in her eyes.

Diamond shuddered. Vertigo’s trying to suppress a scream…

Suddenly, her whimpering stopped. Vertigo looked towards the chains, puzzled. Flapping her wings with ease, the chains dropped off, clattering softly onto the grass. She looked to her right and gasped.

Diamond looked over to Demon Dazzle. Immediately and viscerally, she took a step back. What in Equestria?

Demon Dazzle was smiling, but in a forced, uncanny type of way. Her eyes were hollow, the corners of her mouth twitched. It was almost as her expression was as fake and contorted as a doll’s face.

Aside from her grisly expression, her hooves and legs stiffened. As Diamond struggled to piece together what could possibly be happening, she peered a little closer and found Demon’s horn was engulfed in a silver aura.

Diamond turned to Luna. The princess’s horn glowed brightly like a sliver of moonlight.

“Princess Luna! I thought volition spells were illegal!” Silver Spoon said, breaking the silence.

“Can it, Silver!” Luna barked.

Diamond balked at the response of Princess Luna. Not only it frightened her to see the Princess angry at her friend, but it also unnerved her to see the Princess lose her high composure; her etiquette tossed to the wayside.

She glanced at Diamond with a look of concern and said, “Never. Ever. Talk about this spell.” Luna lowered her head quickly and closed her eyes.

Demon fell to the ground with a thud as her legs buckled from underneath her.

The glow from Luna’s horn faded. She exhaled deeply, catching her breath.

Giving her no time for another deep breath, Demon Dazzle charged towards her.

Luna’s horn sparked, a sphere of light grew and grew until it enveloped them, bathing the dream in light.

Diamond looked around and saw nothingness, just an expanse of stars. Below them, a pearly, sandy walkway. Upon closer look, Diamond realized that the walkway wasn’t made of sand, but rather made up of clusters of stars.

Diamond felt a little woozy as nothing but a void stretched underneath the walkway. Vertigo must’ve caught onto it to as she quickly scuttled to her hooves, away from the edge.

“Where are we?” Diamond asked.

“Celestial Plane,” Luna answered. “Sometimes I take dreamers here if the situation requires it.”

Luna’s horn glowed and then, one by one, ponies started to materialize in midair, and drop to the floor.

“Napoleon!?” Diamond asked as the first one dropped.

“Dazzle?” Napoleon asked. “Where am I?”

Before anypony could answer, Bling appeared in a different spot. Luckily, he was able to react quickly and glide towards the ground.

Diamond looked to the Princess, whose horn was still glowing. She knew who was coming next.

Proving her thoughts correct, Underdog dropped from the sky. He flailed his hooves, whooping as he went down until he barrel-flopped on the floor. He brushed himself off and asked. “First off, what in Equestria is happening? I was about to―” As soon as he made eye contact with Diamond, he stopped. “Okay. This day is getting weird.”

“My apologies, Underdog. This is going to be a rude awakening for you, or rather, a rude lucidity, but you’re actually dreaming,” Luna said to him. She glanced at everypony. “All of you are dreaming.”

Napoleon punched himself in the face.

Luna cleared her throat. “Sorry, but you’re in deep dreamspace.” She paced on the walkway, nodding each to Diamond and Vertigo as she passed by. She stopped next to Napoleon and stood upright, towering over him as she stared at him. “The Celestial Plane to be precise. Waking up requires more.”

Luna resumed pacing down the starry walkway. “The fact that you are seeing me, Diamond as an alicorn, Vertigo as a Wonderbolt, and a Silver Spoon as a Timberwolf should be proof enough.”

Napoleon looked at Diamond’s temple, and then her sides. Self-conscious, Diamond tucked her wings back.

“I’m sorry for interrupting your dreams, everypony.” Luna said. She looked at Underdog briefly. “Especially yours.”

Underdog smiled sheepishly.

“I apologize for the inconvenience, but we have trouble.” She pointed to Diamond. “Diamond, or Dazzle as some of you know her by, is having a nightmare. I usually don’t call in for reinforcements, but we have no choice.”

Luna’s horn glowed and a moving painting popped up. Demon Dazzle was shown turning her father to stone, Vertigo and Silver Spoon working to take her down. Then… all of a sudden, an image of the tree came up.

“This is the singularity of Diamond’s dream.” Luna pointed to the image of the tree. “With it, uprooted by this projection, known as Demon Dazzle, it poses a threat to Diamond’s well-being.”

“Singularity? Projection?” Bling asked brashly. “Ponish, please!”

Napoleon turned around. “Basically, what she is saying is that the tree is very important to Dazzle’s dream. The Demon, although imaginary, still can hurt Dazzle from the inside.”

“Thank you, Napoleon.” Luna nodded. The image flashed to the fight between Demon Dazzle, Vertigo’s wings being bound, Luna intervening.

“We were seriously unprepared.” Luna motioned to the painting. “That’s why I called for you; her friends. The plan is a little haphazard due to the circumstances, but a plan nonetheless. We’ll have three ponies touching down the tree, and three ponies defending it and facing the Demon.”

Luna’s eyes glowed, and suddenly, a couple gemstones appeared in front of her. Diamond recognized them as the ones from her dream.

“Thankfully, Diamond’s imagination has this as some type of failsafe.” Luna levitated each corresponding one, a necklace of gold appearing around each of their necks as she did so. “I’m sure all of you know about the fabled Elements of Harmony.”

“Vertigo Heart, element of optimism!” Luna announced, as the stone locked into place. It was a blue gemstone in a shape of a swirl.

“Napoleon Dynamite, element of knowledge!” A red gemstone in a shape of a firecracker sailed into his necklace.

“Bling-Bling! Element of forgiveness!” A yellow gemstone shaped like a gold ingot was tossed towards him. He caught it and inserted it into the necklace.

“Silver Spoon! Element of perseverance!” A white gemstone in the shape of a spoon floated over to her, and glided into the socket of the necklace

“Underdog! Element of defense!” A green gemstone in a kite-shield locked into place in the necklace.

“And lastly, Diamond Dazzle Tiara, element of leadership!” Diamond saw the pink gemstone levitate overhead. Only instead of going into a necklace, it landed on Diamond’s head and she felt the airiness of shifting into a mare.

“Wait… you’re Mare-ison Bergeron?” Underdog shouted in disbelief.

“Here we go again.” Napoleon rolled his eyes. “Don’t mention it to anypony.”

“It’s not important right now,” Luna interjected. “We got a Demon to defeat. Anyways, since we have three fliers, Vertigo, Diamond, and Bling, you replant the tree. Napoleon, Underdog, and Silver Spoon will defend the ground.”

“What about you, Princess?” Napoleon asked.

“I will help on both sides any way that I can, what is most important though, is that I keep all your windows open so the merge doesn’t collapse on itself.” Luna said.

Luna’s horn started to glow. “I know it’s a lot, but everypony ready?”

All around, there was a resounding yes or affirmative.

Luna’s horn sparked, and then the orb collapsed out. She dodged out of the way as Demon Dazzle ground her hooves against the grass, trying to stop. When she got her balance back, Luna’s horn glowed. A sword, glinting like the surface of the moon, materialized.

“What are you waiting for! Get the tree down!” Luna shouted to all of them.

Immediately, Diamond rushed up as fast as she could, falling behind Bling and Vertigo.

They noticed her falling behind, and came racing back. Propping her up, they got underneath her hooves and pushed her up.

“Never thought that Dazzle would be flying with us!” Bling chuckled.

“Enjoy it while it lasts, minus the doomsday nature of this nightmare,” Vertigo said with a giggle.

Diamond looked out towards the landscape, and found a streak of light on the edge of the fields. She blinked, making sure it wasn’t an optical illusion.

She looked down at the ground, where the Demon was clawing at the air. With each stroke, a fissure, like a crack on glass, illuminated and faded.

The elements of harmony were casting a shield. Thankfully. That would be their safety blanket, buying them some time.

Vertigo and Bling guided her towards a major branch and gently set her forehooves on it.

Diamond started to push the tree with her might. As she did, she entertained herself with what was happening below.

Suddenly, a spark appeared in front of her. It grew to a strand. Then rolled out like a scroll into a pane. Colors flickered across the pane. Diamond felt a slight fear that this might be one of Demon’s tricks, but that fear was squelched as the pane popped to life. Clever. It was one of the moving paintings Luna had previously.

“Sweet Celestia! This is cool!” Napoleon’s voice came through. He was looking directly at her, then his gaze shifted elsewhere, briefly, then back to her, repeating that process every so often.

“This is called a Silver Screen. Some of our guards use it to keep in contact.” Luna’s voice said. From the image, Luna saw her in the background, keeping a close eye on Demon. “Diamond, can you hear us?”

“Uhm. Yes?” Diamond answered, unsure of whether they would hear her also.

“You are doing great. The tree is moving fast.” Luna said.

“Thank Vertigo and Bling. They are probably pushing the most.” Diamond said.

“Not true, Dazzle.” Bling’s image popped up. “Vertigo and I haven’t found a good place to push yet.”

“Ditto,” Vertigo said before sticking her tongue jovially and blowing a raspberry.

“This is not a toy, Napoleon. Tell them their ETA,” Luna barked.

“T-minus ten minutes thirty-seven seconds until the tree reaches the hill,” Napoleon reported.

“Looks like we’ll be here a while.” Luna said. “So, just to give everypony a lowdown of what is happening, this is an image spell, it will work as long as you are gentle with it.”

A blast on the glass made Luna squeeze her eyes shut. She took a deep breath and continued, “I’ve bought us some time with the shield spell I cast prior to our meeting. However, I can’t guarantee how long it will last. Everypony, good luck! Fight hard for Diamond!”

“Grace period is almost over!” Luna shouted. “Napoleon! Stats?”

His screen bleeped. “The trio is going at a seventeen meters per second.” He analyzed from the screen. “Three minutes eighteen seconds until the tree reaches the hill.”

His screen bleeped incessantly.

“Brace yourselves!” Luna shouted.

In a frenzy, Demon broke through blasting a barrage of flame bolts.

Instantly, Luna threw up a shield barrier for herself as Demon Charged towards her.

She flinched as the barrage of bolts exploded against the surface of her shield.

“What is happening down there?” Diamond asked.

“The Nightmare is putting up a fight.” Luna, her image showing her dodging a bolt.

Diamond was about to ask if they needed any backup, but Napoleon cheered “Nice one, Underdog!”

The tone of his voice revealed that everything was alright. Nothing too hard to handle. Luna cut in, seeming to give a hint of morale; “The closer we get to the bottom, the harder it will try to stop us. If we replant the tree atop the hill, that means death for the nightmare.”

“Got it.” Diamond said. She pushed harder and faster on the tree branch, flapping her wings. She like she was swimming against the current of a river as her body drifted from side to side. Probably since she didn’t know how to work her ‘dream-wings’

Vertigo cut into the image. “You are doing great, Dazzle! Don’t tire yourself out too fast though!”

“Why?” Diamond asked.

“If Pegasai get tired in the air, they need to land and catch their breath,” Vertigo said. “Think of it as running. Run too fast, you waste time trying to catch your breath.”

“Vertigo’s right, Dazzle.” Bling popped up on the Silver Screen. “There’s that, and the air is thinner as you get higher up. You’ll have trouble catching your breath up here. Go at a pace where you are pushing as hard you can without burning yourself out.”

“Okay. Got it,” Diamond said, slowing down to pace her pushing.

“Nice job up there.” Napoleon said, his horn glowing. Diamond saw the background; he was encased in his own glowing magic barrier. “We got two minutes left on the clock!”

Suddenly, a beam of darkness darted past Diamond. She heard a yip, then something crashing through the tree. Then, seeing the blur of colors tumbling down the branches, she knew who it was.

“Vertigo!” Napoleon cried out. He ran towards the filly, who was down on the ground. She was scraped up. Please not be hit. Please not be hit.

“Ugh, I’m okay.” Vertigo said, gingerly getting up.

Napoleon glanced at his analysis screen. He gulped. He picked his friend up and said “You sure? Your wings?”

“I can still feel them.” She flapped them playfully.

“Oh, thank goodness.” Napoleon said.

“LOOK OUT!” A blur of metal tossed them to the side.

Before Diamond could make sense of what was going on, the screen shifted to Silver Spoon. Tears of gold welled up in Silver’s metallic wolf eyes and ran down the grooves of her shiny helmet.

Slowly, her Silver slid out of the Timberwolf suit. Diamond’s heart stopped as she saw her friend’s eyes, normally magenta, turn dull and gray

“Silver Spoon!” Diamond flew off her post. A familiar feeling came over her as the wind rushed past her wings violently. She didn’t learn her lesson with the first freefall.

“Oh no you don’t!” Bling caught her. He flew her back to the branch.

“We got to help her! She’s hurt!” Diamond pointed towards the ground.

“The hardest thing I had to learn is that it’s best that the authority figures take care of the problem.” Bling pointed to his screen. On it, Luna was defending the three of them against Demon. Vertigo and Napoleon were detaching her from the crumpled armor.

“There are some problems that cannot be solved simply with punching and kicking,” Bling continued.

On the screen, Luna shouted. “Keep her awake!”

Whilst Luna was dodging and countering magic blasts, Underdog kept Demon overwhelmed. Fighting Luna required Demon’s apex prowess. However, with Underdog added to the mix, she might as well be walking a tightrope while swatting a fly.

“Luna! She’s falling asleep!” Vertigo cried. “What should we do?

“Did I not make myself clear?! Keep her awake!” Luna shouted.

Vertigo took a deep breath. “I’m sorry for this.” Vertigo took one of her hooves and slapped Silver across the face.

“It’s too late,” Napoleon said. “She’s already fallen asleep.”

Luna glanced at the three of them, then blocked a pyroclastic flow spell just in time. Briefly, through the fog of ash and soot, Diamond could see a glimpse of remorse and regret.

Diamond felt something crush her heart with such force, she’d prefer the gusty air currents to knock the wind out of her. She lost control and crumbled to pieces.

In a flash of light, Luna’s horn glowed. In a blink of an eye, Dazzle felt her whole body drift like a piece of wood down a stream.

The worst part? She didn’t care where she was going. Her best friend was gone.

Chapter 43: You

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Diamond felt herself drift onto a shoreline. She coughed, as something was stuck in her lungs… no... her barrel. She dared to take a peek. She gasped. Out of her heart, she found silver tendrils, like weeds growing out of her, stretching to elsewhere.

Strangely, as she took a look around, she found herself on her bedside, not on a beach. This bedroom wasn’t just any old bedroom though. Her very own bedroom back in Ponyville. Only with a couple discrepancies. She noted that some corners of the room looked like the Mid-summer Theater backstage, others like Mane-hattan Elementary, but for the most part, most space was taken up by her foalhood bedroom.

Around the edges of her room, the tendrils weaved and tumbled in array like webs, like tangled threads of Coco’s. However, upon closer inspection, she found silhouettes of ponies attached to the other lines. She barely recognized ponies around the edges of her room.

Suddenly, she heard the fluttering of wings and the landing of hooves against the hardwood.

“Luna? Where are we?” Diamond asked.

“You.” Luna said.

“Pardon?” Diamond asked.

“We are inside the very pure and untainted inside of you, your core, the place where your heart and soul are conjoined.” Luna answered. “To be simple, we’ll call it ‘You’.”

Diamond pointed to the tendrils. “What are ―wait!” Diamond stopped herself and noticed a tendril reaching out of Luna’s heart. She followed the loops and waves, until it ended on Diamond’s heart.

“This is what we call a lifeline.” Luna said. “It’s a connection you’ve made with another pony… I mean, not with everypony you pass by or talk to, but the ponies that you make a lasting, non-superficial tie to.”

Luna waved out to a corner of a room that mimicked the façade of the school hallways. “Let’s start with the hard ones, almost superficial,” The corner of the room illuminated, showing three ponies: Babs, Candy, and Underdog. Each of them seemed in a sleep-like state, with their eyes closed.

“Are we in a merged dream?” Diamond asked warily.

“Oh, don’t worry about it, this is just a projection.” Luna answered. “Anyways, that is beside the point. Notice anything about the lifelines?”

Diamond did. Two of the threads bled red when it reached Babs and Candy. She also noticed that the threads connected elsewhere. To Babs, it connected to her neck, to Candy and Underdog, it connected with their heart. What added intrigue is that Underdog’s line had some red and green faintly in it, but it was almost gone, as if somepony bleached it. Replacing it, was a strong color of blue and it had some flowers woven into the string.

She noted to Luna her observations.

“Very good. We’ll start simple.” Luna said. “Red represents feelings of anger, usually contempt or hatred.” She pointed to Babs and Candy respectively. Made sense.

Luna continued as she pointed to Underdog’s line “Green represents feelings of envy, jealousy, or pride. Lastly, Blue represents soft, yet strong feelings such as sadness or compassion.”

Also made sense. Diamond asked, “Is the reason why the red and green are faint in his line is that he used to have those feelings, but no more?”

Luna smiled. “Quick and Sharp, Diamond Tiara. He used to feel contempt or jealousy regarding you, but once you got to know him, those negative feelings washed away.”

She was about to turn to the next corner, but Diamond interrupted, “What do the flowers mean, though?”

Luna blushed. She sheepishly smiled and said, “If you ever get to see Vertigo’s You, then you’ll see that Napoleon’s line to Vertigo almost seems like a vine then a thread.”

Diamond could feel the burning of her cheeks. That meant Underdog lo―

“Speaking of which.” Luna interrupted, motioning to the next corner. Next up, was a lunch table with Vertigo, Bling, and Napoleon. Each of them had the thread connect to their hearts.

Diamond immediately saw the contrast in colors. The lines were primarily yellow. However, each was unique in a different way. Vertigo’s was solid yellow, not a tinge of any color to take over. However, Napoleon’s and Bling’s lines had a hint of purple in it.

“What does purple mean?” Diamond asked. “I can guess that the yellow represents happiness, but what about purple?”

“You are correct, Diamond Tiara. Yellow denotes happiness, most of it is derived from gratitude.” Luna said. “Purple represents apprehension, anxiety, fear, paranoia, embarrassment.” Luna chuckled. “You did a lot of that with both of them. Napoleon was socially awkward around you and had to swallow his pride when you stood up for Bling. Bling, on the other hoof had to humble himself a lot to apologize for the mistakes he’s made. That began a bright friendship for both of them.

Luna turned towards another corner. She took a deep breath. “This one will be quite unnerving for you. Do you want to go forward to see this one?”

Luna being hesitant wasn’t a good sign. Diamond asked “Is Silver Spoon in that corner?”

Luna nodded grimly.

Diamond gulped. She nodded. “I need to understand what is going on.”

The corner illuminated, an ordinary corner of her bedroom, but with three ponies: Silver Spoon, Coco, and… her father.

Her father’s was blank. A faded shade of yellow was just barely discernable in the thread. The flowers were still there, and healthy, but they were roses.

“Roses mean both a special connection of love, but have a thorny and bitter undertone.” Luna explained. “In contrast to the daisies that we on Underdog’s line, which are you know… puppy love.”

“I got that.” Diamond said. She understood why her father’s thread was so gray. He’d been so distant, so removed from her problems. If she had any trouble with anything, it was Randolph’s duty to listen closely.

…She’d honestly wanted to know how the tired old stallion was doing now.

“If you notice Coco’s, the lilies mean a lot more. I’ll keep that up to interpretation.” Luna said. “Although we all know the nature of the relationship.”

The thread was gold and blue with the undertone of purple slowly being overrun. No surprises there.

Then, she turned to Silver Spoons. She froze. The thread was primarily blue with a couple pricks of red, green, purple, and yellow mixed in. Roses covered the thread. However, that wasn’t the part that unnerved her. The thread had wrapped around her head in a messy bunch, like an unkempt wig. Then, it wrapped around her forelegs, before looping to her heart.

Luna pointed directly at Diamond’s heart. “Notice anything?”

Diamond looked at the many threads coming out, but one she noticed above all. A line was turning black, along with another black thread that had a frayed end.

“What’s with the frayed one?” Diamond asked.

“That is a Lifeline where the pony has passed.” Luna said solemnly.

“You mean… Silver is going to die?!” Diamond shouted.

“Not exactly. But she is on the verge.” Luna clarified.

“You know what? I need to go to Ponyville now! I don’t care what my parents do!” Diamond demanded.

“Diamond, I must urge you that isn’t the wisest of decisions.” Luna said.

“What am I supposed to do then?!” Diamond shouted. “Let my best friend die?”

“It’s a hard decision to watch from the sidelines.”

“I know. Bling mentioned that to me earlier…” Diamond recalled. “W-wait! I also remember something, why did Silver point out that spell? She’s supposed to be an earth pony as far as I remember…”

“That was a volition spell. A morally grey area of casting.” Luna gave Diamond a grim look. "Let's just say a mind that wants to harm itself knows creative ways to do so, even if you aren't the creed."

Diamond shivered.

“You asked, and I answered, but that’s not important right now.” Luna pointed to the final corner. “This is the most important message of all.”

The corner illuminated, revealing a pony she barely saw, but knew better than anypony else.

Her eyes closed, as if asleep, the string stretched from heart to heart. On it, existed all the colors- red, green, yellow, purple, blue, but what frightened her the most… the string was primarily turning black.

“Notice how there are no flowers?” Luna asked.

Diamond’s eyes widened. She turned to the Princess in realization.

“Way too late in life ponies realize that they should learn to love themselves.” Luna said. “I had to learn also.”

“Why is the thread turning black though?” Diamond said.

“I think you already know the answer to that, Diamond Tiara.” Luna said. “Fortunately, it can be delayed.”

The room shifted.

Luna waved out to a moving painting, showing a dark forest “Unbeknownst to you, this was the last dream that Silver had before her attempt… you’ve heard of old buffalo folklore regarding the story of two wolves that exist within us?”

“Yes.” Diamond said. “Wait… you mean to tell me the silver wolf―her armor is a symbol?”

“There are two wolves that exist in ourselves.” Luna motioned to the forest as two silver-clad Timberwolves emerged from the forest. “Here, two Silver Spoons, fighting for control. One belongs to the side, led by the Diamond Princess, and also her friend. The other, is led by her parents, who’ve molded her and created her to what she is. Unfortunately, the two wolves at war…”

Diamond flinched as two wolves made up of interlocking metal parts gnawed at each other necks, scratching and biting, each clash throwing up metal shards and sparks.

“She doesn’t know which side to choose, which side is right. But, with an internal battle within oneself… it only can lead to one path―” Luna’s eyes darkened. “Death.”

For a moment, Diamond caught a glimpse of Nightmare moon’s dragon-like eyes. “Why are you showing me this?”

“Her lesson applies to you as much as anypony else’s.” Luna said. “Don’t try to hide your intentions from me.”

Diamond was acutely aware until that phrase sparked a flare of burning in her chest, an innate reaction to when she was about to be made a fool of. She suppressed it. “I know you are trying to help, but how am I supposed to trust you when you know my secrets?”

“I don’t need you to trust me, Diamond Tiara.” Luna said. “I’m doing this for you and for Coco.”

Diamond’s heart quaked inside of her. The only feeling that kept her from jumping.

“Coco has been through a lot. She doesn’t need to deal with losing you.” Luna said.

“I know. I just want Silver Spoon to get better.” Diamond begged. “Nopony understands what we’ve been through…”

“You’re wrong, Diamond Tiara,” Luna said. “I’ve had the same battle. My two wolves are Luna and Nightmare Moon. Your two wolves are Diamond and Dazzle.

“I’ve envied my sister when ponies respected her day and took for granted my night. You’ve envied Apple Bloom for her close-knit family while yours was distant.

“After I was freed, I expressed self-hatred and never forgave myself for the mistakes I’ve made. After you were given the chance to flee, you never forgot about what you did back in Ponyville.

“We both have yet to overcome our fears of our abilities. For me, an Alicorn Princess that feared her Demonic side. For you, an incredibly gifted filly that feared her blindly ambitious past self.

“You see, we are both afraid that we’ll slip into the ditch our past selves fell into, fearing that our abilities will hurt others.” Luna finished. “But we both overcame it.”

Luna bowed her head. “I have no control over your choices, but I must warn you, be careful with this choice, as it will affect you and those around you. Choosing life or death is not a decision to take lightly. It fully depends on your ability to have a clear head and keep the other wolf at bay.”

“You mean, I will be fighting for the rest of my life?” Diamond asked.

Luna nodded. “But, even amidst the struggle, doesn’t mean it will be awful. Nor does it mean you have to do so alone.” Luna helped Diamond turn around, the strings reaching out to every pony’s life she touched.

Babs, Candy, Underdog, Napoleon, Vertigo, Bling, Babs, Coco, Dad, and Silver Spoon. All with their colorful connections.

“They are there for you, all you need to do is stop suffering in silence. They can’t help you unless you talk to them about what is going on.” Luna said.

Chapter 44: Demon's Defeat

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In a flurry of commotion, Luna’s horn stopped glowing. Dazzle felt her hooves touch the bark of the tree. On the painting, she saw Luna turn her back on the Demon. She bucked, sending Demon flying backward and tumbling onto a patch of coarse dirt. Demon laid there, twitching for a second.

“She won’t be down for long.” Luna bowed her head solemnly as her horn glowed. The gem from the collar of the Timberwolf sailed out of its slot and made its way to Luna’s neck.

“I’m sorry, Diamond, but you know just as I do that I need to take over as the Element of Perseverance.” Luna said.

“I understand, Princess.” Diamond said, pushing the tree with her might. The words were easy, yet the feeling was harder. She felt a hollowness in her soul, like a huge part was taken out of her. Silver Spoon, her friend for as long as she could remember, was no longer with her.

Crying, Vertigo and Napoleon hugged and held each other. Diamond had a feeling that she should speak to them.

“Vertigo. Napoleon. Don’t blame yourselves.” Diamond said with a croak in her throat. She drew on her remaining strength to say the next sentence firmly. “Silver Spoon took the blow for you, please honor what she did by finishing what she set out to accomplish.”

Carefully, Napoleon got up. Reaching out, he pulled Vertigo up on her hooves. Napoleon’s horn glowed. Glancing at the Timberwolf, a sphere of light formed around comatose Silver Spoon. The shield was miniscule compared to the protective shield that Luna cast. However, she knew that Napoleon’s contribution was all that he could muster right now.

“Thank you, Napoleon,” Diamond said, knowing the gesture was from his heart.

He nodded then turned back towards the painting. “One minute forty seconds left.” He said monotonously.

“Affirmative.” Luna said.

“Miss me?” A distorted voice said from behind.

Demon Dazzle fired a blast from her horn. A ball of incendiary sailed through the air and nicked Luna as she dodged.

Underdog came in, lowering his head. A shield arced over his temple. Demon was too busy with Luna she didn’t notice Underdog until a second before he rammed her in the barrel.

Underdog flew back in the recoil.

“Underdog! Are you okay?!” Diamond asked.

“Yep!” Underdog said, getting up and charging towards Demon again. “Somepony knows their spells! I didn’t feel so much of a hoofball to the noggin!”

Diamond looked down towards the surface. The form of Napoleon with his horn lit brighter was evidence enough. He was giving it his best. She pushed the branch a little harder, flapped her wings a little more furiously.

“Thirty Seconds!” Napoleon shouted.

Almost there! She was almost home free!

Her smile was stolen as Demon Dazzle lunged towards the tree.

Luckily, Luna placed a shot that hit Demon in the nape of her neck.

It barely nicked her, but before she could sneer, Napoleon swiveled and kicked her in the snout.

She flinched, and veered off just enough that she missed the trunk of the tree.

Luna, seeing the window of opportunity knocked Demon back with a blast from the horn. Demon landed on the ground, a meager three meters from the trunk.

“Well, If I can’t have the tree, I deserve consolation!” Demon said as her horn glowed. Luna braced, looking all around her for the direction of the hit. Without warning, the blast flew out of nowhere and side-swiped Napoleon.

“No!” Napoleon shouted.

The shield around the Timberwolf disappeared.

Demon lowered her horn at Silver Spoon.

Diamond had no Idea how it happened, but she flashed. When she regained her balance, the shot from Demon’s horn came hurtling towards her.

Diamond fell back as the spell surged through her. It felt as if her soul was being ripped apart.

Demon sneered. “Oh, better prize than I thought.”

Diamond coughed. She hacked out something lodged in her throat. Spitting it on the grass, she felt woozy. Dizzy and nauseated, she saw the color of red spit on the green grass wiggle and wave.

“Familiar? This is what it would feel like hitting the pavement from eleven stories!” Demon said. “It’s only a matter of time before―”

Diamond’s horn sparked and fizzled to life.

“Diamond Dazzle Tiara! NO!” Luna shouted.

Diamond focused on the fabric of the dream, aligning the particles around her just right.

“Heh, you dare oppose me?” Demon Dazzle sneered. “I’m you. I know your every move, the lies you tell yourself… Go on, blast me!”

Diamond winced at the sharp pain in her skull. She focused even more, feeling the familiar magic she had done previous. She had no idea how to pull it off, but she had to try. Do or die.

Diamond craned her neck upwards towards the sky, feeling the earth underneath her surge up like a cresting wave, ready to collapse.

Demon’s sneer slowly melted into a look of sheer terror as the grassy mountains yawned, threatening to swallow her.

Diamond, with all her might, slammed her head down towards the grass.

A wall of dirt surged upward, It separated her from herself. Suddenly, the dirt latched onto the roots of the tree and pulled it towards the ground.

Shock waves of earth, acting like water rolled out, sending Demon flying.

“NO!” Demon bellowed.

The tree reached the ground. Roots sprawled upward instantly, latching onto Demon, catching her midair.

Diamond took a shot at her Demon, with all the energy and pain coursing through her veins. She never felt more alive. More present. More lucid.

The shot paralyzed Demon.

A beacon of light thundered through the top of the tree like lightning and pierced the sky. Light blue inked across the sky, diffusing through the darkened skies until every bit of darkness was vanquished.

“Now, Diamond!” Luna commanded.

Diamond touched the ground… then bowed. A glittery glow of light in the insignia of her cutie mark, flashed briefly on the trunk, then faded.

“Well done Diamond Dazzle Tiara.” Luna bowed.

All around her, she saw her friends run and land next to her. Together, they all joined in a group hug. Vertigo first, Napoleon next, followed by Bling, Underdog, and to her surprise, Silver Spoon. Out of her suit of armor, no less.

“What? How?!” Diamond asked.

Silver Spoon smiled. “I don’t know. All I remember is that you beat my demon and yours. I owe my victory to you.”

The group let go long enough that Silver Spoon made her way to the center.

As Diamond held her best friends in embrace, she saw ponies approaching from the distance, the townsfolk slowly coming out of their places of shelter and refuge.

“Father!” Diamond broke from the group hug and ran towards the Alicorn Prince and hug-tackled him.

“That’s my Diamond,” he said, hugging her back and tousling her hair, careful not to knock of the tiara.

She guided him towards back towards her group of friends.

As she did, Luna approached her. “I’m sorry Diamond Tiara, but I wasn’t being completely honest with you.”

Diamond raised an eyebrow. “With what?”

Luna stepped aside. “She insisted on watching.”

Behind Luna, Coco stood with a smile on her face. She held out a hoof.

“Is it really you?” Diamond asked.

“She’s the merge I didn’t tell you about.” Luna said, almost chuckling.

Diamond ran and hugged her mother.

“How long have you been watching?”

“As soon as Vertigo and Silver came in.” Coco said. “That doesn’t matter though! I’m so proud of you!”

Everypony came in for a bigger embrace, friends and family.

“So… No more darkness? No more sad?” Coco asked.

“No more sad,” Diamond cried. For once in her life, her life came in full circle. She had friends. She had a loving family. Her life was complete. She deserved it. It was hers, to share and to cherish.

Suddenly, Diamond pulled away, a sharp pain running through her head. Everypony looked in horror as she reared back and fell to the ground.

“No! Not now! Not ever!” Underdog screamed, running up to her.

The pain stopped, but she felt her vision going black.

“What? What’s going on?” Diamond asked weakly, ringing in her ears.

“Luna! You said this was a dream!” Underdog turned his head towards the Princess.

Diamond couldn’t see anything anymore. She could only hear the muffled cries and sobs from the crowd.

“This is a dream.” Luna said. “I don’t know why her mind would conjure this… unless…”

“Unless what?” Underdog shouted.

“It doesn’t make any sense though! She’s an earth pony!” Luna shouted.

Suddenly, Diamond was aware of what was occurring.

Blindly, she felt the whole world shift as the sounds grew faint and distorted, then grow back into another voice.

She heard a rapid succession of knocking, followed by Coco calling out; “Dazzle!”

She tried to answer, but what came out were inaudible, wispy breaths.

She could hear running water. The echo of it resounded. She could tell where she was at. In the bathroom in the apartment. Whether she was still dreaming or not, she couldn’t tell.

She then heard the sound of thudding with a faint crackling of wood.

“Dazzle! Open up! You’re scaring me!”

Dazzle tried to get up, but strangely, she felt numb… with the exception of the pounding headache. It was as if all her limbs were asleep. However, on the contrary, she could feel the cold tile underneath her.

“Dazzle! Please! Come out!” She heard Coco slide her hooves on the hardwood. Then, something that shook Dazzle to her core.

Coco started to cry.

Suddenly, she heard rustling, the clatter of hooves racing down the hall, followed by Coco crying out, “Help! Help!”

Dazzle took a few more breaths. She felt weak. She couldn’t see anything. Not even the lights from the bulbs that were warming up her fur.

Every moment felt like eternity.

Just a few more deep breaths. Everything will be alright. She told herself.

Just a few more breaths…

Chapter 45: Impossible

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"If we cut into the flow we have for Barnyard Bargains and move it into an investment for Newcart's business, then we can have a turnaround faster." Mr. Rich said.

"I don't know, Filthy." His wife replied. "Newcart is an unstable bit-stock, and getting Barnyard Bargains to cooperate is a whole new issue."

"Yes, but―” Filthy said before he was cut off by the study door flying open.

Randolph, with a frazzled mane and his bow tie hanging lopsided on his neck was behind it. "Mr. Rich. I didn't want to barge in, but-"

"It can wait, Randolph." Mr. Rich cut him off. "I need to talk with Mrs. Rich about-"

"It's an emergency." Another voice from behind the door spoke. A voice he knew he needed to pay respect to.

From behind the door, Twilight Sparkle walked in.

Mr. Rich folded his hooves "Princess Twilight, what do we owe the honors to?" He said with a bow.

"I'm afraid I come with grim news." Twilight said. "I received a first class post this morning Mane-hattan North. Delivered via one of the fastest fliers in Mane-hattan." She pulled out a letter from her saddlebags.

She read it off. "Dear Princess Sparkle, I regret to inform you that Diamond Dazzle Tiara has been admitted into Mane-hattan North hospital under grave conditions. For the sake of confidentiality, it is recommended that the Rich household makes it over MNH as soon as possible rather than giving the information over letter."

Twilight stuffed the letter in her saddlebags. She retrieved four tickets from her bag. "We have a train to catch."

Coco yawned as she walked down the hallway. Morning.

In a nearby mirror hanging on the wall, she checked her reflection. Through groggy eyes, she snickered at her reflection. She had to get the gel in before the static in hair faded.

As she trotted down the hallway further, she heard the shower running.

Weird… usually Dazzle wasn’t up this early. She knocked on the wooden door. “Dazzle, are you okay in there?”

“Yep! I’m okay!” Dazzle’s voice echoed as she answered. “I just happened to wake up early. Sorry for throwing routine out the window!”

“Don’t worry about it.” Coco said. “Don’t take too long though. I need to get some makeup on.”

“Okay!” Dazzle answered back.

Coco trotted towards the front door, snatched her keys from off the counter, then headed out the door.

Might as well get the mail while waiting. Maybe she’d get another letter from Yttrium. Ever since they had to keep their relationship at a distance, she was more and more excited to check the mail. She would’ve stayed next to her mailbox, checking every second like Pinkie Pie did when Rainbow Dash was off to Wonderbolt’s camp.

As she made her way over to the mail wall, she heard a giggle. She glanced at the Entry, who was hiding a smile behind her hooves.

“Mornin’, Rockstar!” Entry said with a wave.

“Morning!” Coco said, looking at the stallion who was leaning on the desk. “How goes it Mr. Pit?”

The stallion grumbled. “Rough morning. Key broke on me. Entry was just bringing out the emergency keys.”

Entry, who was rummaging underneath her desk, said “My goodness, I wish I organized this key box sooner. Sorry, but It’ll be another minute, Mr. Pit.”

Coco decided to leave the key-finding to the professional and opened her mailbox. She shuffled through the envelopes. Bill, bill, junk mail, bill… Ah ha! An envelope with the hospital’s seal and address. Excitedly, she opened it.

Dang. It was just Dazzle’s medical bill. It wasn’t much since it was just a patch-up, and this was the third week of four payments. Still though, it got her hopes up.

Better luck next time. She glanced over to the desk as the sounds of metal clattering intensified. Looks like luck wasn’t on her side either.

“Like a needle in a haystack! Apologies, Mr. Pit!” Entry said.

“See ya Entry! Hope you find the key!” Coco said.

“See ya Coco!” Entry shouted as Coco began to ascend the staircase.

Coco took a look at each bill, estimating how much money that she needed to balance. Thankfully, Dazzle’s medical bill was a pinch cheaper than she previously thought. Speaking of Dazzle… Maybe Dazzle was done with her shower by now.

She re-entered the apartment and headed towards the hallway. She heard the water running. Darn it. Still showering. Well, got to pay the bills anyway...

As Coco ate her yogurt, she read the newspaper. As per usual, more breakouts of Corrosion across Equestria, followed by the medical community being hounded to find a cure. She couldn’t imagine what Yttrium was going through right now.

As she read a little further, a thought tingled in her brain... Dazzle was taking an awful long time in the shower. She swatted it away, as she just chalked it up to not having her medication. Without it, her mind would start thinking of worst-case scenario. Some of it was founded, but then again, some of it wasn’t unfounded.

She got up from her seat and headed for the bathroom. If anything, she needed to take her medication now.

“Dazzle, I think it’s time to come out now. Leave some hot water for me!” Coco knocked on the door.

Coco sat still for a second, then asked a little louder. "Dazzle?"

She let a minute or two pass, then knocked a little more furiously. “Dazzle!”

Coco twisted the knob. Locked. She started to pound on the door. "Dazzle! Open up! You're scaring me!"

No answer.

“Dazzle! Please! Come out!” Coco shouted as she threw herself against the door. Although the door cracked and popped in protest, it wouldn’t budge.

Her heart raced. She started to connect the dots. She put her ear to the door. Nothing but running water. She rammed the door again, putting all her weight and power into it.

Availing nothing, she crumpled to the floor and cried. Her mind was going in several different directions. What if? Help her! Quick! The more time you waste…

Racing outside, she started to scream, “Help! Help!”

As she charged into the hallway, Entry and Mr. Pit glanced at her, bewildered.

“Entry! Can you unlock the door to my bathroom?” Coco

Entry sheepishly held up a key ring. “Uhm… I don’t have the key, but―”

“Please you need to help! It’s Dazzle! She’s in the bathroom and hasn’t answered me.” Coco sobbed.

Without hesitation, Mr. Pit rushed into Coco’s apartment.

Coco and Entry followed him. When they reached the hallway to the bathroom, Mr. Pit threw himself against the door. The wood creaked and snapped in protest before he gave one final push and the door snapped open.

Coco rushed up and turned the corner to peer into the bathroom. Then Coco fell to pieces. On the floor, Dazzle lay still, her chest barely rising and falling, faintly breathing.

“You liar! You promised!” Coco sobbed as she pulled the filly in an embrace. “You can’t break a Pinkie Promise! YOU CAN’T!” She rocked her back and forth.

“Wait a sec! Can I see her for a second?” The stallion asked, holding his hooves out.

Coco, not sure of what to make of it, carefully set Dazzle into his hooves.

The stallion lifted Dazzle and examined her forehead and face. "Impossible. I mean, she’s an Earth pony." He said.

"What?" Coco asked, a bubble of anger rising through her chest. “What does being an Earth Pony have to do with ―

"Call an ambulance." He told Entry.

Entry galloped off. He turned to Coco.

"I've seen this before. I remember this nightmare clear as day. My wife, Avocado, was passed out on the floor after I got home from work." He glanced at Dazzle and pointed to features around her ears, her eyes, and forehead. "Cloudy eyes, white dust forming behind the ears and veins like chalk on the temple.

Carefully, he gave Dazzle back to Coco. “I don’t understand though, she doesn't have any magic capabilities.”

“Wait… you mean to tell me…” Coco covered her mouth.

He stared at Coco grimly. "Corrosion."

Chapter 46: Theories

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"I'm afraid that this is my fault, Mr. Rich." Twilight said.

“What?” Mr. Rich broke his trance from the passing trees and hills. He steadied himself as the train briefly rocked back and forth. After he had read the letter that given the symptoms and the diagnosis, he struggled to make sense of it. He stayed quiet, trying to sort through his thoughts as composed as possible.

Maybe the Princess had some answers. "Whatever do you mean, Princess?"

Princess Twilight frowned. She bowed her head and stared at the ground. “I’m responsible for your daughter’s ailment.”

Mr. Rich popped an eyebrow. Things were becoming more complicated. First, he finds that his daughter had caught Corrosion, an earth pony! Catching Corrosion! Then, the Princess of Friendship openly admits to being the reason behind it. “Princess, I’m not sure what you’re getting at. How could you be responsible for a Diamond catching Corrosion? It’s like admitting fault for me catching the cold.”

“Can we go to the next car? I think the next first-class is vacant.” Twilight said, glancing around the train car. Although the train car was occupied only by the Rich household and the Princess herself, Filthy was surprised to hear about another train car.

“You may…” Filthy said, trying to keep the hesitation out of his voice.

Princess Twilight hopped off the seat, leading the way down to the next car. As she passed by, she nodded to Randolph who nodded back subtly.

As soon as the door shut behind them with a hiss, Filthy asked “I saw you look at Randolph. I know it’s not proper to make assumptions, but does he know what is going on?”

“More or less.” Princess Twilight took a seat on the plush bench. “In my experience thus far, I can tell he’s a type of pony I can confide in.”

“I agree. That’s what makes him good at his job. He can compartmentalize the information he’s given.” Filthy took his seat across from her. “But, I have yet to understand why you’ve pulled me aside.”

“I’m getting to that.” Princess Twilight started. “But first, I need to make sure you keep it private. I will mention the reasoning behind it as I continue.”

"You have my word.” Mr. Rich said, nodding.

“If Randolph or you wife steps in, we will need to dismiss them.” Princess Twilight said. “The information I’m about to mention doesn’t belong to me, it’s generously lent to me from Dr. Fuse.”

Doctor Fuse. The famous name was seared in Everypony’s minds across Equestria. One of the most celebrated Doctors since the Corrosion hit. Stationed at ground zero, Mane-hattan, Doctor Boron Yttrium Fuse leads the front line, a metaphorical ‘infantry’ in finding the counter-curse.

“That’s one thing I wanted to ask you before I got distracted with reading the letter.” Mr. Rich said. “Doctor Fuse is known for his leaps and breakthroughs. I would assume he is inspecting Diamond for any clues of how the Corrosion worked, but in this letter, he mentions plainly that all the symptoms are regular, and nothing out of the ordinary to report. However, I have my doubts.”

“That’s where I come in to fill in the blanks.” She pointed to the letter. “He would’ve mentioned more, but omitted it is because he’s trying to be careful.”

“Careful, how?” Mr. Rich asked.

“I’m sure you are familiar with Occam’s Razor?” She asked.

“Vaguely.” Mr. Rich said. “I might need a refresher.”

“In a world of so many explanations, the simplest one is usually the correct one. There is a whole process he adheres to, to make sure no misinformation is spread. He makes sure that the results are communicated properly, and to do so, he sometimes oversimplifies.”

“Why would he do such a thing?” Mr. Rich asks. “It seems very un-professional.”

“Three reasons. One, if he makes a mistake about something, then the damage is minor. Two, if he discovers something, he can protect his findings until he is sure the discovery is both observable and able to be replicated. Three, he has a pack of ravenous media crews hounding him for answers. In other words, he’s not trying to hoard secrets, he’s trying to keep the spread of misinformation minimized.”

“I see. So, he’s trying to make sure the foundations of what he knows is stable first before moving onto the next step.” Mr. Rich said.

“It seems ironic that the Doctor making the breakthroughs in leaps and bounds is a careful-footed, cautious Medical Professional, huh?” Princess Twilight said.

“It does.”

“Which leads me into writings he has shared only with the four Princesses and trusted individuals also trying to find the cure.” Princess Twilight tapped on her chest, then waved out towards the window. In the far distance, Filthy could see the first towering buildings of Mane-hattan. “His speculations, in forms of hypotheses, not to be released to the general public.”

“Oh?” Mr. Rich asked curiously.

“The answer to our question about the cure is almost on the horizon. It was staring at us in the face this entire time. It goes back to a fundamental postulate of Meadowbrook. Magic conducts better through organic material, particularly carbon."

“Elementary.” Mr. Rich said. “Although the implications I can see.”

“Next, is a fact of observation.” She continued. “You notice how Earth Ponies don't tote around any magical trinkets? You notice how Earth Ponies are inclined to stay grounded?"

"Yes, Sociology one-o-one." Mr. Rich said. "I studied it while in business. Earth Ponies don't want anything to do with Magic and they barely take up aviation. They are more likely to accept jobs in agriculture, or a trade. We have to keep that in mind to market to them, since they are a third of the population."

“Now we’ve established that, let’s discuss things that only a few ponies know.” Twilight mouth twisted. "On the eve of Nightmare Night last year, I came into Mane-hattan to watch one of Coco’s plays. Unbeknownst to anypony else, with the exception of the stage crew, I came in with a special request in mind: enchant your daughter's tiara to temporarily age her to an adult. I did this for two reasons- so she can volunteer at the hospital, and so she can help Coco's play go on."

"Is that the explanation why the media can't find this missing 'Mare-ison Bergeron'?" Filthy asked. "Also, what does this have to do with the Corrosion?"

"Yes, your daughter is indeed Mare-ison Bergeron. Yes, this has to do with Corrosion, but I'm getting to that." Twilight said. "The fact of the matter is that I programmed the magic to do one thing- age her when she put it on, and de-age her by that same magnitude when she took it off. Rather simple, except for the level of mastery in the spell.”

“Very advanced magic. I remember a blue Unicorn with some type of weird necklace waltzed into Ponyville one day and successfully cast it.” Filthy said. “Other than that, I’ve never seen it cast.”

“That Unicorn’s name was Trixie, and the necklace she had was called the Alicorn’s Amulet.” Twilight explained. "That's beside the point. I figured that the spell would be easy to tweak to an enchantment form but I had to figure out another set of problems- How would it gather that much energy for advanced magic? How would I be able to get the metal to conduct correctly. But suddenly, Eureka!"

I remembered from Meadowbrook that magic tolerance of metals depends on the arrangement of the atoms. If I could tweak the structure so it resembled glass, both strong and conductive of magic, then I could get it to store energy." Twilight tapped her horn. "That is why Alicorns have a greater capacity for magic. That’s also why Alicorns haven’t been affected yet. Our horns are altered to the point where the arrangement is so altered, that the chaos of the system allows exponentially more magic to conduct through."

“Huh.” Filthy scratched his chin, intrigued. “I didn’t know that.”

Twilight smiled sheepishly. "Her tiara lent itself well to adjusting the crystal structure. I basically modeled it after the structure of an Alicorn horn and made a less developed version by enchanting her tiara. Recharges when she is wearing it and causing magic flow in and out of it."

"So, you are saying that her tiara is essentially a horn?"

"Precisely." Twilight sighed. "That's why I said this was my fault. I enchanted her tiara with no thought of how Corrosion could affect it."

"You didn't know Princess." Filthy held out a hoof, gesturing to her it was okay. "So, since that was in last October, how come we are in early May?"

"The reason why she didn't show any symptoms until late is because Corrosion has to overload the system. Not to mention it only casts one type of spell, and even then, it’s infrequent. Hence, it takes longer to work through. But, according to hypothesis, severe symptoms like blindness are caused by the magnitude of the overload. The larger the overload, the worse the symptoms are.”

“Interesting," Mr. Rich said. "So, where does Dr. Fuse's theory fit in?"

"He states in his papers to the Princesses that Corrosion is present in our trinkets, or carried through the air. Then, when our horns are ‘recharging’, the Corrosion magic flows into the organic material and feeds off any stored magic. In which, it forms dendrites in the horns and short circuits the magic. Which causes the system to lose energy and collapse on itself," Twilight said. "In simpler terms, think of it as a crumpled paper jamming a printer."

“That makes sense.” Mr. Rich nodded. “How come none of the masses have heard this?”

“It’s fairly new, as Dr. Fuse and many others across Equestria are barely receiving permissions to do autopsies on cadavers who have died from Corrosion. Soon enough, the information will be released to the public.” She assured.

“Eesh.” Mr. Rich said. “I take it that they are close to finding a cure though?”

“Actually, now that you mention it, on the brink!” Princess Twilight said. Her ears suddenly dropped. “Although, this comes at a terrible price, one that will impact you for the rest of your life.”

"What might that be?" He asked, suddenly afraid of what the answer will be.

“Are you familiar with what happens to a unicorn horn biologically after a pony’s passing?” Princess Twilight asked.

“I’m an earth pony. I’ve never really heard much. Enlighten me.” Filthy said, the feeling of trepidation rising in him.

“Within two days after death, the unicorn horn releases a chemical that rapidly decays the magical portion of the structure, making it hard to gain accurate readings. Not to mention it has a direct connection to the pony’s brain.” Princess Twilight explained. “Another reason why finding a cure is slow is because gaining an understanding of the process is like examining a crime scene after a fire.”

Filthy gulped.

“Examining the internal workings would require that the pony would be still living. Unfortunately, due to the ethicality of the measures of putting a unicorn with Corrosion under anesthesia and performing an operation presents several legal and medical troubles.” Princess Twilight continued. “The field of Unicorn horn operations is still in it’s infancy, and due to many discoveries, researchers have discovered that altering a system that performs magic, even by a little bit, is literally like playing with fire.”

Filthy was familiar with stories of the pioneers of Unicorn horn research. Quite literally, while running experiments, the labs would explode from the sudden release of stored magic. That was the least of their worries. The lab would need to be swept for any stray discordant magic that often twisted the fabric of reality into chaos.

“Since unicorn horn research was not a viable option, the medical community needs an opportunity in which the pony’s horn didn’t rapidly decay, like an Alicorn. Or, even better, where the horn didn’t decay at all.” Princess Twilight said, her eyes starting to grow glossy with tears.

“You mean to tell me―”

"Your daughter will have to pass away in order for researchers to examine the body for a cure.” Twilight hung her head low, and solemnly finished, “She might be our only hope for a swift cure."

Chapter 47: Decision

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Filthy Rich had remained silent for the rest of the trip. Every scene was like staring out of the train window; blurred and rushed. Filthy was pondered as the words that Princess Twilight spoke left him in a nasty rut of denial. He was aware of what was happening, but things were going so quickly that he hardly had time to process them.

The only times when he was pulled out of his deep thoughts was the time when Princess Twilight asked to check on how he was doing.

A taxi ride followed after the train ride. It was a quick commute thanks to Princess Twilight sending a request to clear a path. Filthy didn’t even mind the slush that splattered on his hooves as the wheels tore through the mucky roads of the city. All he cared about was seeing his daughter.

Once again, he was yanked out of his thoughts as a noise from the environment noted to him again where he was. The elevator dinged again as the doors slid open.

“I’m going to go ahead and tell Dr. Fuse we’ve arrived,” Princess Twilight said. “Wait here.”

Quietly, he entered the room. Taking a deep breath, he brushed his messy thoughts aside and made note his surroundings. Several ponies were sitting in the plush chairs of the room. A deep quiet hung in the room, the only things that could be heard was the heater delivering warm air into the room and the whispers amongst the ponies.

As he took a seat, he noticed the sad faces of everypony in the room. This couldn’t be for Diamond, could it? No… it was probably for another pony in the hospital who was passing.

He looked at the doors as they swung open, a nurse guiding a foal with a bunch of scars out. He had a black stripe that ran over his eyes like a bandit. He joined a group of foals sitting to his right.

The foals started to trade whispers amongst themselves. Filthy gave it no attention until he heard the faint mention of ‘Dazzle’ in their conversation. Wait… they couldn’t be talking about Diamond, could they? He dismissed the thought. He probably heard them wrong.

“What did she say to you?” A colt with a crimson and gray mane and white coat asked.

Filthy took a quick glance at the colt with bandit eyes. The colt had tears falling from his eyes.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.” The colt with bandit eyes said.

Another colt with a yellow mane and a purple coat continued. “C’mon, Underdog. With corrosion outbreaks, two Cutie Marks earned, and a Science Fair Won, nothing seems impossible with Dazzle.”

That moment, Filthy perked up and turned to them. “Did you say ‘Dazzle’?”

The foals turned to him, startled and unsure.

“Yeah,” the colt with a purple coat said. “Why?”

“Diamond Dazzle Tiara?” Filthy Rich asked.

“Wait… who are you?” The other colt with a white coat said.

“I’m her father,” Filthy said. He held out a hoof. “My name is Filthy Rich.”

“Napoleon.” The white coat accepted his hoof. “We are Dazzle’s friends. Underdog, Bling, and Vertigo, and me.” He waved to each of the them in order.

“So… tell me what happened.” Filthy Rich motioned to Underdog before putting his hoof on his knee.

Underdog’s eyes widened. He averted his gaze and scratched his foreleg as his face slowly turned a bright red.

Filthy smiled. He knew that look and walk too well. He leaned towards his ear and whispered, “She kissed you, didn’t she?”

Underdog nodded quickly, took a deep breath, and stepped back.

“You’re not going to tell us?” Napoleon asked.

“It’s his secret to tell,” Filthy waved off. “Not mine.”

“Aww man.” Bling whined.

“I got a better idea though,” Filthy said. “Tell me, how do you know my daughter.”

With each passing story of ups and downs, Filthy felt a mixture of emotions. He was comforted to know that his daughter’s last couple months have been the most fun and happy times of her life. Yet, he felt a void, since the future of her life was hanging in uncertainty.

“So, extra sorry, Mister Rich.” Underdog said. “It seems that I’ve been the roughest on Dazzle.”

“I’m just glad you became friends with her. You may not know it, but she has an affinity for bullies and misfits alike. I never would’ve thought she bring all four of you together.” Filthy said.

“Mr. Rich?” A voice asked.

He looked up to see a nurse holding open a door. Princess Twilight was beside her.

Princess Twilight was facing away as she called out “Mrs. Rich? Randolph?”

“I got to go see my daughter now,” Filthy said, rising to his hooves. “Thank you all for telling me your stories.”

As all three of them joined the nurse, Twilight said, “Doctor Fuse requested you to his office to give you an overview of what is about to happen. Then, we’ll clear you for going into the room.”

“I understand.” Filthy’s heart was leaping up and down in his barrel. He knew the verdict was about to be revealed.

He entered a cold office and took a seat. He saw pictures on the wall, diagrams and models of pony skeletal systems.

Dr. Fuse turned around from writing down some notes on the whiteboard and cleared his throat. “Mr. Rich. Mrs. Rich. Randolph.” He nodded at each one of them. “Thank you for coming into my office.”

From the solemnness in the Doctor’s voice, Filthy could tell that the news was not good. He took the front seat.

Princess Twilight took another chair propped in the back. Then, the door closed behind them.

“So, I assume you’ve gone over the basics.” Dr. Fuse asked Princess Twilight.

“Yes. Each one with the specific amount of information you’ve willingly released to them,” Princess Twilight answered “But not the new hypothesis formed from this morning.”

“Thank you.” Dr. Fuse bowed. “So… everyone, with what the Princess briefed to you this morning is key to understanding this next part. But, first, are you familiar with Dopamine?”

The room was silent for a while until Filthy finally answered, “Yes. A chemical inside the body that is related to happiness or pleasure.”

“And Cortisol?” Dr. Fuse asked.

“Also a chemical inside the body that does the opposite, stress.” Filthy answered again, this time more quickly.

“So, here’s a little conjecture. You must promise not to release this information to the public until I’m sure it’s correct.” Dr. Fuse said.

This time, Randolph answered for them. “We understand. Proceed.”

“What I hope to prove, is that the effects of these two are the catalysts for the innerworkings of Corrosion inside the horn.” Dr. Fuse began, “But first, let’s relate to the fight or flight scenarios. From easy anatomy, we see that the body responds to stress using chemicals inside the brain. In a Unicorn, do you notice how augmented their magic is during times of pleasure or times of stress?”

“Yes.” Filthy said. Basics. When was he about to get on?

“My postulate is that Corrosion is attracted to these chemicals when released. However, when the pony calms down back to level-headedness, the Corrosion starts forming dendrites, like the roots of a plant searching for the water table. Then, when the state of happiness/stress is reinstated, the Corrosion is flooded, and starts to drown in the chemicals. In response, it uses up all the energy it can and causes a short-circuit.”

“That would make sense,” Spoiled cut in. “What does this have to do with Diamond?”

“Patience, Mrs. Rich,” Yttrium said. “Unfortunately, we have no way to prove it. A horn is a powerful appendage, and experimenting on it can cause―”

“Devastating effects.” Filthy folded his forelegs.

Dr. Fuse cleared his throat. “I’ll get straight to the point. As you’ve heard already, your daughter presents an interesting case. She might be the key to the cure. But, there is a choice to be made. Save her life or the lives of all those waiting for a cure.”

“Yes. What did she choose?” Spoiled asked.

“I reluctantly inform you that we are about to administer a sedative in three hours.” Dr. Fuse said. “If you want to visit her, now would be the time.”

Silence penetrated the room once more.

Yttrium sighed deeply. “Princess, if you would, escort Mrs. Rich and Randolph over to Dazzle’s room? I need to talk with Mr. Rich in private.”

Princess Twilight nodded as she opened the door. The three of them shuffled out, leaving Filthy in the room with Yttrium. Twilight propped open the door, nodded to Yttrium, and tailed behind the group.

Mr. Rich turned back to face the doctor.

“I apologize. First impressions can really stink. Sorry for the dryness of my lecture.” Doctor Fuse said.

Filthy tried his best not to balk. The fact that Yttrium Fuse acting a little more casual caught him off guard.

“You wondering why I’ve kept you behind?” Yttrium asked.

Filthy nodded slowly.

“Mr. Rich, your daughter has made a couple last requests. One of those is that you would be the last one in the room before we sedate her.” Yttrium said.

Mr. Rich stayed silent. Another thought to process.

“Just in case you were wondering, it’s not a long wait. It’ll be Mrs. Rich, Randolph, then Coco Pommel followed by you. Everypony else in the waiting room has already said their goodbyes.”

“Me? More important than Coco?” Filthy asked in disbelief. “I think Coco should have the last say.”

“I’ve already talked to Coco about it,” Yttrium said, his eyes darting to a picture frame for a brief moment. “She is okay with it. It seems that there is more to this than meets the eye.”

Filthy slumped in his chair as the weight of all his thoughts increased. So many questions. He sprung upright, looked Yttrium in the eye and asked, “What about her other requests?”

“If you must know, she also opted for organ donation. Specifically, she wants to give her heart to a colt in need on this floor. Uncannily, her blood type is a match,” Yttrium said, “But that’s besides the point. The fact in the matter is, she wants you.”

“You know, I can’t believe I’m doing this, but since you are still a legal guardian of Diamond, I’m required to inform you on her past medical history.” Yttrium swung open his filing cabinet and extracted a folder.

Filthy completely forgot about the fact that he didn’t finish his termination of guardianship for Diamond. Spoiled had nagged him on occasion to get the paperwork done, but somehow, he found a way to ignore it. It seemed, inadvertently, he preserved his guardianship.

Yttrium opened the folder. A solemn expression filled his face as he looked at the first paper. “Most recent is going to be hard to digest. Notice anything about the diagram around Dazzle’s forelegs?”

Chapter 48: Stories

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“You okay, sweetie?” Coco whispered.

“Yeah. Thank you.” Dazzle said. Her airy and weak voice was carried through the air like a breeze as it reached Mr. Rich’s ears. With the sterile ambience of the hospital, the whole scene seemed so surreal. If he peeked around that corner, would he truly see his daughter whom was absent from his life? It was hard to believe that so much time had passed.

Filthy peeked around the corner. Instantly, he stepped away, reverently observing the scene. Even through the mess of medical machines and supplies, his eyes caught onto the tender sight.

Dazzle hugged Coco, then snuggled back into the hospital blankets. She hugged a familiar plush tightly and lovingly, then nestled back into the blankets.

A doctor stepped around Filthy, nodding in acknowledgement before he entered the room.

The Doctor quietly shuffled to Coco’s side and whispered something. She nodded at the doctor, then turned to look at Mr. Rich. With a solemn smile, she waved.

“Your father is here,” Coco said. “I’ll be leaving. Goodbye, Dazzle.”

“Goodbye mom!” Dazzle reached out and hugged Coco one last time.

“Goodbye, Dazzle…” Coco sniffled as she walked away.

Filthy stopped Coco at the doorway. “You can spend a little more time with her, I didn’t mean to intrude.”

“It’s okay.” Coco said. “This was actually Dazzle’s request.”

Her request? Mr. Rich wondered why she allowed him to be the last words said to her. “Why would Diamond do such a thing? You should have the honor to be last one she speaks to. You took care of her, after all.”

“I’m afraid that’s an understatement.” Coco sighed.

Filthy balked. If she wanted to reprimand him, then it was understandable… she was probably angry that―

“I didn’t take care of her. Dazzle took care of me.” Coco said. Carefully, she wrapped her hooves around him and hugged him.

Filthy stood there, bewildered… hugging another mare that was barely Princess Twilight’s age. He had only hugged so many ponies, due to the formal nature of his occupation. Still though, with his heart and mind contending, he knew that he must set his barriers aside. Being distant was not an option.

“I appreciate your consideration, but I think that she has requested to talk to you last for a reason.” Coco said as she pulled away from the hug. “All I can say is thank you and thank Randolph for sending me this little blessing.”

Without another word, Coco strolled down the hall. She must’ve been very strong at heart, knowing that her words weren’t going to be the last ones that Diamond Dazzle Tiara was going to hear.

Filthy took another deep breath before entering the room. He was here for a reason. His daughter still wanted him. Still though… he could shake the feeling that he deserved none of this. Especially with how he treated her.

Immediately, he was greeted by a small figure. He was mentally preparing for the thousands of tubes running in and out of her, but what merely stood by was a blood bag and a couple bags full of various medicines. The two he managed to read was the blood bag and a random medicinal one. AB positive, and Morphine, respectively.

He took a seat next to her bedside.

“Dad?” Dazzle asked.

“Yes, it’s me, sweetie. How’s it going, kiddo?” Filthy asked, his throat already becoming croaky.

Dazzle leaned in and hugged him.

He accepted and hugged her back. No matter what, he wasn’t going to let anything become between him and his daughter anymore. No more distance. This was his last chance to make things right.

“I didn’t know you took that plush with you.” Filthy began, finally. He’d been against her getting it, since it was an expensive thing to get, but funnily enough, she begged him to get it.

“Yeah! Coco got it for me last night!” Dazzle said, holding it up, although slightly askew.

Filthy balked. Blind. An effect of the Corrosion, as Princess Twilight mentioned on the train ride over.

“Are you in pain?” Filthy asked, afraid of what the answer may be.

“Not anymore.” Dazzle said, shifting around in the hospital bed softly. “I feel like I’m napping on a cloud like a pegasus.”

“Good to hear.” Filthy said. He decided the next point was in order. “I heard about your adventures from your friends.”

“Oh! You’ve met Bling, Vertigo, Napoleon, and Underdog?” She asked. “Wait… did Underdog tell?”

Filthy chuckled. “You’ve always been mischievous.

“Oh,” Dazzle said, her expression like a foal whose hoof was caught in the cookie jar.

“Don’t worry, he told nopony else but me. Your secret is safe. But I come also to ask about another thing.” Filthy said. He lifted up her forelegs from underneath the blankets and examined them. He held back the tears as he saw the marred patchwork of red lines turning to scars.

Dazzle’s smile turned to a frown. “So, the doctors told you everything?” Even if she couldn’t see, she could still tell what he was alluding to.

“Yes.” Filthy Rich answered, his tone growing lower. He made a note to himself to keep his voice down as it became more audible in the solemn atmosphere of the hospital. “Why do you hate yourself honey? You did nothing wrong.”

“No, I did something horribly wrong,” she sniffled. “I have bullied others for such a long time, that I can’t possibly heal all the lives of those I shattered.”

“Diamond, you are a genuinely kind filly. Just a minute ago, the Doctor told me what good things you did for this hospital…” Filthy Rich reassured. “The reason why you couldn’t reach such potential back at home is because I was neglecting you to the mercy of your mother― that is all. It wasn’t your fault”

“No dad, those were my conscious decisions… they were my choice,” Dazzle said.

“It’s both our faults.” Filthy settled for the middle ground. “We cannot erase the past, but we can do all in our power to make sure we are a better pony the next day and the day after that.”

Before she could protest, Filthy continued, “Let’s focus on the positive. A lot of the stories they told seemed unbelievable, but the more I think about it, the more I know of your capabilities.”

“How so?” Dazzle asked. “I wouldn’t believe them if I didn’t witness it with my own eyes.”

“Yes, but your blind right now. How do you know it’s me?” Filthy asked.

“Your voice,” Dazzle said.

“I’m any voice in the crowd,” Filthy said with a smile.

“But it’s you, you’re my dad.” Dazzle said. Filthy saw her raise an eyebrow.

“Even so, Diamond Dazzle Tiara, listen to the words of a pony you trust,” he said. “Ever since you were a filly, full of light and laughter, I knew that you were destined to make others happy and be a leader. But, then, your mother died. I was distraught.”

“You mean that―” Dazzle gasped at the sudden realization, “―Spoiled is not my mom?”

“She is still your mom. Your Step-mom.” Filthy said. “You were still so young that I couldn’t explain that your biological mother died. Ironically, you took her name when you came to Mane-hattan. ‘Dazzle’ was her first name. That is why it’s your middle name.”

“Really?” Dazzle asked.

“Really.” Filthy said, chuckling. “I don’t know why it took so long for me to tell you, but you are just like your mother. Generous. Kind. A gifted leader. Enchanting, almost. Knows how to bring the best out of everypony.” Filthy said. “It’s funny that you took her name with you. When you helped out at your school, I saw a glimpse of her. You saw the talents of others and helped them discover their strengths. You helped others through their insecurities.”

Tears came to his eyes. “Unfortunately, Spoiled was outraged. She decided to seal the battle that has been going on between me and her for over a decade. You or her. I tried to convince her that you’d leave once you reach eighteen, that a filly couldn’t live on her own, but helping the school was the leverage she needed to throw you out. Hurriedly, I asked Randolph for guidance, and he suggested Coco Pommel as a candidate. Safely away from Ponyville, and kept as a secret only known between me and Randolph.

"The hardest thing I had to do last year was to let you go to someplace I couldn't reach you. Away from me." He said. "But now, It feels like I'm doing it all over again. This time, a place I cannot follow nor visit.”

Dazzle cast a weary look at her father.

"Don't act like I don't know, Diamond. I was given a word about your decision." Mr. Rich smiled at her endearingly.

"You know?" Dazzle asked.

"I know everything." Filthy said. "But, I just wanted to ask you one more thing before you go through with it."

"Oh?"

"I just want to hold you, like when you were young, these ten or so minutes… before the doctors administer the sedatives… and―" he gulped, as the words hitched in his throat "―pull the Plug."

"Sure." Dazzle held out her hooves, accepting his gesture.

For a moment, he saw a little filly, lifting up her hooves, waiting to be picked up. Gently, he picked up his daughter, being careful to weave through the IVs.

In his arms, he cuddled his blind daughter. Her eyes dark and cloudy, blankly staring off into space.

The Magenta and White bundle that he held in his arms over a decade ago was now again in his arms in a different time. One last time.

"Mind if I tell you a story, my little diamond?" He asked.

"That would be wonderful," she weakly replied.

“So, one day, A mid-summer’s afternoon while I’m having an important meeting at home, in Ponyville, I feel a little tingling on my left forehoof…”

“Now, you were young enough that you barely knew a few words, and could barely understand me.” His eyes turned “I shouted at you to stop trying to wrap “Garbage” around my hoof, but you still persisted”

“After a long eternity, you finished wrapping a watch around my wrist. I threw the broken thing out a long time ago, but somehow you kept it. After I managed an insincere “thank you”, you finished the touches.” Tears welled up in his eyes “You couldn’t tell time yet, so instead, you bent the hour and minute spindle of the clock into a heart.” He choked up “You said something that still persists in my mind until today… Do you know what you said?”

“No, what did I say?”

He paused for a bit, summoning up the strength to say those last words “You said– ‘There you go daddy, now you’ll always know that it’s always time I love you” He smiled once more with the filly in his hooves.

“I love you with all my heart, Diamond Tiara, stop trying to hurt yourself and forgive yourself… it hurts me to see you this way…” He embraced her tighter. “I ask you to forgive me as a father for not protecting you…”

“All is forgiven, I love… you… too… dad” She said, stumbling on the words.

He held back tears as he took in the story and looked at the plush she was hugging close: You are her hero, but you’ve squandered it.

For a moment in the quiet, with the snow falling from Cloudsdale in late May, he felt a familiar warmness. A feeling that he hadn’t felt in a long time.

“Mind if I also tell you a story, dad?” Dazzle asked. “It will be long one though.”

“I have all the time in the world for you.” Filthy Rich said.

“Once upon a time, there was a princess named Dazzle, and her father, Prince Rich, they were having a picnic beneath a tree atop a grassy hill…”

It wasn’t long before the Doctors came in with a syringe. Shuffling around the room carefully they prepared her foreleg. Filthy wanted to cry out for five more minutes, but they reached up to her IV and injected it.

With tears in his eyes, he looked at his daughter. As she told more of the story, her voice became weaker and slower. Filthy listened, but her story abruptly stopped. She told him that after she saved the town, and sent Demon away, she felt a pain in her head and woke up.

“But, wait, Diamond…” Filthy begged. “How does it end?”

“That is for you to decide.” Dazzle said, yawning. “I feel sleepy. Goodnight.”

With that, Dazzle closed her electric blue eyes and settled in for the long nap.

Filthy set his daughter down on the hospital bed.

With tears in his eyes, he wiped them away. “Goodnight, my little Diamond Dazzle Tiara.”

Chapter 49: Transparent Living

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“That is inaccurate.” Filthy said, looking across his desk, scooting the clip of papers away from him. He took off his reading glasses.

“How so?” The colt asked.

He had a red coat and golden mane. This colt looked like that brother of Applejack’s. Matched his build too. The only key difference is that he had wings to his side and a pair of glasses on his snout. It was interesting how a pegasus took an interest in technical writing. Writing seemed more like a Unicorn thing to do.

Filthy sighed. “I understand you’ve talked with various sources. I must ask you to remove my name from the records. You have painted me for the good stallion I’m not. My wife also deserves a fair shake. It’s not fair that all she is portrayed as is a snobbish rich mare.”

“But, if I take you out of the equation, the whole thing falls apart.” The colt said. “You are an essential piece to the puzzle.”

“And another thing.” Filthy sighed deeply. “I hate to break it to you, but my daughter isn’t the giving angel you portray her to be. I understand her story changed your life, but the argument is one-sided. You need to talk to the ponies that have a negative view of her, otherwise the whole book will only make it to a select part of the population.”

“I understand your concern, but I’ve also talked to Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle. Even they don’t want to mention her acts of bullying since they’ve long forgiven her.” The colt said. “Even Babs Seed back in Mane-hattan has a positive view of your daughter.”

Filthy shifted in his seat.

“Mr. Rich, I understand that both the positive and the negative must need to be conjoined together to get the holistic view. You don’t want to be partial to the part of the population that still holds a grudge against Diamond Dazzle Tiara.” The colt smiled. “What you don’t realize is that part of the population, if any, is not a population you want to pander to. What her story teaches is self-forgiveness and sacrifice. If anypony wants to object, I simply say it’s not the purpose of the piece and is contradictory to what the elements of harmony have taught us. I ask, that I receive permission to portray your daughter in this way.”

“I've been approached by journalists all across Equestria requesting permission to release details. I've declined each of them, so I will say the same thing to you: what was said in this room will stay in this room." Mr. Rich said, with tears in his eyes. “As much as my heart wants to release your kind compilation of my daughter’s life, logic says that releasing it to the masses will only incite outrage in those who disagree, regardless of the arguments of morality.”

“I understand Mr. Rich.” The colt put his pencil and papers back into his saddlebags and turned to head for the door.

As he did, Filthy saw in the corner of his eye, a painting fall over.

The colt jumped when it the hit the floor with a loud thud.

Mr. Rich rushed over to the painting to hang it back on the wall.

“Here. Looks like you need some help.” The colt rush to the other side of the painting and helped Filthy hoist and hook it back onto the wall.

“Thank you, Wild Card.” Mr. Rich said.

Wild Card said nothing. Instead he gazed into the eyes of the filly in the painting. In the middle, she was flanked on both sides by Mr. Rich and his former wife.

“If I may press,” Wil Card started, studying the painting, “I also understand the other reason why you don’t want Equestria to know the story of your daughter. It’s not only the masses disregard for the legacy of your daughter.” Wild Card said. “The part you’ve told me is that her biological mother lives on with her. With her life cut short, you want it to remain buried since there is nopony you can trust.”

Filthy’s heart grew hot with rage. Then, it cooled down to ice when he realized that Wild Card was right.

“As the viewpoint of the narrator, it’s obvious that my bias has to be on Diamond Dazzle Tiara.” Wild Card continued. “I like to draw your attention to the key piece… the name of this work: Transparent Living.”

“Proceed.” Filthy said, intrigued.

“It’s a fact that I shall call this work ‘Transparent Living’” He turned away from the painting and faced Mr. Rich. “What does Transparent Living mean for you?”

“Like you said, it’s a phrase that Coco Pommel and Florin coined.” Filthy Rich said. “They invented it for the purpose of getting Coco to place herself out in the crowd more often, letting the clouds of inhibition and anxiety dispel and do what you need to do.”

“Very good. It was indeed coined by Coco and Florin.” Wild Card said. “However, to me, it means so much more.” He tapped on his barrel “It’s inside of me. Because of Transparent Living, my life has changed forever, part of your daughter literally lives inside of me. To me, Transparent Living means living your life so that your heart is open, that you are ready to surrender it no matter the cost.”

Wild Card sighed. “…Transparent Living is what your daughter exemplified, and now, with all due respect, I ask again to open your heart and grant me your permission to publish this story.”

Direct. Filthy Rich stepped forward and nodded. “You have my permission.” He held out his hoof.

Wild Card’s expression lit up as he accepted the hoof-shake eagerly. “Thank you, Mr. Rich.”

Suddenly, a light flashed, blinding Mr. Rich.

Could it be… no… impossible! His daughter worked her magic again!

The light swirled in and around the room. Filthy covered his eyes protectively.

When the light faded, Filthy let his eyes adjust.

The very first thing he saw was Wild Card looking at his flank. On it, a quill drawing an inky heart.

“Well, I guess that sorta happened!” Wild Card cheered.

Epilogue

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“Dazzle! You need to stop!” Yttrium shouted.

The filly kept screeching atop her lungs.

Coco washed dishes. She batted away the messy strands of her hair and looked up from the bags under her eyes.

“Dazzle, you are being very bad.” Yttruim said. “You want to go your room?”

Still, the screeching could be heard. She was lucky that they sound-proofed the wall, from the traffic outside and the screaming foals within.

She sighed. Dazzle had been throwing a fit for a while.

“Dazzle. I know you want to play with Vivienne, but she hasn’t seen her brother in a long time. Remember how you feel when dad is not home?” Coco came into the room briefly.

“Bad.” Dazzle answered back, somewhat angrily.

“Exactly. Just imagine not seeing dad for a long time. That is how Vivienne feels about her brother,” Coco said.

Coco lifted her hooves out of the dishes and wiped them on a towel. “Tell you what. You want some Hot Chocolate, Dazzle?”

The filly eagerly grunted and held her hooves out for a mug.

“It is always Hot Chocolate.” Yttruim teased.

“M-m-mommy always makes the best Hot Cholat…” the filly sniffled.

Coco readied her pot and autopiloted the procedure.

After a couple stirs, dashes of accents, and whipped cream on top, she brought her masterpiece to the living room.

“Careful, it's hot.” She warned, giving the mug to Dazzle.

As Dazzle sipped carefully, Coco couldn’t help but smile. A couple tears came to her eyes. She looked out the window, the pitter-patter of snow falling in from Cloudsdale gathering in the planter boxes and windowsills.

An old feeling in her stirred as she saw the pillar of smoke rise from the departing Friendship Express.

“Mommy, why are you sad?” Dazzle asked.

Coco faced her daughter. “I’m not sad, I’m happy.”

“Happy? But you’re crwing!” Dazzle shouted.

“No, Dazzle, I’m happy.” Coco said. “I’m happy because it’s winter.”

“Winiyoter? BLEH!” Dazzle blew a raspberry.

Coco chuckled. “I felt like that for a long time, until something magical happened.” She tilted her head. “Your father and I have a story to tell you, about this amazing filly named Dazzle.”

Dazzle’s eyes widened.

Coco began, “It was a dark and stormy night when Dazzle came to Mane-hattan. Braving the elements, she was a servant of the Moon Princess, Luna…”

“And there in Mane-hattan, she met her mother, Coco, and father, Yttrium.” Yttrium continued. “Only one problem. Mommy and Daddy weren't married yet, but there was no problem that Dazzle couldn’t fix…”