//------------------------------// // Chapter 12 - Treading on a Bed of Nails // Story: Tamed // by PiercingZen //------------------------------// Act 2 Chapter 12 – Treading on a Bed of Nails ***** Confrontation is a gamble. What unfolds is always a mystery…be it pleasant or horrifying. Confrontation is a necessary evil…even if it means staring directly into the face of death… ***** “Well, it looks like today our time together has drawn to an end.” Instructor Sophie Fokker was packing her things as well as her students. “I will see you all Friday.” The pegasi began filing out of the tiny classroom. “Hey, Middy.” Rainbow was quick to catch Midnight as she was ready to bolt for her next class. “I was wondering if…oh, right…you still have another class, don’t you?” “Huh? Yeah, I do. Why? What’s up, Dash?” “I was just gonna ask…if you could come over to my place. You know…if you have nothing else to do.” Midnight’s face lit up. “Your place?! Wow…Of course! Let’s go right now!” Rainbow chuckled. “But I thought you had class? Surely you can’t…” “I’ll just skip it…hey, I already know everything about Pegasus anatomy anyway.” She grinned suggestively. “I’m sure I can miss one session.” “Hey! Shhh…” Dash blushed. “Well, if it’s all right with you…let’s go.” Rainbow gathered her things and the two were already off towards Dash’s home. “Rainbow Dash!” Someone called to her. The two ponies stopped and turned. “Wow, you two are fast…” It was none other than the Dean…Rip Jet. The stallion’s black mane was disheveled and he was wheezing. “You must forgive an old man…can’t keep up with you young ponies anymore.” “Dean Jet…” Midnight was frozen. “Dash, I’ll see you at your house…I’m sure it has nothing to do with me.” “Wait, Middy?” The pegasus was already gone. What in the… “Don’t worry about her, Rainbow Dash.” The brown stallion straightened his glasses and cleared his throat. “How have you been enjoying your classes, Rainbow Dash?” Dash never thought how much her name popped when repeated so often. “Please…just call me Dash, and I’ve actually been enjoying myself. There’s so much I’ve learned in the past few days.” She tried to keep her language appropriate for the stallion. “Excellent. Listen Dash, can you meet me in my office at 7 a.m. tomorrow morning?” “7 a.m.? Sure, no problem. Can I ask why?” She tilted her head. The stallion seemed startled by the question. “I-It’s a surprise. I’m sure you’ll be excited.” He had a genuine, honest tone about him. It was a bit uncanny…how comfortable Rainbow felt around him regardless of his acute mannerisms. “A surprise, huh? Yeah, okay. I’ll be there!” “Awesome!” The stallion tried to imitate Rainbow. “Be no later than seven. I know how you are.” That last line crept up on her…what? “What does that m…” “I’m sorry, Dash…” He interrupted. “…but I have to go. Enjoy the rest of your day.” The stallion flapped his wings twice before he took off. He was actually faster than she thought. ‘I know how you are’? How would he know anything about me? I’ve only met him twice. She blinked back into reality and shook her head. I’ve got to get back to the house…hopefully Twilight hasn’t zapped her or something. ***** Knock knock knock! “Hey, Twilight! Rainbow’s home!” Scootaloo yelled from her room upstairs. Twilight emerged from the study. “Yeah, but why is she knocking?” She mumbled to herself as she approached the door. She swung it open with her magic and gasped. “Midnight?” Midnight smiled and nodded. “How are things, Twilight?” Twilight peered behind the pegasus and furrowed her brow. “Where’s Rainbow?” “Oh! She’ll be here in a minute or so. She got stopped by Dean Jet on our way over here.” The pegasus made her way in despite Twilight’s skepticism. “Dean Jet? Is she all right?” The unicorn closed the door. She followed Midnight into the kitchen/dining room, the general meeting area. It was strange…Twilight suspected the pegasus had been here before by her “right at home” demeanor. “I hope so. The Dean didn’t seem upset…” She gave Twilight a questionable look. Twilight wasn’t comfortable at all staying in the same room with a horrible mythical creature…or at least she believed Midnight was. As long as I don’t look into her eyes or get close to her…I should be all right. She drew her knowledge from the myth told in the book. She realized she was looking right at Midnight and she averted her eyes. Instead, she looked at her flank…the cutie mark to be exact. A circle with a four-point star…what could that mean? By this moment, her attention had strayed from Rainbow’s absence. “Uh, Twilight? Is something wrong?” Midnight caught her stare and blushed. “Hm?! Oh…” The unicorn shook her head and smiled sheepishly. “…it’s nothing. Midnight…what does your cutie mark mean? How did you get it?” “You mean this thing?” She turned her head to look at it. “It’s a…kind of a long story.” Twilight sat down. “Well, we have to wait for Dash…so there’s time.” Midnight frowned a little. “You really want to hear it?” The unicorn nodded. “Of course! I’ll get you something to drink while you tell it.” She went a few paces from Midnight to the kitchen. “Hm.” The pegasus fell silent for a few moments as if gathering her thoughts. “Well, it was…a very, very cold night in…uh…Cloudsdale. My father was with me and…” Twilight stopped what she was doing. “Your father? You never said you had a father.” “Who doesn’t have a father at some point, Twilight?” The unicorn rolled her eyes in embarrassment as she grabbed two glasses from a cupboard. Midnight took a deep breath. “Anyways…he took me out onto a cliff side where he showed me this beautiful night sky. You could see all the stars and the moon was brighter than ever. I was very chilly and I wanted to stay close to him…however, he pushed me away…told me to ‘embrace the night’ and ‘show no fear’. I’ll admit I felt a little discouraged. I wasn’t even sure why I was there in the first place. So I turned back to the night sky and saw one star shining brighter than all the rest…” As Midnight told her story, Twilight felt some sort of strange aura around her…everything around her seemed colder. The drink she was pouring seemed to fall slowly into the glass. She looked at the pegasus to see she wasn’t looking back, but staring out a nearby window. She felt a sensation in her chest…one that just wanted her to tear out her heart and give it to the pony. Twilight shook her head at the thought. What in Equestria am I thinking about? The pegasus turned her head to look at Twilight. She stared at her…and Twilight stared back. “It was a very beautiful star…almost entrancing. I stared at it for several minutes…when I heard a scream. It was then…when I turned my head to see my father was gone…and so was everything else.” Her voice had become deeper…even a little menacing. “All I remember…was the air rushing against my mane…and the slow…agonizing pain in my chest as I realized my true reason for being…” Twilight’s eyes had widened…she was becoming incredibly terrified of the pony. This isn’t the moon siren from the story…I don’t know what this is. Twilight felt something grip her throat…she couldn’t breathe! Creak! That familiar door opening sound. “Hey, everypony! I’m home!” She heard Rainbow’s voice, but Midnight’s stare persisted as did hers. “I’ll tell you the ending another time…” Midnight whispered to her. When Rainbow entered the room, Middy spun her head and smiled at the pegasus. “Hey, Dash! Took your time, huh?” She giggled. “Well, I was held up at…Twilight?” Dash noticed the petrified unicorn. There was no answer from her as she just stared at Midnight. “Twilight?” Midnight asked. “Are you all right?” Twilight shook her head of the daze and coughed. “Yeah!” She smiled. “I’m fine! I was just a little uh…I was just thinking about something. That’s all.” She was still a little shaken up. “Uh huh…” Dash took the unicorn’s weak excuse. “So, Twi…” “Rainbow Dash! Look!” The pegasus jumped at the familiar squeak of a voice behind her. She turned to face it. “Don’t I look awesome?!” Dash gasped at the sight. There was Scootaloo in all of her innocent glory with a rainbow colored wig on her head and two orange magical wings extending out from her normal ones to make wings about the size of grown mare’s. “What in the…” Dash tried to hold in a laugh. The spectacle was a bit overwhelming. Midnight giggled. “Oh, my…well, isn’t this cute?” “Hey! Stop with the cute stuff! I’m totally awesome like Rainbow now!” “You are indeed something, kid!” The cyan mare chuckled. Twilight cleared her throat. She hid her horn with a hoof and flared it. Scoot’s magical wings suddenly vanished and left the filly feeling a little less cool. Scootaloo gasped. “What happened? Twilight?!” The unicorn blushed. “I guess the magic ran out. At least you got to show Rainbow though, right?” The filly shot her an angry glare. “Besides!” Rainbow interjected. “You look awesome even without them!” The mare ruffled the rainbow wig on the filly’s head. Scootaloo grumbled and flew meekly back upstairs. Twilight chuckled nervously at the two mares and sighed. “She really wanted to try it…thing is, she really couldn’t use them that well anyway.” Rainbow smiled at the unicorn and there was an uncomfortable moment of silence between the three ponies. “So…” Midnight began. “What did the Dean have to say?” “Oh!” Dash seemed to jump at the question. “Apparently, he has some sort of surprise for me tomorrow…not sure what it was all about really. I’m supposed to be in his office at six…or was it seven. It was very strange talking to him. I sorta zoned out when we talked.” Twilight was zoned out herself. She couldn’t drag out of her mind what just happened. It was all so quick…but it left a harsh impression on her. Who is this mare? Her presence feels so intimidating…so much like Nightmare Moon when I combated her. Like Princess Celestia…she carries this aura around her that I can’t explain. What is her deal? “I’m sure he has something incredibly important to tell you. I wouldn’t be late.” Midnight was talking so normally…Twilight didn’t imagine it, did she? It couldn’t be her horn playing tricks on her again… A kiss. The unicorn blinked. Dash had just kissed her while she was dazed. “Twi, are you all right? You’ve been acting odd since I came home.” She nudged the mare and kissed her cheek. “Yeah! Yeah…I think I just need to lie down. I think my horn is acting up again. Aheh…such a pain.” “Okay, Twi, but don’t forget what we need to do today.” Dash was of course talking about revealing the book to Midnight…which Twilight wasn’t even sure of doing now. “Do you two have something planned? I don’t want to intrude.” Middy walked closer to the two. “Oh, no!” The unicorn chuckled. “It’s nothing like that. You’re more than welcome to stay.” Twilight made her way to the staircase. “You two chat for a while. I’m going to rest for a bit.” She climbed the steps without another word. “All right, sugar babe!” Rainbow called out to her. Midnight giggled at her. “What? She really is sweet once you get to know her.” “Ah…but so are you…” Middy whispered to her and snuck a kiss on Dash’s lips. “Hey! Cut it out…” She pushed the mare away. “Not now…” Middy smiled and nodded. Rainbow sighed and cleared her throat. “I’m starving, Middy. How about you?” “Oh no, I’m fine. I’ll help you though!” Midnight took off her bags and placed them near the doorway as did Rainbow. “For what I lack in manners I make up for in cuisine!” “Really? Didn’t take you for a cook…” Dash grinned. “Ah, it’s just something I do every once in a while. Come on! What are we making?” ***** Later that evening, Twilight awoke to the smell of food and began making her way downstairs. She bumped into Scootaloo at the top of the staircase. The filly was back to her normal look and she was sniffing the air. “What are they making down there?” Scootaloo asked. “No idea. Identifying food by smell isn’t my field of expertise.” Scoot sighed. “Do you ever speak like a normal pony?” She started making her way downstairs and Twilight followed. “Sorry! It’s a bad habit of mine…” There was a pause. “I want to thank you…for the wings. It really was a cool thing you did…I kinda know how Dash feels now.” “It’s nothing, Scootaloo, but appreciate what you have…I really don’t want to give another pony replacements…” She looked away remembering that crushed look on Dash’s face when she removed her wings. “It’s not…oof!” Something clung to her neck. She turned her head to see the filly hugging her. “You’re a lot cooler than you look, Twi, but you would look much cooler if you’d stop being so down all the time!” “I’m not being down! I just…don’t want to ignore the past.” Scoot pulled away and rolled her eyes. “Okay, whatever…let’s just get something to eat. I’m hungry.” The filly zipped down the staircase and into the kitchen. Twilight let out a sigh. She’s right…stupid unicorn stop being so sentimental! She wore a smile and descended the staircase. The ponies all gathered around the dining table. A decent but not robust selection of foods was prepared. There was a garden salad including a variety of different flowers, a bowl of hay fries (Rainbow…), several cornsticks, and an apple pie for dessert. Well, they went all out didn’t they? Now I just wonder who cooked this…certainly it wasn’t Dash. She looked at her smiling friend. “I hope you guys like it.” Dash began. “Midnight’s a pretty good cook…I helped a little.” “Don’t be so modest, Dash.” Middy blushed. “You were an awesome moral support...just careful on the fries though…they may be a little burned.” Twilight eyed the hay fries and couldn’t see a single thing wrong with them. “They look fine to me, Midnight.” “Okay, you three keep talking…” Scootaloo started. “…I’m gonna chow down!” She dove for the corn, grabbed one, and began munching away. The three mares giggled at the silly behavior of the filly and began collecting plates of food for themselves. “So Midnight…Dash told you don’t have a place to stay…is this true?” “Oh! Yeah, it’s kind of embarrassing actually. A few weeks ago I was kicked out of my apartment for uh…disturbing the neighbors. So I got into one of the dorms at the academy.” Twilight waited for more. “And…?” “Oh, right. They kicked me out of there too…nopony appreciates my company it seems.” Dash swallowed a hay fry. “I’ve always wondered that…everypony keeps saying you’re weird or strange or something along those lines. Why is that?” “Ponies just don’t appreciate the things that I do…” The pegasus trailed off and stared into her plate. Twilight was again waiting for more. “And that would be…?” Midnight looked right at Twilight, and then Rainbow. “Medicine. I-I practice medicine…you know…dealing with ponies’ lives and all that.” She chuckled nervously. “As made obvious by your…cutie mark…” Twilight said that very slowly. “Well, our cutie marks don’t always point out exactly what we do, Twilight. Look at Rainbow’s. She isn’t exactly shooting rainbows out of clouds like lightning bolts.” “You know, I tried to do that once,” Rainbow added. “Midnight…” Twilight changed the subject. “…what’s your family like? I heard about your father, but what about your mother? Any siblings?” “I have one sibling…she’s passed on. My father and mother actually didn’t speak to us much.” “Oh?” Rainbow was intrigued. “What were their names?” “Uh…” Her eyes shifted a bit. “You know, I forgot about drinks. Let me get some real quick.” She jumped out of her chair and flew over to the kitchen. Twilight and Rainbow looked at each other. They knew this was getting more and more suspicious with every question. Rainbow leaned in closer to her. “Let’s not ask about family…” The unicorn nodded. The mare returned with a couple drinks and handed one to each pony. “It’s just water, but I can get something else if you’d like.” “Oh no…water’s fine.” Twilight smiled and took a drink. “Thank you.” “You know, Twilight…” Midnight started. “Creating wings that are not only sustainable but actually function as normal, if not better, ones is one of the most difficult spells a unicorn can cast. Only because several studies in Canterlot have proven that a pegasus’s wings are actually a type of magic themselves…recreating that magic has always proved extremely difficult if not entirely impossible.” “Uh, well…sometimes you get lucky I guess. Aheh…actually, I think it’s because of this messed up horn. It has the tendency to amplify certain aspects of spells…Rainbow’s wings are probably just an amplified version of the monarch wings I gave one of my friends a couple months ago.” Midnight laid her chin on a hoof. “Amazing…A unicorn’s horn breaking is rare too. Usually, it ends up killing the pony…it’s not a mere boon that you’re still alive. To top it off...you can do magic beyond the normal capability of most unicorns. Crazy…” Midnight stared at Twilight…that familiar feeling of emptiness bathing the unicorn. Rainbow was getting a little peeved by all the fancy talk. “Hey, I get enough this in class. Can we not talk about my wings?” The two staring mares broke away and poked at their food. “Well, what should we talk about?” Twilight asked. “Um…hey, Middy…you haven’t touched your food at all.” “Oh…you’re right.” She blushed and picked up one of the sliced tomatoes from her salad. She chomped it and swallowed. “Mm…delicious.” She smiled. The unicorn raised a brow. If that wasn’t the most forced gesture of satisfaction... ~ Twi! Twi! Can you hear me? ~ Twilight’s ears perked up and she looked at Dash. “Hm? What is it, Rainbow?” “What?” Rainbow looked away. “Oh, could you pass the corn?” Middy looked oddly at the two mares. ~ Twilight, you have to tell her about the book. ~ The unicorn floated the corn over to her. Oh, right. Twilight blushed. I’ll tell her after dinner. I was hoping to show it to her alone. ~ Why alone? Why not show her together? ~ Trust me…she acts differently when you’re not around…I might get more out of her if it’s just us two. ~ She acts differently? ~ Middy took a bite of one of her hay fries. The silence was getting to her and she stood up. “You know…I’m actually not that hungry. I’ve had a great time, but I should probably be going.” She extended her wings. “Wait!” Twilight approached her. “You still don’t have a place to stay…you really should stay here until you’ve found your own place…or at least for tonight.” “I-I couldn’t…” She folded her wings. “I don’t want to intrude. I have no right to stay here.” “No right?” Dash approached her as well. “You’re only the most helpful and kind pony I’ve ever met in Cloudsdale…that’s more than enough in my book.” Scootaloo, who had been eating away this entire time, finally spoke up. “Yeah! That would be awesome…we could have a sleepover!” “Yeah!” Twilight smiled. “I think it would be fun, don’t you?” Midnight was flustered. She looked back and forth between the three ponies and she rolled her eyes. “I guess I can stay one night…” ***** A few hours after dinner, the four ponies had made their way outside. The sun would be setting in less than an hour. Dash was giving Scootaloo some more flying lessons. Twilight was lounging with Midnight and a couple of books…not the one she needed to show, however. Dash had Scoot at ready while she paced back and forth. “All right, Scoot! Just like Coach Zephyr told me: ‘You only need a minute to win it!’ So I want to you to do as many laps as you can around the house in sixty seconds! This exercise will help you keep balance as well as teach you to how to better maintain your speed! Now…go!” The filly took off. “So I’ve been thinking about your story…” Twilight was talking with Midnight while she flipped through a book. “My story?” The pegasus tilted her head. The unicorn put the book in front of her and pointed a hoof at it. “The one about your cutie mark…I think the star you saw was the Northern Star, Polaris…or it could be Sirius, the brightest star. It depends where you were looking.” “I…can’t remember what direction it was.” She smiled sheepishly. “Oh…Well, anyway, I think the star on your cutie mark correlates to one of these stars…and since your star is cross-shaped…it somewhat relates to medicine, your talent, which is often symbolized by a red cross.” The unicorn sighed as she finished. “Well, am I close?” Middy chuckled softly. “You have it all figured out, don’t you, Twilight?” “Well, maybe if you told the rest of your story it might help.” She looked away. “I told you I’ll tell you later…Dash is doing some crazy stuff over there.” The two mares looked over at the pegasi. Rainbow was spinning around a cloud very fast. So fast she began shaping it like potter’s clay, and in a few seconds she was done. “Tell me what this is.” Dash leaned against the cloud which was now about her size. Scootaloo leaned her head from side to side trying to analyze it. “Is that a…trophy made from a cloud?” “Yes, and it’s only yours if you can perfectly imitate one of the routines that won me the Best Young Flyer’s Competition, Cloud Doughnuts!” “Cloud… ‘Doughnuts’? We just ate, Dash.” Rainbow smacked a hoof against her face. Midnight giggled. “That filly is so cute…it’s adorable. Is she Rainbow’s sister?” The unicorn chuckled. “Sister? Oh, no…she’s from Ponyville. We brought her along because of her strong adoration towards Rainbow. It looks like it’s paying off a little. That filly has been trying to fly for ages…” “Dash is a better teacher than she thinks…she’s taught me some things as well.” “Hm? Like what?” Twilight furrowed her brow. Midnight turned her gaze to the unicorn…she gave her sly grin. Her…her eyes…they are so beautiful… Those cold, piercing violet eyes were entrancing…Twilight was so fixated she couldn’t move her head. The pegasus’s head was haloed by the setting sun. Her face was completely silhouetted except for those eyes. The unicorn’s skin and breath began to feel chilly. Twilight gasped…this experience was all too familiar. Her horn sparked and shocked her as she created a small wooden door between the ponies. “Oh?” The pegasus jumped a little. “What’s this?” “Sorry, Midnight. It was a reflex…” Twilight made sure to look down at her books when she got rid of the door. I need to be more careful…she reminds me of a medusa. I can’t look at those eyes! “Look, Middy.” She sighed heavily. “I would like to show you where you’ll be staying tonight.” “Oh, you already have a room prepared?” The pegasus smiled. “Show me!” “Okay!” Her excitement a little contagious. “Come with me.” ***** Twilight brought Midnight to the study. She had created a bed in there earlier after the discussion at dinner. Midnight was thrilled and plopped onto the bed with a giggle. “This is perfect! I can’t thank you enough, Twilight.” She sunk into the covers. “Ahh…” Twilight forced a smile. “Unfortunately, you shouldn’t thank me yet.” This killed the pegasus’s excitement. “Huh? Why’s that?” Twilight floated a book next to her and set it down in front of Midnight. “I have something to show you. I want you to read this book for me and tell me what you think. I can’t seem to wrap my brain around it…maybe you can…you know…figure it out.” “Uh…all right? I’ll see what I can do. What book is this?” “It’s a special one.” The unicorn turned away. “Well, I’m gonna keep an eye on Rainbow and Scootaloo…read it and come out when you’re done. I’m very interested how you’ll react.” The pegasus nodded and opened the book to the first page. “Hope you like the room!” Twilight blurted before leaving. “What a strange mare…” Midnight whispered to herself. “What could this be about? Adventure into the Stars: Tale of the…” She gasped and shut the book. Midnight threw the book aside and stared at the doorway. “Hm…You’re cleverer than I thought, Twilight Sparkle.” She giggled and crossed her hooves. “Perhaps…you’re too smart for your own good…” ***** Dash was waiting at the front door for Twilight. As soon as she appeared she approached her. “Did you show her?” Twilight stuffed a hoof against the pegasus’s mouth and pushed her away from the doorway. She closed the door behind her. “Yes, I did. She’s reading it now.” “And you left her alone in there? What if she does something stupid?” Dash pushed her way towards the door, but was stopped by a flare of Twilight’s horn. “Relax, Dash. We’ll check on her in a minute. I have to tell you something important.” The two mares brought down their volume to a whisper. “What? What is it, Twi? Is it bad?” “Dash, calm down. You’re acting like a child…but it is kinda bad. It’s a warning. Whatever you do…don’t look into her eyes for too long or touch her.” Dash’s heart skipped a beat. “W-Why?” “I can’t explain it, but…do you feel cold when she’s around…like an emptiness?” “Well, maybe…” She stopped herself and rolled her eyes. “Come on, Twi!” Breaking the whispering. “She’s not a monster! Look! Let’s just go talk to her about it!” She shoved the mare aside and opened the door. Twilight stumbled a bit. “Wait! No!” The unicorn tried to stop her with magic, but it wasn’t working for her. “Midnight?” She called out…she wasn’t sure where the pegasus was. “Middy, you in here?” She wandered into the study. She couldn’t see anypony in there. “Twi, where is she?” The unicorn caught up with her. “She should be…” She looked around the room. “Oh, no…” “Oh, no?” “She was just in here!” Twilight looked around and found the book on the floor…with a note on top of it. “What’s this?” “Twi, you ran her off! You should have…” “Quiet, Dash!” She levitated the note and began reading it. A few moments later… “Well? What does it say?” Rainbow spoke up. Twilight sighed and read it aloud. “‘I just wanted to thank you all for letting me stay, but unfortunately something just came up and I had to leave. I hope you will understand, but I wish to see Rainbow tomorrow.’” She paused. “‘P.S. I read the book. I think it’s an amazing story, but I wish the antagonist wasn’t so single-minded. Yours truly, Midnight Sun.’ That’s all it says.” I was gone for less than two minutes…there’s no way she read that book. “Twilight, there’s some sort of weird drawing on the back of it.” “Huh?” She flipped the page over. “Oh…this is…it’s a constellation! Ursa Minor.” “Ursa Minor? As in that creature that attacked Ponyville?” Polaris is the brightest star in that constellation. Is she telling me that’s the star she saw? “Twi?” “Hey! Where’d you go, Rainbow?” The two heard Scootaloo from the other room. “I finally did your trick, but you ran off.” She entered the study and the two mares turned to face her. “What’s going on in here?” The mares looked at each other. Twilight smiled at the filly. “Nothing. Great job on your feat, Scootaloo! Come on, let’s see it.”