//------------------------------//
// II-X. Betrayal 
// Story: Hùndùn 
// by LoZLttP13 
//------------------------------//

Time stood completely still.

Twilight was completely motionless, her eyes fixed upon the glass eyes in the window staring back at her.

Discord. The First Sealed God, the King of the World, the very Lord of the Cosmos himself. Discord, the God of Chaos, was smiling threateningly at Twilight from his inky depiction in Celestia's beautiful stained glass window.

The dread and terror that had descended upon Twilight was indescribable. Fear had overtaken every inch of her body, rendering her to enter such complete despair that she couldn't even run or scream.

And Discord was relishing every moment of it.

Not breaking his gaze with Twilight, Discord let out a low, cruel chuckle through his clenched teeth. "Oh, what a magnificent expression...." he muttered. "It has been far too long since I have seen such a delicious look of horror.... It's a shame that I do not have my body; I'm shivering just to imagine the expressions I could get out of you...."

The God-shaped, grinning shadow in the window then suddenly darted off, disappearing from Twilight's view.

The moment he was out of her view, Twilight gasped and looked frantically around, trying to see where he had gone. She flinched and froze again, however, as she felt a hand slowly close around her shoulder. She felt warm breath as the voice whispered in her ear, "I can hardly think of anything more delightful than the sound of a pretty girl like you... screaming."

Twilight whipped around, though she found that there was no one there.

After a few moments of confused, panicked silence, Twilight began slowly backing away from the place she was sure the malicious God had laid his hand on her. However, she then heard more laughter, though it was high and humored this time. "Oh, you should see the look on your face!" the voice of Discord cried. Twilight turned in its direction, and saw the God of Chaos's black silhouette in another one of the windows, curled over in uncontrollable laughter. "Priceless!"

Though Twilight was as terrified as ever, her fear mixed with rapidly-building rage. "You- you monster!" she shouted. "You twisted, vile, insane-!"

"Yes, yes," Discord interrupted Twilight, waving his hand dismissively and rolling his eyes. "I'm a horrible, despicable, unfathomably wicked demon, yeah, yeah, yeah, blah blah blah. In other news, beaches are sandy and water is wet. You should get a better writer; your material is more prehistoric than I am!"

With a small chuckle at his own joke, Discord slithered into the neighboring window, where he lounged horizontally across nothing in particular as he continued with a tone of amused boredom, "I wasn't lying when I said I don't have my body. You were supposed to be smart; I thought you knew this already."

"Then, what did I-?" Twilight muttered to herself.

"You mortals are such simpletons," Discord said with another condescending chuckle. "You just cannot seem to ever be able to grasp how treacherous your senses can be. Without touching you, I can make you perceive or feel anything I like. Here...."

Twilight flinched and her eyes widened again. She felt a hand pressing against her bare left breast.

Flushing, Twilight yelped in protest as she brought her hands up to pull her groper off, though she found that she grasped only at empty air. She looked down, and saw that there was nothing on her chest aside from the cloth of her pajama top, though she was sure that she felt a hand gently squeezing her breast.

"Don't-!" Twilight cried distressedly as she felt the fingers begin massaging her nipple.

"Don't what?" Discord said innocently. "I'm not touching you...."

"Stop it!" Twilight shouted, clenching her eyes shut and crossing her arms over her chest. However, not only did the sensation of a pervert's hand unwelcomely caressing her not stop, but she felt her right breast begin to get fondled, as well.

With a desperate sob, Twilight crouched down and pressed her torso up against against her legs. However, the sensation of being groped continued unabated. "Please! Stop!" Twilight wailed.

Discord responded with a sadistic laugh before the intangible fingers began to teasingly pinch. "Even if I were doing anything," he said, "which I'm not, you are still obviously enjoying it...."

"No, I'm not!!" Twilight screamed. "Get away from me!!"

"Oh, naughty little Twilight still hasn't learned her lesson, it seems," Discord muttered, each one of his words dripping with mounting glee and excitement. "Perhaps she'll need a little... punishment to remind her who her Lord is...."

Twilight felt the hand lift away from her left breast, though the right one remained. Twilight then shouted in surprise as she felt someone slap her bare backside, though she could definitely still feel the texture of her pajama bottoms' seat....

Twilight was spanked again, which was accompanied by the loud, sharp, distinctly unmistakable slap of flesh striking together.

"Stooop!" Twilight wailed, now weeping uncontrollably. Discord responded only with more mocking laughter as Twilight continued to undergo the humiliating sensations of being spanked and violated.

Only when Twilight's sobs began to subside did the sensations end, at which point Twilight's face was completely soaked with tears. Twilight weepingly glared up at the image of Discord, who was gazing at his hand with a disappointed frown. "You're disgusting," Twilight spat.

Discord shrugged. "A lot of good it does me now," he muttered. "Though I can make you perceive that I am violating you, and even make myself feel as though I am touching your body, I must admit that it is just not the same if I am not doing it in reality."

Before Twilight could denounce him further, however, Discord's sadistic grin returned. "That will soon change, of course," he said.

Twilight was completely full of fear, though her anger allowed her to push through it. "Y-you're wrong!" she shouted. "You'll never escape from Tartarus!" Here Twilight smirked. "Celestia will make sure of it!"

For the first time, Discord's cheer instantly melted. His cruel grin was replaced by a snarling sneer of such fearsomeness it caused Twilight to involuntarily step back. "Celestia is a speck next to me," Discord growled softly. "I admit that my greatest shame is that I was foolish enough to allow her to capture me. She surpassed even what I thought her to be capable of, though that will be irrelevant soon enough."

Twilight paled. "W-what?" she whispered.

Discord's sadistic, smug grin returned. "Oh yes, dear Twilight," he said. "The Sun is setting on the age of Celestia's rule."

Discord slithered between the window panes; as he did so, he began chanting:


"A thousand years after the Sealing of the Seventh,
The stars will align, heralding the Crumbling of the Labyrinth.

One by one, the Seven Stars shall fall from the sky
Under the Lord of the Cosmos's watching, unblinking eye.

Though his eldest child will imprison him, he shall once again be freed
By a son and a daughter of the Sun, as well as a son and a daughter of me.

To prevent my return, the High Queen shall name seven saviors,
But they will be thwarted by a servant, a brother, and two of her children; traitors.

The Sun-Princess shall take my place, the world shall become a Hell infernal..."


Here, the stained glass windows all simultaneously shattered. Twilight gasped in horror; outside, the surface of the Earth had become a barren wasteland, completely enveloped in flames, and the sound of a thousand voices screaming in agony accompanied the roar of the fires.

Discord's voice boomed his final words: 


"FOR THE GOD OF CHAOS SHALL RETURN TO THE EARTH, AND REIGN ETERNAL!!"


Twilight then heard high, shrieking, maniacal laughter from the dreaded Lord of the Gods, and her eyes poured with horrified tears as her Soul seemed to break....

Then she bolted upright in her bed in the Golden Oak Library, gasping and weeping, from her dream.

It was still deep nighttime, so Twilight found that she was in near-complete darkness, except for the faint light of a few stars outside the library's windows. She was covered in a cold sweat, and her eyes were wide with terror. Twilight held her head, looked around, then made a relieved sigh. "It was just a dream. It was just a dream...." she muttered. She laid back down and went back to sleep. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to sleep properly, for her slumber was light and restless.





Spike had to shake Twilight awake the next morning. "Twilight!" he said. "C'mon, get up!"

Twilight responded by groaning, curling over, and wrapping her blankets more tightly around herself. Spike shook her again. "Come on, Twi!" he pleaded. "It's ten in the morning! You need to get up! We have lunch with our friends in a couple hours, remember?"

"Leave me alone...." Twilight muttered irritably. "I'mma go back to sleep...."

Spike narrowed his eyes annoyedly. "Hell no," he said firmly. "You've never let me sleep in when I've wanted to, so I'm not gonna let you do it, either."

"Too tired...." Twilight mumbled. "I'm your mentor, Spike, you have ta do what I zhay...."

Spike rolled his eyes. "For the love of...." he muttered.

Spike walked over to Twilight's private bookshelf, where he tilted one of the codexes towards himself. "Hey, Twilight," he sang, sporting a wicked grin. "While I'm waiting for you to finish sleeping, I'm gonna pass the time with a book. How does your journal sound?"

Twilight's eyes shot open.

In moments, Twilight leapt out of her bed and tackled Spike to the ground. "Don't you fucking dare!" she shouted furiously as she did so. "I swear, Spike, if I see you take one look in my diary-!"

"Great, you're up," Spike said, grinning cheerfully. "Oh, and by the way, you might wanna save the whole 'forcefully pulling me to the ground' thing for when we have an audience."

Twilight intensely blushed, realizing the position she and Spike were in. She was holding him firmly around the waist, and her face was pressed up against his torso.

With an angry, embarrassed groan, Twilight quickly stood back up and smoothed her hair down. Spike stood up, as well, and Twilight saw that he was already fully dressed in his day clothes. After chuckling at Twilight's beet-red, affronted glare, he nodded towards the bathroom while suggesting, "Go get dressed, then we'll pick up groceries and pick up our cupcakes at the Sugar Shack. Sound good?"

After a moment of tense silence, Twilight took a deep breath before she spat, "Fine."

As Twilight began marching to the bathroom, however, Spike said with a tinge of worry, "Twi- are you alright?"

After taking another deep breath, Twilight replied softly, "Y-yeah. I'm sorry for snapping at you, Spike. I just got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, is all...."

Spike nodded. "Alright," he said. "Well- just let me know if you need anything, okay?"

"I will," Twilight replied with a small, grateful smile. "Thanks, Spike."

Once Twilight had locked herself in the library's bathroom, she splashed some cold water onto her face before wearily rubbing her forehead. "Spike can be so infuriating sometimes," she muttered under her breath. "It's like having an annoying little brother."

After a moment, Twilight realized that she'd just thought of the subject of her fantasies last night as her little brother, and subsequently shuddered and became nauseous with disgust. "Ugh. What is wrong with me...?" she said anxiously to her reflection.

When Twilight came back out of the bathroom again, she was less unkempt, but looked no more better-rested. She constantly wore an anxiety-tinged frown as she and Spike purchased food for their upcoming picnic in the shopping district, which Spike worriedly took note of. Once they had finished shopping and had stored their groceries in the library kitchen, Spike said to Twilight as they were making their way to the Sugar Shack, "Are you sure you're alright, Twilight?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Twilight replied. "It... it's just...."

"Are you still worried about our report?" Spike said.

Twilight nodded. "Y-yeah," she said.

With a hopeful grin, Spike said, "Well, why don't we ask our friends if they've seen or heard anything at the picnic? That way, we'll be able to go home and get the report to Celestia in time afterwards."

Twilight made a small, excited gasp, then she enthusiastically hugged Spike. "Yeah, that's a great idea, Spike!" she cried. "You're brilliant! Thank you so much!"

Twilight gave Spike a small peck on the cheek, then continued forward, far more upbeat than she'd been moments ago. Spike closed his eyes and made a gentle smile of satisfaction; as fun as making out with his mentor to maintain their facade to their friends were, he had to admit that there was just something special about getting an unsolicited and voluntary kiss from Twilight, even if it was always on the cheek.

Once they were inside the bakery, Twilight and Spike found that Pinkie and Mrs. Cake were already waiting for them. "Hi, Twilight! Hi, Spike!" Pinkie cried to them cheerfully after they stepped through the glass front doors.

"What's up, Pink?" Spike answered. He nodded at Mrs. Cake as he added, "It's good to see you, Mrs. Cake."

"Same, young man," Mrs. Cake chuckled. "Your cupcakes are ready for you- let me just go get them...."

As Mrs. Cake went into the shop's kitchen, Pinkie made a concerned glance at Twilight. "Are you alright?" she said.

Twilight blinked, turning surprisedly to Pinkie. "Huh?" she said.

"You don't look too good," Pinkie said. "Is something wrong?"

Twilight shook her head and laughingly reassured Pinkie, "No, no, everything's fine. I just... had a little trouble sleeping last night, is all."

Pinkie gazed at Twilight with slight curiosity for a moment, then shrugged and grinned. "Okie dokie lokie!" she said.

Mrs. Cake then came back out of the kitchen, holding a box of white cupcakes topped with pink frosting. "Here you are, dearies!" she said as she passed it to Spike.

"Thanks!" Spike replied.

However, before Spike could place the lid over the box, Twilight put her hand in the way, stopping it. "Mrs. Cake-" she began. "... are there... thirteen cupcakes in here?"

Mrs. Cake gasped. "Oh my goodness!" she cried. "I am so sorry, Twilight! You needed fourteen, so you and each of your friends could have two, didn't you?"

Twilight took a deep breath, then said with a small, friendly smile. "That's alright. You surely have another one, right?"

Mrs. Cake shook her head. "I'm afraid not, Dear," she said. "We've just sold out the rest of our stock. We won't have any more baked until after lunch break."

Twilight's eye twitched. "B-but...." she said. "...That... that'll be after the picnic's over...."

The air was absolutely still for a few moments as Spike, Pinkie, and Mrs. Cake gazed warily at Twilight's eerie motionlessness. Twilight then turned to Pinkie and said, "Pinkie- surely you can get us another cupcake...?"

"Well, yeah," Pinkie said, as though it were quite obvious. "I have a whole stash of cupcakes. But those are for emergencies only."

Twilight gripped Pinkie's shoulders. "This is an emergency!" she cried. "If we don't have fourteen, then one of us will get less than the others-!"

There was a loud, distinct munching sound, and Twilight and Pinkie turned to see Spike messily devouring one of the cupcakes. Twilight and Pinkie both gaped speechlessly at this until Spike was finished, at which point he expertly balled up the wrapper and tossed it into a nearby garbage can. "There," he said decisively. "I ate one of 'em early. As punishment, I don't get my other one."

Spike wiped the excess frosting from his face with his thumb, licked it off, then slid the lid over the box. He then nodded towards the bakery's front doors, saying, "Let's go, girls."

Spike walked out, and a few moments later Twilight hesitantly released Pinkie's arms. "Y-yeah...." she muttered.

However, Pinkie stood still for a few moment before following her friends out. "Are you alright, Pinkie?" Mrs. Cake said.

Pinkie visibly shivered. "Yeah, it's just... something about Twilight and the cupcakes was just unsettling...."

However, before Mrs. Cake could inquire further, Pinkie shook her head and jogged off after Twilight.

An uncomfortable silence hung in the air for a few minutes between Twilight, Pinkie, and Spike as they made their way down Avalon's cobblestone roads. Spike and Pinkie both noticed that Twilight was restlessly fidgeting with her fingers, and that her eyes were fixed firmly on her striding feet. Twilight seemed to be on the verge of panicking, though Pinkie knew it would be futile to try to coax the reason why out of her. She would have privately asked Spike about it, were it not for the fact that she couldn't pull him aside without Twilight noticing. Had something happened? Was Twilight aware of some kind of emergency or had she made a mistake she was too embarrassed to confide in her?

Pinkie took a few steps forward, and gently laid her palm over Twilight's shoulder. Twilight gasped and whipped her head around to face Pinkie, who said with kind, compassionate concern, "Are you worried about something, Twilight?"

A bit of color disappeared from Twilight's cheeks, and her pupils dilated. "N-no," she replied, after just a moment's too much hesitation.

"You can trust me," Pinkie continued. "Whatever it is, I won't tell anybody. I won't get angry or laugh at you, or anything like that. I Pinkie Promise. I'm here for you."

Unconsciously, Twilight stopped in her tracks. Spike and Pinkie halted, as well, as they gazed expectantly at Twilight. Pinkie's eyes were caring and concerned, and everything in her expression indicated that every word she had spoken was completely sincere. Pinkie would stay by her side, and continue supporting her and being her friend, no matter what Twilight confided in her. Twilight wanted nothing more than to break down in pent-up, stressful tears, and tell Pinkie everything. Celestia's mission. Her dream last night. Her lies about her relationship with Spike. Her desperate desire for Spike. For anyone. Though Pinkie was almost always as cheerful and carefree as a hyperactive toddler, Twilight had to admit that very few other Beings could exude such intense trustworthiness or undying supportiveness.

But even if she could trust Pinkie, Twilight would be violating Celestia's trust by telling her anything. She couldn't live with herself for committing such a reprehensible betrayal of her mentor and idol. It wouldn't make her feel better at all.

Twilight shook her head. "I- ...no, there's nothing wrong, Pinkie," she lied. "I'm fine. You don't need to worry about me."

Before Pinkie could protest any further, Twilight turned forward again and resumed marching. With a quick glance at Spike, who ashamedly avoided eye contact with her as he followed after Twilight, Pinkie sighed before continuing her trek, as well.

Within a few minutes, the three friends reached Avalon's grassy public park. The rest of the girls were already there, chatting amicably with each other as they arranged the food they'd brought. In moments, Rarity spotted Twilight, Spike, and Pinkie. She beamed; however, before she could greet them, she noticed Twilight's fearful face. "Twilight?" she said worriedly. "Are you alright, Darling?"

The others then turned to Twilight, as well, who had flinched at receiving yet another query regarding her well-being. "You alright, hon?" Applejack said after a few moments of tense silence.

Twilight couldn't take it anymore. "NO!!" she shouted, clenching her fists and gritting her teeth. "I am not alright! There! You all happy now?!"

Worry building in the others, as well, Fluttershy said, "What is it, Twilight? Maybe we-"

"I can't tell you!" Twilight interrupted Fluttershy desperately.

"But why ever not, Darling?" Rarity said. "We promise, we won't-"

"It doesn't matter!" Twilight barked. "I just. Can't. Tell. You! Alright?! The end! That's it!"

"But how can we help you if you won't tell us what it is?!" Rainbow said, a little angrily.

At this, Twilight's expression brightened. "W-Wait!" she shouted cheerfully. "I forgot! Maybe you girls can help!"

After exchanging confused looks with each other, the girls said kindly simultaneously to Twilight that they'd be happy to help in any way they could.

"Wonderful!" Twilight said with a wide, relieved grin. She knelt down, folded her hands over her lap, and said expectantly, "So. Have any of you seen or heard about anything unusual going on? Around town, or anywhere else?"

The girls' expressions melted into confusion again, and they exchanged more puzzled looks with each other. "What, um... kind of 'unusual things' do you mean?" Fluttershy said.

"Anything!" Twilight replied, her panic swiftly returning. "Anything at all!"

"Um...." Fluttershy said, looking down and fidgeting with her fingers. "Well, I saw an owl in the middle of the day over the past week. That was a little odd."

Her anxiety building to an apex, Twilight looked to the others, who one-by-one shook their heads apologetically. "Nah, not that Ah know of," Applejack said. "Sorry, Sugar."

"Can't say I've seen anything too weird, either," Rainbow Dash said.

"The closest I've come to what you're asking is receiving an order for some hooded black robes," Rarity said with a shrug. "I'm so sorry, Twi-"

However, Twilight gripped Rarity's arms and jerked her forward, so that their faces were only a centimeter apart. "WHO?!" Twilight screamed. "WHO DID YOU SELL THOSE ROBES TO?!"

Now equal parts angry and worried, Rarity replied, "Of course I can't tell you, Twilight! That would be a violation of the privacy of my clientele-!"

"This isn't about privacy, Rarity! This is a matter of life and death!"

"Honestly," Pinkie scoffed, rolling her eyes. "What's gotten into you, Twilight? You're trying to bully our friend into telling you a super-serious secret over nothing-!"

"This. Isn't. Nothing! This is everything!" Twilight shouted. She glared intensely into each of her friends' eyes as she ranted, "I've got to know everything that's relevant to my job here! Our very LIVES depend on it!!"

"What job?!" Rainbow shouted. "Twilight, you're goin' waaaay off the deep end! What the fuck could be so horrible about a stupid clothes order?! Y'know what I think?! I think you should see a doctor! Have yourself checked out!"

Twilight rolled her eyes and sneered. "Oh, ha, ha," she said. "I'm soo glad to have friends like you, Rainb-"

"Ah hate to say this, but Rainbow's gotta point," Applejack interjected. However, her tone was much kinder and gentler than Rainbow's. "Maybe you, uh, ate somethin' funny yesterday. Or maybe you had another brush with a Soul Toxin. Why don't we take you to get a check up, just to be safe?"

Now so red that steam was practically coming out of her ears, Twilight made a frustrated, enraged groan, then teleported with a violet etherial flash. Her friends flinched in surprise, saw that she'd materialized a few meters away, then turned toward her just in time to see her teleport again- this time to somewhere out of their sight.

After a few moments of awkward silence, Pinkie turned to Fluttershy and said worriedly, "Do you think she's okay?"

Fluttershy shook her head. "I don't know... I mean, I have no idea what she's even going on about...."

"Wait!" Rainbow shouted, drawing the others' attention. "Maybe Spike knows something about it!"

The girls turned to look at Spike, who shrunk under their gazes. "You got any ideas, Big Guy?" Rainbow said.

Spike gulped, clenching his eyes closed for a moment. "M-maybe...." he muttered.

Before the others could inquire further, however, Spike stood up and gazed off after Twilight determinedly. "Wait here," he said. "I'm gonna talk to her."

With that, Spike jogged off.

After Spike had slipped beyond their sight, Rainbow sighed, shook her head, and muttered, "I've just had enough of this shit...." before spreading her wings and flying after Spike.





Twilight was lying on a bench across town, anxiously stroking her hair.

"Calm down, Twilight...." she muttered, though her fingers continued trembling. "The day isn't over yet...."

Twilight looked up, and saw that the sun was fast approaching the horizon. She gasped with terror, then shouted, "But it WILL be over soon!"

Twilight whimpered as tears welled in her eyes. "K-keep it t-together, Twilight...." she muttered. She clenched her eyes shut, then shouted, "Keep. It. TOGETHER!"

She opened her eyes again, however, when she heard Spike calling to her in the distance, "Twilight! Twilight!"

Twilight looked towards Spike, who was pantingly jogging to meet her. When he was before her, he bent over, placed his palms over his legs, and took several deep breaths as sweat rolled off his forehead to the ground. "Wow, you got far," Spike gasped before standing up straight and wiping his face.

After panting for a few more moments, Spike said, "Are you sure you're okay, Twilight? I mean, maybe we should write to Celestia about-"

"Hey, Egghead!" A familiar aggressive voice shouted from above them. Twilight and Spike looked up to see Rainbow Dash, touching down just a few steps from the bench, with a rather infuriated frown on her face. She folded her arms once she landed, stood silently for a few moments, then cried, "What the fuck is wrong with you two?! I mean, both of ya geeks have acted weird ever since you came here, but this is insane, even for you!"

"It's none of your business, Rainbow!" Twilight angrily retorted.

"Are you pregnant, Twi?" Rainbow said.

Twilight blanched. "W- ...WHAT?!" she bellowed.

"Maybe you two forgot to cast the, uh... 'Infertelization Spell,' or whatever?" Rainbow suggested. "I don't know much about what you Elves do in your bedrooms, but-"

"I AM NOT PREGNANT, RAINBOW DASH!!" Twilight shouted.

Rainbow shrugged. "I dunno, Twi," she said. "I mean, you might not even know yet. Maybe you got drunk one night, got knocked up, then forgot all about it. I was wonderin' when something like this might happen-"

Twilight was red enough to be mistaken for a demon at this point. "I can assure you, Rainbow, that there is precicely zero chance whatsoever that I'm pregnant," she said with soft, icy dangerousness. "Spike is twelve. There's no way in the Seven Hells I'd be careless enough to make him a father now."

Rainbow scoffed, then turned to Spike, who was just as red as Twilight, but was looking away in shame and embarrasment. "How about you, Bro?" she said. "Are you as fuckin' certain you've not knocked your mentor up as she is?"

"Y-yes...." Spike muttered. "We've, um... n-never done it w-without pro-"

However, Twilight had spun on her heels and was fumingly striding away. "Hey!" Rainbow shouted after her. "Come back here, Twi!" she shouted, jogging after her.

Once Rainbow was walking beside Twilight, she demanded, "Seriously, Twi, if you don't tell me what the hell's goin' on-!"

"Shut up," Twilight snarled. "I've had far enough of you, Rainbow Dash. Kindly leave me be."

"Not until you tell me what the fuck's goin' on!" Rainbow retorted. Twilight took a sudden sharp turn, however, causing Rainbow to stutter incredulously, "H-hey! Where d'you think you're-?!"

"Leave. Me. Alone," Twilight spat. "I'm through obeying the rules. I've had enough of this nonsense. I'm going to do what I should have done in the first place."

"I'm not finished, Tw-!"

However, Twilight suddenly spun to face Rainbow, glaring fiercely down at her, holding up her hand in the preliminary position for a snap. Her eyes and Marks faintly glowed with violet Ether as she trembled with barely-restrained fury. "Don't test me," she growled, so fiercely that Rainbow flinched and backed ever-so-slightly away. "If I hear one more word out of you, Rainbow- so help me, Celestia- you're going to sorely regret it."

Rainbow was tempted to remind Twilight that she'd defeated a Dark God in a duel not a month ago, but the animalistic ferocity in Twilight's expression caused her courage to falter. "Understand?" Twilight said.

Rainbow opened her mouth as though to respond, but said nothing. "Good," Twilight said, sporting a grin of maniacally spiteful glee. "Have a lovely afternoon, then."

Twilight spun away again, and continued her walk away. Rainbow didn't follow her this time.

Rainbow turned back to gaze at Spike, whose expression was filled with every bit as much panic as her own was.





The Cutie Mark Crusaders had been in the middle of a volleyball game when Twilight materialized in between them. They were in a small clearing in the orchard of Sweet Apple Acres, where a half-century-old volleyball net stood amidst a patch of grass. Just moments ago, the Crusaders had been laughing and shouting elatedly as they hit the ball across the net to each other, but they all shrieked with fright the instant Twilight's frazzled, unnaturally-wide grin entered their sights.

"Hiiii, giiiirls!" Twilight sang through clenched teeth as a bead of sweat rolled past her twitching eye.

Apple Bloom gulped, then tremblingly muttered with a courageous attempt at a smile, "Umm- h-hey, Twilight. How're things-?"

"Great! Juuuust great!" Twilight inturrupted her, unwavering in her manic glee. "I just wanted to come by and see my very good friends! After all, I could use a little help with something...."

The Crusaders were growing deeply worried. Sweetie Belle cautiously ventured, "Uh... what... what kinda thing do you need help with, Twi?"

"Oh, nothing much," Twilight giggled in reply. "Just a teeny, tiny, itty bitty little favor from some good friends. Of course, if some good friends WERE to do this favor, they couldn't tell a-ny-one about it!"

Twilight directed her chilling smile at the Crusaders once again. Making brief, worried glances at each other, each of the Crusaders was beginning to wonder if she should begin running for help.

Swallowing and putting on a small smile, Scootaloo replied with a small, trembling voice, "Uh, I mean, um... Well, uh, I guess, I might be up for what you've got in mind, Twi... Uh... But-"

"Oh, it's so sweet you want to help me so much, Scootaloo," Twilight said, adopting a high-pitched, infantile voice. "You can certainly help, if you like. But I must confess that only Sweetie can give me what I need...."

Twilight was now focusing her predatory gaze squarely on Sweetie, filling the little Elf girl with such utter terror she was on the verge of bursting into tears. "P-please don't, Twilight...." she whimpered. "I... I don't want-"

Twilight grabbed Sweetie by the shoulders, stunning her into silence. She then leaned forward and whispered into her ear, "I promise, Sweetie; you're going to be very grateful that you did."





Rainbow Dash and Spike had returned to the picnic. Their friends were stunned to see that Twilight hadn't come with them, but were outright fearful to see the fear in their faces; particularly Rainbow's.

"Is somethin' wrong, sugarcubes?" Applejack said worriedly. "Is Twilight alright?"

"I... I don't know...." Spike replied hopelessly. "I've never seen her like this before...."

"Have you any idea what might be bothering Twilight, Spikie?" Rarity asked sweetly. "I'm sure she must've told YOU something, Darling."

Spike shook his head. "Not a clue," he muttered.

Pinkie looked surprised for a moment, though her expression quickly morphed into anger. "She wouldn't even tell you anything?!" she shouted with rapidly-building rage. "Not even YOU, Spike?! Does she really-?! ... Oh. My. Gosh! What a terrible friend she's being! I mean, I know you should respect others' secrets, but she should not be keeping them from YOU! I mean, sure, it hurts my feelings that she doesn't trust ME enough to tell me what's wrong, but if she doesn't even trust you enough to-!"

"What in tarnation are you yammerin' about, Pinkie?!" Applejack interrupted her. "Ah mean, Ah might not know much about Elves and their apprenticeship business, but Ah can't see why Twilight should have to tell hers about her own damn business any more'n she is to tell us!"

Pinkie rolled her eyes. "Well, duh!" She cried. "Of course she's not! But if she can't even trust her own boyfriend to support her through her deepest-!"

"... Wait, WHAT?!" Applejack shouted, gaping with horrified shock. "Her BOYFRIEND?!"

After a fraction of a second of tense silence, Pinkie realized what she'd done. The color vanished from her face, leaving her pale as a ghost. She gasped, her eyes widened, and she slapped her hands over her mouth. "Oh- ... oh...." she whimpered, turning tearfully to a visibly-panicked Spike. "I... I didn't mean-!"

"YOU'RE BEIN' TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF BY YOUR MENTOR?!" Applejack roared.

"Wait, Applejack!" Spike cried desperately. "Let me explain-!"

"There ain't nothin' to explain, Spike!" Applejack barked over him. "I'm sorry if it hurts to hear this, but someone's gotta say it to ya: you're too young to be doin' things like that with Twilight, and she oughtta know better-"

"Oh, come now, Applejack!" Rarity interjected. "I was even younger than him when I lost my virginity, and I'm quite happy to have done it with a more mature and experienced older man! I initiated it, but he was sweet and gentle-"

"You were younger than Spike?!" Applejack shouted again. "How old were ya?!"

"Ten," Rarity replied calmly. "What of it?"

Except for Rainbow, who made an impressed smile, and Fluttershy, who cringed with anxious anticipation, all the other Beings gaped with horrified shock at Rarity. "W-WHAT?!" Applejack screamed. "Rarity! Ya'll-?! An adult man molested ya when y'all were ten-?!"

"I wasn't molested!" Rarity shouted angrily. "As I said before, I was the one who initiated it! It was never non-consentual, and I loved every moment of it!"

Applejack looked to be on the verge of fainting. "Y-ya mean he did indecent things to ya more'n-?!"

"Yes, we had an ongoing relationship for over a year," Rarity interrupted her impatiently. "It ended when I began my apprenticeship under Grand Finale."

Applejack gripped her head between her palms like a vice. "It was one of your teachers?!" she screamed hoarsely.

"Yes, if you must know," Rarity answered, rolling her eyes. "I refuse to speak any more on the subject."

"Rare!" Pinkie cried. "You have to report him! What if he's preying on other little girls?!"

"Why haven't ya'll reported Twilight?!" Applejack shouted.

"It's not the same!" Pinkie shouted. "Twilight and Spike are much closer in age-!"

"It's exactly the same-!" Applejack shouted over Pinkie.

"Who cares?!" Rainbow shouted. "Spike and Rarity are obviously cool with-!"

"It doesn't matter!" Applejack screamed. "Mah land, am Ah the only sane one here?! Or am Ah short of a fruitcake?!"

Before the shouting match could continue, however, the young Beings heard the voice of Apple Bloom call out, "Sis! Spike!"

They all turned to Apple Bloom, and saw that she was pantingly jogging alongside Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo towards them.

"What's the matter, Sweetie Dear?" Rarity said concernedly as Sweetie bent over and breathed heavily for a few moments.

"Twilight's gone nuts!" Scootaloo cried.

"What do ya mean?!" Applejack cried fearfully.

"We can't tell ya, sis!" Apple Bloom replied. "She said if we told anyone-!"

"WHAT DID SHE DO TO YA, APPLE BLOOM?!" Applejack roared, so fiercely that the others all shrunk away from her and Apple Bloom tearfully cowered beneath her glare. "Ah swear, if she's laid ONE FINGER on ya girls-!"

"Oh, I wish that's what she wanted!" Scootaloo interrupted her. "She just made us break into the Carousel Boutique and get Rarity's order records for her!"

"Scootaloo!" Sweetie cried in dismay. "We promised Twilight-!"

"Screw that," Scootaloo scoffed. "Twilight's lost her friggin' marbles. I'm not gonna listen to her until she gets 'em back."

Applejack took a deep, angry breath, then began striding away from the others. "Applejack!" Rarity cried. "Where are you going?"

"To turn Twilight in to the Guard," Applejack muttered in response. "She should be grateful it was only Spike she was takin' advantage of; if she'd done anything to Apple Bloom, she'd never even see the guards."

Spike began panicking. "Wait- no, Applejack!" he cried, rushing forward and gripping one of her arms. He leaned back, digging his heels into the dirt in a vain attempt to slow Applejack down, but so great was her strength that she barely seemed to notice him. "You can't!" Spike wailed, sounding to be in danger of bursting into tears.

Applejack roughly shook him off, causing him to fall into the dirt. "Ah'm sorry, Spike," she said, coming to a stop. She turned and gave him a deeply remorseful look as she continued, "Ah know how much ya'll care about her, but what she's doin' to you ain't right. That's why Ah-"

"But she's not doing anything to me!" Spike shouted, climbing back up to his feet.

All the girls gaped in astonishment at Spike; after a few moments, Applejack folded her arms, frowned angrily, and said, "Ya'll are tryin' to tell me that you're Twilight's boyfriend, but you ain't ever done anything-?"

"But I'm not her boyfriend!" Spike cried.

Applejack's expression became one of enormous confusion, while the other girls all gasped. "Ya- ya ain't...?" Applejack said.

"No! I never was!" Spike shouted.

"Bullshit!" Rainbow shoutingly growled. "We saw you kiss her, Asshole!"

"You did?!" the Crusaders all shouted together.

Applejack's anger was quickly returning, and the color was draining out of Spike's face. "Don't ya'll try weaselin' your mentor outta this!" she shouted. "It's not gonna-!"

"That was the first time I'd kissed Twilight!" Spike cried desperately. "Honest! I'm not her boyfriend, and I never was, but we had to do something!"

Spike let this confession hang in the air for a few moments; he slid his hands into his pockets and bowed his head, cringing in anticipation. "Is... is it true?" Fluttershy said. "You really... never were a couple with Twilight, Spike?"

Spike shook his head. "No."

"You... you lied?" Pinkie said, her eyes narrowed with infuriated betrayal.

Spike nodded. "Yes."

The girls all gazed at Spike with such intensity he felt as though he were being pierced by eight pairs of needles from all directions. The agonizing silence stood for what seemed an hour.

"... Bloom, get along back home," Applejack said with disturbing calmness.

"Go with her, Sweetie," Rarity said with equal iciness. "You should go home too, Scootaloo Dear." The Crusaders all silently obeyed, turning and walking away from Spike.

Under the quietly furious glares of his five remaining friends, Spike began trembling as a tear dripped down from the tip of his nose.