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// Persona X: A Shadow of the True Self 
// Story: Sometimes They Call Me Super 
// by KorenCZ11 
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Applejack




    “Damn it!” Ah punched the bed in the crystal room and felt the need ta breathe.
    “Oh, come on! Look, I know you have a right to be angry and all, but it doesn’t take a genius to know you had premeditated murder on the mind back there!” Goose exclaimed.
    “You of all ponies have no right ta criticize me! Ya did the same damn thin’!” Ah could see him tense up, but then he took a deep breath and relaxed.
    “That’s right. I did make that mistake. And I told you that there is nothing I regret more in my life! How can you think this is a good idea after all you’ve been told? Killing other ponies will not make you feel better! When you protected your uncle from those thugs, did you feel good after you realized they were dead? When your friends look like they’re about to cry when they remember the deaths they caused, do you think that looking back at what they did makes them feel better?” Ah felt every muscle in my body tense up and Ah stomped a hoof inta the floor.
    “Damn it, just shut up!” Ah moved away from the new crater and curled up in my second bed facin’ the corner. Of course he’s right, Ah was never gonna win this fight anyways. Ah put one of my hoof tips in my mouth and started ta grind my teeth on it. Not but a couple seconds passed before Ah felt his tail brush up against my back.
    “Look, I know it sounds like the right thing to do now, but it’ll never turn out well. Some ponies deserve to die, but how does that give you the right to execute them? Manehattan is home to all kinds of killers and murderers, but it’s also home to some of the greatest heroes the world has ever seen. I think you’re deserving of the latter title, but you shouldn’t be out to gain the former.” Ah sniffed and turned my head at him.
    “Ya don’t think Ah don’t know that? Goddess damn it, just what am Ah supposed ta do? Sit on all this anger and let it come out like that again? Finally somethin’ good happened, and then it rains shit the next minute. Ah’m so tired of this!” Ah said through a sniff. He didn’t look back or say anything immediately, so Ah went back ta starin’ at the wall.
    “Well, honestly? That’s just life. Always out to get you, always out to fuck you over. But at the same time, there’s nothing more valuable, and nothing more important to protect. Tell me, what does it feel like when we take a monster down, or you swoop in and protect somepony?” Ah let out a breath. What does it feel like, huh?
    “Ah don’t know. Ah guess… Ah feel relieved?”
    “Okay, and if you’re relieved, then you’re feeling better than you were, right?”
    “Ah guess.”
    “So that means it makes you feel better when you do something good. So instead of doing something you know is bad and will make you feel worse, you do something good to feel better. It’s completely superficial, and if you’re doing something good just to make yourself feel better, you’re not being a hero for the right reasons. But if it keeps you from going on a witch hunt, then why not go see what you can do for somepony else instead of letting this vengeance consume you?” Ah got up and moved ta the edge of the bed with him.
    “Ah suppose… Ah’d rather be a shitty hero than a righteous villain.” Ah leaned inta him and he put a hoof around my shoulders and nodded.
    “There we go. Ooh, I do have one request though.” Ah looked up and just about met his snout.
    “And what would that be?” 
    “Cool it with the outbursts. I get it, you have crazy strength and all, but were we elsewhere, this shit would not be as easily repaired. Scootaloo and Twilight can only do so much you know? Blowing up, say, at your apartment, would not go well for anypony involved.” Ah nodded and sank inta him a little more.
    “Sure. Ah’ve managed ta not destroy thin’s at home fer a long time now, so Ah doubt that’s gonna change. Ah suppose Ah just don’t think of this place as a second home yet. Maybe one day…” Ah started and trailed off. The thought that completed that sentence was a little too much fer me ta say right now.
    “Yeah.”  Ah don’t know how much time passed, but Ah think Ah’d just about dozed off when Twilight woke me up.
    “Okay, I’ve settled on the Mǎnese place a couple blocks away. Who wants what?” The voice asked. Ah sat up straight and stiff and then relaxed after Ah realized it was her. Goose’s head slipped forward and fell inta my lap, but he didn’t move. Oh goddess, he’s breathin’ right there! Ah quickly and gently pushed his head forward, and once he wasn’t ticklin’ me, Ah ordered fer us.
    “Uh, get me a stir-fry orange bowl, and if they have it, get Goose somethin’ with meat in it, otherwise double my order. He’s asleep,” Ah whispered.
    “Okay… is he sleeping on you or what? His signal is right next to yours.”
    “Well, Ah mean… yeah. Just… just get the food.”
    “Ooh, I see what’s going on here… This is just like one of my romance novels!”
    “Oh, fer the love of yer mother, go order already!”
    “Oh, sure, I’ll just let you two get back to ‘sleeping♥’” Twilight said in an inflection that oddly reminded me of her mother.
    “Ya know damn well-” Then Ah felt the link cut out. Mother fucker. Ah leaned back until my upper body had made contact with the bed and just sighed. Ah really need ta talk ta somepony about this. Six o’clock can’t come soon enough.



    Twilight arrived with lunch and Ah’d fallen asleep again. It used ta be so difficult ta accomplish, but here Ah am, thirteen years after we got separated, fallin’ asleep with my best friend. Best friend? Is that what he is ta me right now? So much has changed and so much is just like it used ta be. That word came back up in my head recently, and the more Ah think about it, the more it might be true, but at the same time, what good has come of it in my life? Years of struggle and sacrifice, loss and remorse, some of which the fault of nopony in particular, all out of that word.
    Training came and went, and once again he tried ta protect me in a do or die situation. Ah felt a rage in the same vein as earlier but more intense than it had ever been when it killed him, and what happens next? Celestia kicks me out of the session because my emotions started ta ‘poison’ the spell.
“This unparalleled anger of yours must be put in check. You lose all sense of caution and do whatever it takes to destroy whatever you deem the cause of your rage. Applejack, this is not healthy. Were any of that real, you would’ve lost a foreleg permanently. What good are you to anypony if you sacrifice everything in the process? Scootaloo may be able to heal an injury, but having a leg blown to bits isn’t something she can repair. Tomorrow, I’m going to have Luna stand in for me, and you and I will be dealing with this… anger issue.”
    If Ah’ve learned anythin’ about Celestia, it’s that she’s gonna get ta the bottom of this one way or another, and when she does, Ah don’t think Ah’m gonna be ready for what she’s gonna say about it. There’s been… too many thin’s swirlin’ through my head lately, and if she looks in there then she’ll know… everythin’. Ah’m not even ready ta deal with all that yet and… and that word… if that comes up…
    “Applejack? This is ground control to Major Apple. Can you hear me Major Apple?” Rarity asked from her office chair. Ah shook my head and remembered where Ah was. After everypony else had finished trainin’, Ah followed Rarity ta her boutique after tellin’ Goose Ah needed some time alone. If Ah’m honest with myself, there’s nopony else Ah’d rather have around right now, but at the same time he’s part of the problem.
    “Oh, sorry. What was that?” Ah asked politely. Rarity sighed.
    “Would you like some tea is all I said initially, but you spaced off so hard that I had the time to get the water heated and poured. You’ve been sitting there for ten minutes darling.” What? there’s no way. We didn’t even make it here till six thirty, it’s not like… Ah looked at the clock on Rarity’s office wall, and it was six forty-five PM.
    “Oh fer the love of the goddess.” Ah shook my head and let it fall inta my hooves.
    “Come now, tell me what’s going on. I’d certainly rather you say what you think before I give you a diagnosis based on what I’ve seen,” she said sweetly. Ah picked up my head and sighed.
    “Ah’m… Oh, Ah don’t even know anymore. Ah feel… Ah feel like, even in this storm of crazy, that these days in between have been some of the best days Ah’ve had in a long, long time, and now… Ah’m gettin’ nervous that it’s all just gonna shatter inta a million pieces. Ah’m…” Ah couldn't finish. Rarity raised a brow.
    “You’re…?” she lead.
    “Ah’m… havin’ these thoughts…” Ah followed, chasin' my hoof tips around each other.
    “What thoughts, to be specific if you will?”
    “Well, maybe… in the future…”
    “In the future you…”
    “Ah want ta… ya know…”
    “I don’t know. You haven’t told me,” she said, a hint of spite in that one. Ah looked down and scratched at my ear.
    “Ah mean… Ah uh… with him and all…” Ah said, feelin’ my face heat up.
    “Are you saying you want to be with him, in the future?” Ah let out a breath and nodded. “And these thoughts of yours, what do they entail?”
    “Well… white everywhere and… m-maybe a… a fa…” Ah bit my lip. Ah didn't want ta say it.
    “A family?” she finished fer me.
    “Yes, damn it!” Ah yelled. Ah immediately covered my face and hid beneath my hat.
    “You okay?” she asked mid-giggle.
    “Shut up. Ah don’t know.” Rarity laughed some more.
    “Oh goodness, you’re just so pure. Would you like me try and lay everything out?” Ah nodded and continued ta hide. Ah knew what came next. “You, after your revelations and spending so much time together with him and everypony else, have opened up to others for the first time since the death of your father. You’re not struggling or wanting for anything of basic needs, you’re in a better place financially than you’ve ever been, and for the first time in your life, you have time for emotions you’ve long repressed, and all with this, the first male pony you ever warmed up to turned out to be somepony you held dear back when you were a child. You happen to already have a good dynamic with this pony, he is almost too dedicated to you, and suddenly, you’re starting to reciprocate those feelings. Correct?” Ah started ta come back up and nodded.
    “However, because of these new feelings, you’re beginning to remember the last time you felt something similar, which was when your parents were still around. This resurging emotion is so entwined with the negative feelings of losing your parents, that you’re beginning to fear that this little slice of life you’ve finally managed to get a grasp on will slip through your hooves any day now, and that is why you’re feeling so hesitant to display these emotions to the pony they’re directed at. This is also correct, correct?” Ah sighed again and hung my head.
    “And… The monsters are still commin’, Rainbow says that the ones ta worry about haven’t even come yet, we still don’t know if we’ll make it ta the end, and even then, that might just be the hardest fight we ever deal with, and we don’t have any way of knowin’ what’s gonna come out of Argent’s shop of horrors next. What if… what if he really does try protect me from somethin’, and end up gettin’ himself killed in the process? Ah… Ah don’t think my heart could take another death so close. That wouldn’t just be any death, that would be the death of somepony Ah l-… somepony… very, very special… somepony Ah lost that came back, only ta lose ‘em again…” Ah hate how this makes me feel. Ah can't even speak right, my damn voice is so shaky. Rarity nodded and leaned forward on her desk.
    “Yes, yes. But I don’t quite think that’s enough. You were about to use a word. A very particular word, a very strong word. You mean that word from the bottom of your heart, and there is nothing you are more afraid to say out loud, to admit to anypony else and yourself. When was the last time you used that word?” She asked. Ah sighed and rested my chin on my hoof. How long has it been, since Ah used that word?
    “Over a decade. Twelve, maybe seventeen years now? When mom was around, fer sure. It was common place in the house. After that though… Ah think it became more and more rare, and after dad… never. But… it's been pokin’ its way inta my head these days. And if it gets out… Ah just know that somethin’ will go wrong.” Rarity sighed.
    “You haven’t even told your siblings that you love them in that long?” Ah shook my head.
    “Nopony’s said that. Dad never had a proper funeral since his body was never found, but with the way Uncle Blood would cry at night in the months after that day, Mac and Ah just knew that we’d never see him again. Dad… kinda took that word with him. The closest we ever got ta… that word was ‘Ah’ll never leave ya’ from any of us ta any of us. It’s not somethin’… it’s just not somethin’ that we say.” Even tryin' ta talk about this feels like a weight on my back that's too heavy ta carry.
    “It’s possible that the simplest solution is to use that word. Just find a way to work it into your vocabulary at some point and it may help ease you into being able to use it when you want, but if I’m honest, I know it will be difficult for you. This… problem of yours is very deeply entrenched in who you are. Whether or not you can bring yourself to say it, you have, or at least are beginning to fall for Goose. Even Twilight, of all ponies, can see that. If you keep spending time with him, it’s only going to get worse, and in your current situation, that is unavoidable.
    So, you have two options here. You can either: let yourself fall into the despair of what might come to pass, close yourself off again and lose everything that you’ve worked so hard to build in these past months, or, you can enjoy the time you’ve gotten and the time you get with all these ponies you’ve let into your life. Personally, I would think the better of the two options is clear, but this is you I’m dealing with, so I can only expect so much.” And she’s right, but… but… what happens if it all does shatter? Am Ah… willin’ ta live through that pain again if it comes ta pass? Ah shook my head and sighed.
    “Rarity, thanks fer doin’ this fer me and all, but-” She stopped me and stood over her desk.
    “No buts! You have a choice to make and dwelling on it is not going to help you! Do you sincerely believe, that living closed off like you used to be, alone and constantly falling into your own self loathing and sorrow, is a better option than the chance that you might lose somepony else? Surely you realize that we are all on limited time here, and eventually none of us will be around anymore, don’t you? One day, we will be the loved ones lost due to age or tragedy somewhere along the line, but if you just sit around and mope in fear of what may come to pass, then you aren’t even living to begin with! For goddess sake, let yourself be happy for once in your life!” Ah looked up at her and then back down in my lap.
    “Ah… Ah just…” Ah started, feelin’ a lump form in my throat. In the blink of an eye, Rarity was suddenly holdin’ my head against her chest and she let out a deep breath.
    “There, there. I suppose… all these complex feelings coming together at the same time is just too much for you to sift though right now.” She said strokin’ my mane. The lump in my throat only got harder ta swallow, and before Ah knew it, Ah’d wrapped my forelegs around her. “I’m sorry I didn’t realize how much you were hurting sooner,” she whispered as the fur on her chest became wet.



    When next Ah woke up, Ah found myself in Rarity’s bed. The smell of sweet pastries was in the air, and the mornin’ light was just beginnin’ ta break through her curtains. Ah made my way down ta the kitchen ta find her standin’ in front of a griddle washin’ toast in egg and throwin’ it down ta fry.
    “Ah, good morning darling. Do you like the robe? It was a very ‘spur of the moment’ design, but I figure you’ve never had something like that before, and it might be nice in the event you’re used to sleeping with pajamas or the like.” Robe? Ah looked at myself and realized Ah’d been wearin’ a very soft, fluffy red robe the whole time. Did Ah sleep in this? The last thin’ Ah remember was… Ah guess, Ah must’ve fallen asleep on her. Oh goddess, Ah can’t believe that Ah-
    “Oh. So she is still here. And in one of your special robes. And you’re making Cheval toast again.” Sweetie paused and looked ta me, then ta Rarity. “Did… did you two… you know…” she asked from the staircase as she clicked her hooves together a few times. My face started ta heat up even more and Rarity just laughed.
    “No, no, I doubt I could accomplish that even if I drugged her. Applejack is… going through some difficult experiences right now, and I just thought that I would accommodate.” Sweetie shrugged and walked past me ta their kitchen table.
    “Whatever floats your boat I guess. It’s just, the only time I ever see a robe like that, or you make Cheval toast is when you make it for one of your recent hook ups,” she stated bluntly. Rarity huffed and stomped in place.
    “Sweetie! You know better! I have higher standards than to sleep with my friends.” Sweetie smirked and leaned back in her chair.
    “Sure you do. I also know you’re not above ‘that spark of love’ with whatever gender you come across, and more recently-” Rarity frowned and magically shoved a still steaming piece of Cheval Toast down Sweetie’s throat. She coughed and hacked until she finally swallowed the food. “Hey! That would’ve burned anypony else!” Rarity rolled her eyes and went back to cooking.
    “And now that I know you’re immune, I have no qualms against doing it again. Please, have a seat Applejack. I promise I didn’t do anything to you in your sleep. It has been a very long time since… something like that happened.” Sweetie shrugged.
    “I don’t know, two months isn’t that much time at all, really. What was his name again? Oh, and then there was that mare before him, and the stallion before her, and the stallion before him…” Rarity huffed and rolled her eyes.
    “And this would be why nopony ever stays with me. Can you keep my sex life to yourself please? I don’t make comments about your little ‘nightly habit’ to your friends, now do I?” The tips of Sweetie’s ears lit up in flames and her cheeks turned bright red.
    “S-shut up! T-that’s not fair!” Rarity took the smirk this time.
    “Oh, but all is fair in love and war isn’t it? Drop the subject and I’ll call a truce. Deal?” she offered, clearly the more comfortable of the two with her… promiscuous activities.
    “Deal.” Rarity put the fires on her ears out and put a few pieces of toast on her plate. Ah just stood there and started ta laugh. It made me laugh so hard that they both started ta get concerned before Ah could pull myself together.
    “Um, Applejack? Are you alright?” Rarity asked. Ah wiped a tear from my eye and finally managed ta get a handle on my composure.
    “Yeah, yeah, Ah’m fine. It’s just, he he… all this time Ah never really thought ya… ya lived up ta yer costume, but here we are. Y’all are freaks. But… Ah’m glad… you're my friends.” Ah took a seat at that little table and Rarity rolled her eyes and smiled.
    “Well, at least somepony is having fun at our expense. Here, go ahead and eat this. You have to deal with Celestia today, and you’re going to need all the help you can get.” She levitated a plate of powdered sugar coated Cheval Toast ta my seat in her light blue aura. Ah sighed and took the syrup from the center of the table. Ah squeezed the bottle and drew a picture of the sun on top of my sugar coated confection. If just tryin’ ta talk about my fears fer the future is enough ta make me cry in front of her… who knows what buttons Celestia is gonna push on purpose?
    “Yeah…”



    “Get back here, damn it!” Another buildin’ crashed, takin’ out several others as it collapsed on its side and crumbled inta nothin’. Dust, glass, rubble, and rebar flew everywhere as Ah shot after my prey. The Mirror hopped away after he avoided my attack and taunted me from where he stood.
    “You bastard! I’ll rip ya ta pieces!” Ah launched after him, both cables shot fer maximum speed toward my target. Ah knew he was gonna dodge or counter from above, that’s all he’s done this whole time so all Ah needed ta do is wait. Ah landed after he hopped above me ta avoid my rear hooves, and sure enough he was about ta launch at me. Prepared fer it this time, Ah ripped my cables out of the rooftop and stepped ta the side as Ah reached fer his neck. Close-lined in my foreleg, Ah used everythin’ Ah had and slammed his body inta the roof, collapsin’ it and drivin’ us inta the room below. Ah wrapped my knees around his shoulders ta hold him pinned ta the floor and Ah just started punchin’.
    “Why!? Why!? Why!? Why!? Why!?” Ah yelled with each blow. More and more blood started ta cover my hooves and quickly his mask became battered and broken. “He didn’t have ta die! Ya didn’t have ta kill him! He was my hero, he was my father, and ya took him away from me!” Ah put my hooves together fer an overhead slam, and drove us down another floor. Ah picked him up by the neck and squeezed with both hooves as hard as Ah could around it. Blood began ta gush from the newly separated head and body and Ah tossed it away as Ah dropped ta the floor and started ta puke myself.
    “Vengeance is a vicious cycle. Hatred breeds hatred. The angrier you are at me, the stronger I become!” Ah looked back at the corpse ta find it was still there, then looked behind ta see that another Mirror let loose a punch at my head. Pain jolted through me as my body shot through wall after wall until finally Ah crashed inta the street below. “How pathetic. You can’t even take revenge without making yourself sick. Is this all that you’re capable of!? You aren’t worthy enough to kill me, you’re not even worthy of the title hero which you so proudly proclaim!” He was quicker than Ah could react ta now. He shot down from the hole in Ah came from and started ta rush me. With every punch Ah felt like somethin’ was gonna break. Ah found a hole in his attack and with everythin’ Ah had, Ah threw a punch at him. My face contorted in horror when he simply caught my hoof.
    “This is it, isn’t it? You don’t have anything left. You’re done. You’re no hero. You’re just a failure of a murderer who can’t even get the job done right.” He twisted my hoof backwards until it cracked and popped. Sharp shooting pain flooded my brain and Ah fell ta my knees clutchin’ my broken wrist. Ah’m sure Ah was screamin’ at the top of my lungs, but all Ah could hear was the violent throbbin’ in my ears. He hopped on one hoof and then swung his other back leg forward till it connected with my jaw. Ah could feel teeth come loose as Ah flew headfirst inta a stop light post a block down from where we were. When Ah came to, he had everypony Ah cared about lined up in a line on the ground, all tied and beat up. Ah tried ta move, but Ah was stuck in place, he’d wrapped the post around me ta keep me still.
    “So then, who should I kill first? Which one of these will make your rage burn stronger? Which one will break your spirit entirely? Should I go for your friends, or your family? I think I’d rather let you decide.” He said as my bound and gagged friends and family all squirmed in place.
    “No, stop it! They’re not part of this! Ah’m yer target, leave them alone!” Ah yelled. The Mirror shook his head.
    “No, no, no, you just don’t get it! I don’t exist without you! The more you hate me, the stronger I become! Ah, maybe I should just kill them all, one by one? Yes, I think that will do nicely.” He started with Uncle Blood. Ah couldn’t close my eyes, there was nothin’ Ah could do but watch as he lined his hoof up with my uncle’s head.
    “No, stop it! Don’t do it! Please, no more!” Ah begged and cried. The hoof came down and there was nothing but a red stain and a crater left. Ah screamed at the top of my lungs and then he moved on ta the next one, and the next one. By the time he’d made it ta Goose, Ah didn’t have a voice left ta lose. No tears ta cry, no strength to summon, no hope remainin’.
    “Oh? Nothing left to say? And here I thought you truly loved that last one. What a shame.”
    “Just kill me,” Ah whispered. He shook his head and stepped closer till his snout was an inch from mine.
    “Sorry, that’s a no can do. Without you, I can’t exist, so you’re going to live and you’re going to watch. You’ll suffer and agonize over how powerless you are to stop me over and over again, and I’ll only grow stronger as you sink further into despair! It’ll be just like old times! I’ll kill and kill and kill, and the hero in red will come to try and stop me, and then I’ll kill him too!” Somethin’ clicked. As if a gate unlocked, all the pain went away and in its place flooded pure and concentrated anger. Every inch of my body was seethin’, every muscle ready ta explode in rage. The Mirror turned ta face me in surprise when Ah tore through the light post.
    “Ya take, and ya take, and ya take from me… Ya laugh at my sorrow and ya say ya feed off my despair… if ya think that Ah’ll just sit here and watch ya do this again and again, than ya’ve got another thin’ comin!” In the blink of an eye, Ah taken hold of his head and tossed it inta the ground. His body stuck in the newly formed crater, Ah took the opportunity ta make the same motion he did on all my friends. The fresh corpse in the ground, Ah turned ta find him at my back again. He went ta open his mouth, but Ah didn’t give him the time. Ah twisted my body and knocked him inta the broken light post with my broken hoof. The body was pierced by the twisted metal. It twitched and shivered until it slumped over.
    “My, my, so violent.” Ah heard from behind me. There he was again, floatin’ in mid air with his forelegs crossed and an apathetic smile on his face. Ah jumped back inta action and grabbed his head in the air with my good forehoof. Ah slammed it inta the ground and then took eveythin’ Ah had inta that hoof and slammed his head once more, the new crater so deep that not even the blood managed ta splash me.
    “So, I have to wonder. Is this what you’d planned to do to your friend not but a few weeks ago?” A screen flashed in front of the new Mirror and it was a camera that lunged after Rarity, only fer it ta be struck by somethin’ and then plastered inta a crystalline floor.
    “Shut up!” Ah lunged after his neck and wrapped my other foreleg around his hips. Ah raised his body high above my knee and snapped his spine on it. Ah dropped the new corpse and turned ta the sky ta find the next one, but he was nowhere ta be found. “Where are ya!?” Ah yelled out.
    “A-applejack… h-how could you?” Ah heard Rarity’s voice from the body Ah’d just broken. Ah turned back ta the crater and ripped the suit off the twitchin' body, only ta find that the pony Ah’d just broken was my friend.
    “No… no, no, no, this can’t be happenin’…” All the rage was quickly replaced with horror at what Ah’d done.
    “Oh, but it can! Maybe you should check the faces underneath all those masks you’ve killed with such brutality!” The real Mirror said from somewhere Ah couldn’t see.
    “No! Ah would never… Ah would never hurt my friends! This is one of yer tricks!” The Mirror appeared in a cloud of black smoke by the body impaled on the light post. He removed the mask, and lyin’ there dead was Applebloom.
    “Oh, but you’ve almost done this to more than just your friend. You’ve got a very hot temper you know.” The mirror vanished in that smoke and moved ta the body before that.
The head was no longer intact, so he removed the suit where the cutiemark would be. The coat underneath the suit was a pale violet, and the mark on that flank was a pink star on top of a white star with five stars surrounding it.
    “Dear me, you’ve even wanted to kill royalty before. There’s no higher crime on this earth than regicide.” The anger flared again and Ah lunged at the Mirror once more. Ah was about ta strike at his chest after Ah’d knocked him ta the ground, but just before my punch landed he put somethin’ sharp in front of it. My hoof kept goin’ with the thin’ he placed on the body and traveled all the way through it. What… what did Ah just do? Who… who did Ah just… Ah hesitated at first, but then Ah removed the mask. My whole body shivered as Ah staggered away from the corpse.
    “No… No, Ah… He…” Ah tried ta say anythin’ that would make this dread, this feelin’ of despair go away, but nothin’ would come out right.
    “You didn’t do what now? What did he do again? I’m fairly sure you just punched a hole through his chest. Imagine that. You’ve even worked up the desire to kill that ‘special somepony’ in your life before. How sad. And here I thought that it might just be true love,” The Mirror said from behind me. Ah turned on a dime and grabbed him. Ah punched him in the face a few times ta try and quell this rage a little bit, but Ah knew this might just end up as the face of somepony else if Ah kept going.
    “Damn it, who are you!?” The Mirror smiled and laughed and then ripped the mask off himself. Starin’ me in the face was an orange coated mare. She had green eyes and freckles, a blonde mane that looked like it was rarely brushed. She looked tired with bags under her eyes, her eyelids looked like they had been rubbed raw because she’d been cryin’. She pushed me off and took my stance a few meters away from me.
    “So, do ya get it now? Ah can’t exist without you. Ah feed on yer despair, and Ah grow stronger with yer rage. Ya get so angry at times that there’s nothin’ that can stop ya save fer somepony stronger than yerself. But what happens when that anger is directed at somepony ya care about? Ya’ve gotten stronger in the past two weeks. Unless one of the princesses are around, there ain’t nopony stronger than you, and even then, you’re practically unmatched fer physical strength. If somepony else hurts somepony ya care about, ya lose yer damn mind! Somepony talks bad about yer father, and suddenly ya have murderous intent, even toward yer own family. The ponies ya killed here are all ponies you’ve killed in yer head before. Hell, a couple of ‘em ya took action against, but got interrupted before ya could finish the job.” She took another few steps toward the center of the street and in a cloud of black smoke, the first body appeared.
    “Ya know who this one is? This is somepony ya held such contempt and malice fer that ya attempted ta kill ‘em over and over again, only ta fail and feel worse and worse about it. Ya cried, and cried, and cried over how ya weren’t strong enough ta get the job done, and eventually, ya just gave up. Ya hated this mare fer the longest time, but only recently did ya finally start warmin’ up ta her. Ya let her out, ya even enjoyed her company. But now, yer startin’ ta fear her. She’s too important ta lose. Ya finally realized just how fragile she is and how the loss of any of her friends might just be too much fer her ta handle, and it scares ya so much that ya want ta stuff her back in her cage. But ya can’t. Every time ya lock her up, she gets back out too easily.” The Mirror took the mask and one hoof and let the disembodied head inside it fall out on the ground. It rolled on it’s side until it was at my hooves. This mare was young. She had a long blonde mane, an orange coat with freckles and bright green eyes. She was no more than eight years old.
    “Ya hide yer fear behind yer anger, and the angrier ya get, the more afraid ya are of doin’ somethin’ you’ll regret, and as the fear grows stronger, ya become quicker ta anger. This filly brings with her all kinds of emotions yer not used ta dealin’ with, and all that becomes too much too quick so then ya start ta break down and try ta lock her up again.” Ah fell ta my knees and picked up the head and caressed it in my hooves.
    “Ah’m… so sorry…” Ah whispered ta it. The Mirror stepped toward me, now just inches away.
    “And ya should be. Nopony should be more important ta ya than she is. Lettin’ her out has given ya the best days of yer life in the last twelve years. Ya’ve got more friends now than ya’ve ever had, yer family is closer than it’s been ta each other in a long time, and there’s somepony out there that you’re beginnin’ ta think that might make ya use that word that’s laid long dormant in yer heart. If ya value what this girl can do fer ya, and ya think that ya might actually wanna let that word out of its cage too someday, then yer gonna have ta stop tryin’ ta lock her up. Because if ya keep lockin’ her up, then this-” she motioned ta all the corpses around the ruined intersection, “is what will be waitin’ fer ya in the future.”
    The mirror kneeled down and put a hoof on my shoulder and stared me in the eyes. Hers were warm and concerned, like those of a friend who really cares. “Ah should never be stronger than you are. But until ya accept this filly and finally let her out ta play, Ah will always be the one in power. She’s gonna get hurt one way or another, and that will never change. That’s just how life is, and nopony can avoid it. But she’ll never grow up if ya just keep her in a cage like this. If there’s a single thin’ that ya should’ve learned already, it’s that eventually, the pain will stop. Change the status quo. Don’t let me keep ya from livin’ yer life.” Her voice was filled with compassion, and Ah knew she cared about me more than Ah cared about her. Ah let go of the head, and in a spray of gold magic sparks, it disappeared and surrounded The Mirror. My wrist fixed itself, and all the bodies around started to fade away in that same magic and flood inta her. Next, Ah found myself wrapped around her in a tight embrace.
    “Ah’m sorry Ah kept pushin’ all of this onta you. If Ah’d ever grown up and took responsibility fer the mare Ah’ve become today, Ah doubt Ah ever woulda kept y'all caged up in here like this. Will ya promise me, that if Ah ever step outta line like this again, that you’ll come back and slap me around until Ah get over it?” She shook her head, but reciprocated the hug.
    “Ah’m afraid Ah can’t do that, sugarcube. You’re the one who’s in charge here. But there’s still a way. If it ever comes down ta where ya feel like yer losin’ ta me again, remember that all these ponies that ya let inta yer life care about you just as much as ya care about them. If one day, ya think ya see yer symptoms startin’ ta come back, or that they’re manifestin’ in somepony ya hold dear, reach out a hoof. It may not be enough, and ya might need more help, or they might need more help than just that, but it’s a start. And nopony can run a race if they can’t find the startin’ line.” When Ah looked up, the Mirror was gone, and Ah was alone in the partially destroyed city. Everythin' around me started ta fade inta gold sparks, until finally, Ah went with ‘em.