//------------------------------//
// Longhorn's Journey Into Night: Part 3 
// Story: The Alternate Adventures of the Power Ponies 
// by DisneyFanatic23 
//------------------------------//

"The best revenge is to be unlike him who performed the injury."

- Marcus Aurelius





With both of them back in their superhero costumes, Humdrum hung tight to Mare-velous as she swung from rooftop to rooftop.

"Where to now?" she asked, landing on her hooves to catch her breath.

Humdrum looked down at the tracking device. "Looks like they've stopped moving. They're on Bovine Boulevard, just five blocks down from here."

Nodding, Mare-velous got her rope ready.

"Hey, AJ?" Humdrum asked. "I've been wondering. Why did Longhorn come to Maretropolis in the first place?"

With a shrug, she held onto her rope. "Who knows?" Grunting, she swung to the next building. "As far back as I can remember, Longhorn only does anything for two reasons: money and power."

Humdrum gripped her neck tighter as they went to the next building.

"But he's pretty good at workin' his way around the law," Mare-velous said, steadying the weight on her back. "Back in Appleloosa, he had his goons destroy our crop so that we'd be so desperate for money we'd sell him our land."

"So he'd have it legally," Humdrum concluded.

Nodding, she jumped up to swing again. "He changed his plans once he caught sight of this here rope."

"Still," Humdrum said as she continued to carry him, "Maretropolis is a big change from Appleloosa. And it seems strange he'd murder a mob boss who could've been a powerful ally."

Mare-velous stopped to pant a moment. "Maybe too powerful. Longhorn probably wanted to gain control of Korova's operation."

"Maybe." Then another thought occurred to him. "But what about that Strawberry Patch Doll?"

"What?" she said, looking back at him.

"Flim and Flam told me he bought a rare Strawberry Patch Doll just yesterday, for half the price."

Mare-velous prepared to swing again. "If it's rare, he probably wants to sell it."

"Then why not just steal it?"

"Like I said." She jumped. "He buys it legally, though cheap, he doesn't get in trouble with the law."

They landed on a rooftop on Bovine Boulevard.

"And the dresses in the henchbulls' bag?" Humdrum asked. "I mean I know some guys are into dresses, but they were a bit too small for a bull. They looked like they might fit a foal."

"So he's smugglin' dresses or something!" Mare-velous groaned impatiently. "I don't know! I just know that whatever he's up to, it ain't good!"

Humdrum pointed to the building across the street. "The tracker leads there, in the abandoned milk factory."

Mare-velous rolled her eyes. "Why doesn't that surprise me?"

They approached the edge of the building they stood on so they could look out at the rundown milk factory.

"So what's our next move?" Humdrum asked.

"My next move," Mare-velous said, tightening her rope in her hooves, "is that I go in there and find Longhorn."

He looked up at her in disbelief. "You're not going in there alone?"

"It's better this way. You could get hurt."

"Uh-uh!" Narrowing his eyes, he crossed his arms. "You are not pulling that excuse on me again! I tracked you to the pawn shop, got information from Flim and Flam, and pinned that tracking device on the henchbulls which led us to Longhorn's hideout, all without any super powers! So do not say I can't handle this kind of work, that I'm a screw-up, that I'd just be getting in everyone's way—"

"That's not what this is about, Spike," Mare-velous muttered without making eye contact.

"Then why?! Why don't you trust me to help you?!"

"Because I can't lose ya!"

Humdrum stepped back at her sudden outburst. With a sigh, Mare-velous knelt down and laid a hoof on his shoulder.

"Listen," she said slowly, her voice cracking. "My pa died tryin' to save my ma, and ma died tryin' to save me." She locked eyes with him. "If…if I were to lose someone else I cared about…"

She trailed off, and then shut her eyes as small tears began to fall. "That's why I shut everyone out, Spike, why I was hesitant to join the team in the first place. I…I start to care…and people get hurt."

She hung her head. "I can't let that monster hurt anyone else important to me. Not my sister, not the team," she said, opening her eyes, "not you."

Humdrum was quiet, moved by this declaration, unsure of how to respond.

Inhaling sharply, Mare-velous stood up. "If ya wanna be helpful, then keep a lookout. If I'm not back in twenty minutes, call Twilight and the police."

He looked up at her worriedly. "And…if something happens to you?"

"Don't worry." Glancing down at the rope in her hooves, she said, "I won't chicken out this time."

Following her gaze, he wondered what she meant by that.

"But," she said, gripping tighter to her rope, "if…something does happen to me…tell my sister I love her." She turned away from him. "And that I'm sorry."

She telepathically raised one end of the rope and swung off the building.

"AJ, wait!" Humdrum called out, stretching his claw towards her.

But he was too late to stop her. He watched anxiously as she floated downward, landed on an open windowsill and disappeared into the factory. Sighing sadly, Humdrum sat down.

"She's right," he said, placing his face in his claws. "I shouldn't have followed her. She didn't want my help. I should've left her alone. She had the henchbulls, she would've found this place just fine with or without me." He shut his eyes. "I'm nothing but a bother."

"Sometimes bothers are needed."

Jumping at the sudden female voice, Humdrum spun around. A green earth mare in overalls was watering a row of potted plants. Her brown mane was braided and tucked inside an orange kerchief. The dragon stared at the mare and the potted plants, swearing that neither of them had been there a few seconds ago.

"Who the…?" he said, scratching his head. "What…when…where'd you come from?"

The mare smiled and looked at him with her chestnut brown eyes. "Well you see, when a male titan and a female titan love each other very much…"

Even more confused, Humdrum scrunched his nose. "Who are you?"

Giggling, the mare set down her watering can and wiped her hooves off her overalls. "Your friend Applejack knows me well." She placed her hooves proudly on her hips. "You could say I'm like a second mother to her."

Humdrum scrutinized her and then the plants. Then his eyes widened as he reached a conclusion.

"Are you," he asked, taking a nervous step back, "Demeter?"

The mare grinned further. "You are a clever boy."

The dragon self-consciously dropped to one knee and bowed his head. "F-Forgive me, your highness. I didn't know!"

Demeter held up her hoof as she approached. "I didn't expect you to. After all, we've never formally met. Not to mention the sculptors and illustrators of the world can't seem to agree on my appearance."

"Applejack's not here. She's over—"

"I'm not here to see Applejack." Bending down, she gently lifted his chin. "I'm here to see you."

He blinked. "Me?"

"Yes, Spike," Demeter said, her face becoming serious. "I'm here to warn you that you must stop Applejack from doing this heinous deed."

"What do you mean?" Humdrum asked, straightening up. "She wants to stop Longhorn and bring him to justice."

She shook her head. "The only justice she wishes upon him is the justice of the Underworld."

"But that would mean…" Looking downward, he gasped. "She wouldn't!"

"I'm afraid so. Since Applejack lost her parents and became my Vassal, her one thought has been to personally see to King Longhorn's demise." Demeter sighed. "I had hoped steering her towards a nobler cause would divert her from this dark path. Unfortunately, her hatred for Longhorn has festered over the years. Even after all her heroic deeds, she will choose vengeance over justice.

"Spike," she said, laying a hoof on his shoulder, "if Applejack kills Longhorn, there will be no turning back for her. She will forfeit her role as my Vassal, and the act of murder will darken her soul forever."

His eyes widened. "She won't be able to wield your Lasso anymore?"

Demeter shook her head. "My Lasso can only be used for good, not evil. I've told her this many times, but she will not listen to me. You must stop her before it's too late."

"But if she won't listen to you," Humdrum said, holding out his claws, "what makes you think she'll listen to me? I mean you're her mentor! I'm just a sidekick!"

Demeter smiled. "Applejack cares for you, Spike, in a way much deeper than she expresses. It's deeper than anything platonic or familial or even romantic. You touch her heart in a way no one else can."

"How can that be?" Humdrum asked. "I mean she hardly even knows me! I hardly even know her, for that matter. What can be deeper than friendship or family or romance?!"

"Compassion," she whispered. "That's why you followed her, isn't it? That's why she protects you in battle. You see something in each other that makes you both compassionate. It is this compassion which will save Applejack from this fate."

Humdrum was still in disbelief, but there was some sense in the goddess' words. Something compelled him to help Applejack. He'd been racking his brain to figure out what. Was it the fact that they were both orphans? Was it his respect for her as a hero and teammate?

"Sometimes," Demeter said, seeming to read his thoughts, "you don't need a reason to care for someone."

It didn't take long after that statement for him to realize that she was right. It didn't matter why Humdrum wanted to help Mistress Mare-velous. He cared, and that's all that mattered.

And he most certainly didn't want her to become a murderer.

"I won't let her!" Humdrum exclaimed, turning toward the factory. "I won't let her do it!"

"I know you won't," Demeter said.

When he turned around to thank her, the goddess and the potted plants were gone.

Determined, Humdrum fiddled with his belt, searching for the button that would launch his grappling hook. Then the Matter-Horn's voice broke through his eardrums.

"Mistress Mare-velous! Mistress Mare-velous! Do you read me?"

Humdrum waited for Mare-velous to answer and then remembered that she had taken her commlink out.

"Humdrum?" the Matter-Horn's voice asked. "Can you pass this information onto Mare-velous?"

He stiffened and looked around, wondering if the alicorn was watching.

"I know you followed her, Spike." She sounded distraught. "I traced your commlink at Headquarters. There's no use denying it."

Laughing nervously, he pressed down on his commlink. "For the record, I've been very helpful this whole case."

"We'll talk about this later. The police just gave me some very interesting information about Korova's murder. I don't know how this connects to Longhorn, but there's a chance Korova might have had a child staying with him."

Humdrum raised an eyebrow. "A child?"

"When the police searched his home, they found a door which had been recently broken down. Its room had a small bed and was littered in old candy wrappers, toys and small clothing. Judging by the expiration dates on some of the candy wrappers, the police think the room's occupant had been there for quite some time, months at least."

"Did Korova have any children?" Humdrum asked.

"Yes, but they're all grown, and whoever was kept in that room had been there recently. I've tried running some DNA samples, but so far the computer hasn't brought up any useful information, other than it belongs to a cow."

"Which doesn't help because we're dealing with a whole herd of cows! I mean aside from Korova and Longhorn, there's their henchbulls and…"

He stopped. Then he remembered the doll, and the dresses fit for a child. Adding the information from the Matter-Horn, the pieces were finally coming together.

"Holy Demeter, it all makes sense!" Humdrum exclaimed.

"Spike? What is it?"

"No time! Get the police to the abandoned milk factory! I gotta stop Mare-velous before she stops Longhorn!"





Why in the world did that stubborn little dragon have to follow me? Mare-velous thought as she crawled through the air duct. Doesn't he know he can get hurt? Why couldn't he just leave me alone?

She paused a moment to sigh. Kind of like Apple Bloom, going off on his own because he cares. She kept moving. Why does he care? I've been nothing but cold to him all this time. She shook her head. Not important now, old girl. You can't let yourself get distracted again.

As she continued through the air duct, she could hear her father crying out in pain.

"Pa! Pa!" she had cried, running out to his freshly impaled corpse.

She could hear the huffs of a bull, coming closer.

"Applejack," her mother had cried, "look out!"

Her mother had pushed her out of the way, then came the sploosh and the bloodcurdling scream. By the time young Applejack had turned around, Longhorn was pulling his horn out of her mother's chest.

She remembered crying, her vision of the corpses blurred by her tears. Their eyes had still been open in shock. She had flung herself over her parents, urging them to get up.

But they would never rise again.

"Finally," Longhorn had said, picking Demeter's Lasso up from beside her father's body. "The magic rope is mine." Applejack remembered how he had flung it about. "How do ya get this dang thing to work?"

She recalled her fury, how she had glared at him, fuming. How she had wanted to strangle him at that moment for what he had done to the two ponies she cared for the most.

Then the rope had come to life, looping itself around Longhorn's neck. Applejack hadn't questioned it then, for Pa had told her how Demeter's Lasso chose its owner. She had just sat there, urging the cord to tighten. Even now, Longhorn's gasps for air were still etched in her brain.

"Applejack!" the sheriff had called. "Stop it! You're killin' him!"

The sheriff's voice had startled her enough to break her concentration. The rope had loosened and fallen limp to the ground. Longhorn hadn't wasted any time to break into a run.

I should've let the rope finish him then, Mare-velous thought as she approached a patch of light up ahead. I won't make the same mistake twice.

Hearing voices, she slowed her pace and peered through the grate below her. She found some sort of boardroom containing a long table and two rows of cushioned chairs which were so old, there were bits of fluff and springs sticking out of them. Two bulls were playing a card game in the middle of the table. At the table's head sat the largest bull of the bunch.

His coat was dark gray, black sideburns framed his face, and atop his head was a tall black Stetson. His beady black eyes were cold and uncaring.

Mare-velous could recognize King Longhorn anywhere.

The two bulls from the bar approached him, showing him the burlap sack.

"We got the very best!" Buffalo Bull said.

"And for half the price too!" Doc Holstein said.

"Very good," Longhorn said with a grin. "Madcow will love these."

Madcow? Mare-velous thought. I don't remember Longhorn havin' a Madcow in his gang. Must be someone new.

"Take them to Madcow's room," Longhorn said, waving his cloven hoof. "That'll be all."

The two bulls nodded and left the room. With a contented sight, Longhorn leaned back in his chair and put up his back hooves on the table.

"I don't know about you, boys," he said, placing his front hooves behind his head, "but I'm downright tired of this city scene. What say first thing tomorrow we head back west to Appleloosa?"

"I do miss them country cow gals," said a brown and dark gray bull Mare-velous recognized as Jersey Shore.

"And them apple farms," said a white bull named Angus McSteer.

"Yeah, they were fun to pillage and stuff!"

Longhorn nodded. "I reckon I'm curious to see what happened to them Smiths. Those foals of theirs are sure to be all grown up by now."

Jersey Shore sneered. "Ya reckon them gals of theirs are old enough to marry?"

"If so, that'd make takin' over their farm a heck of a lot easier. And legal!"

Mare-velous didn't know if she should growl from fury or gag in disgust. No way is he gettin' his filthy cloven hooves on my farm! And certainly not on me or Apple Bloom!

"Tell Madcow to pack it in," Longhorn said. "We'll be off in the mornin'."

That was her final confirmation that it had to be done tonight, or else she was never going to get another chance. Gripping her glowing rope for support, Mare-velous kicked the grate open and jumped down, startling the Cattle Rustlers. Landing on the table, she faced the stunned leader.

"Howdy, partner," she said in a tone that was both taunting and threatening.

Jersey Shore and Angus stood up, but Longhorn raised his hoof to stop them. Scrutinizing her, he sent her a toothy grin.

"I heard you were in town," he said with amusement, "Miss Applejack Smith."

Mare-velous narrowed her eyes at him.

"What? Surprised I knew? After all, you weren't masked the last time we met." He shrugged. "Would've made big money selling your identity to the highest bidder, but what would've been the fun in that?"

"Ya remember me then," she said, taking a step towards him.

"How could I forget the little orphan filly who tried to strangle me?"

"Ya mean the orphan filly whose parents ya skewered!"

He waved his hoof. "Details, details."

Fuming through her nostrils, Mare-velous telepathically swung her lasso into a loop. "Bright Mac and Buttercup Smith were good ponies. They didn't deserve to die!" She glared hard. "But you do."

Jersey Shore leaped towards her. Without looking at him, Mare-velous punched him in the face, sending him back to the wall. Angus jumped onto the table, only for her to kick him off.

"Come to finish what you've started then?" Longhorn asked, unfazed by his minions' unconscious states.

She smirked wickedly as she mentally cracked her rope like a whip. "Ya know me so well."

Shrugging, Longhorn climbed onto the table. "I hate to disappoint a lady."

He charged towards her, but Mare-velous was ready. Grabbing her rope, she let it hoist her up before his horns could pierce her. The minute she landed on his back, the rope closed around his neck. Longhorn attempted to buck her off, but Mare-velous had had enough rodeo experience not to lose her balance. She hung on tight to the rope as he wriggled and writhed beneath her.

"I ain't a filly no more!" she shouted, pulling the rope towards her. "I ain't lettin' ya go this time!"

The loop magically tightened around Longhorn's neck. He immediately stopped bucking and gasped for air. His hooves went to his neck in an attempt to get the rope off, but it just kept getting tighter and tighter.

"I'm real tight with the Queen of the Underworld," Mare-velous said, leaning forward to whisper in his ear. "I'll personally make sure ya reach the Fields of Punishment!"

"Mare-velous, stop! Don't kill him!"

Alarmed, Mare-velous turned to the doorway where a certain masked dragon stood.

"Humdrum?" she said angrily. "I told ya to stay outside! How'd ya even get in here?!"

"I used my grappling hook to get across the street and went in through a window and shocked these guards with…" He shook his head. "That's not important right now! Mare-velous, you can't kill Longhorn!"

"Yes, I can!" she shouted, tugging harder on the rope. "And I will!"

"But if you do, you won't be Demeter's Vassal anymore!"

Grunting, she said, "That's a sacrifice I'm willin' to make."

Suddenly, Demeter's Lasso loosened around the bull's neck and stopped glowing, giving Longhorn a moment to breathe. It was as if the rope didn't want to strangle him.

"You can fight all ya want, Bessie," Mare-velous said, manually tightening the rope, "but I don't need no magic to do this!"

"Mare-velous, please!" Humdrum exclaimed, holding up his claws. "Is this what your parents would want?"

"My parents are dead!" she spat, furious tears coming from her eyes. "Thanks to this monster! He needs to pay for what he did to 'em!"

"Yes, he will! In jail!"

"Ya think the police can hold him? His horns can cut through buildings!" Longhorn wheezed as she tugged sharply. "This is the only way to make sure he'll never harm anyone ever again!"

"But you don't understand, Mare-velous! He's not just a criminal, he's a—"

"Daddy?"

The sudden small, frightened voice made Mare-velous stiffen. She turned to see a small brown and white calf, looking to be about eight years old, peering into the doorway. She wore a sparkly red dress and held a foal doll dressed in a pineapple gown in the crook of her foreleg. Her small black eyes held terror as they focused on Longhorn.

"Mad…cow…" Longhorn gasped between words. "R-Run…"

Breathing rapidly, Mare-velous looked between him and the calf.

"He has a daughter, Mare-velous!" Humdrum cried, pointing to the calf. "Korova kidnapped her! That's why he came to Maretropolis! He's been looking for his daughter! My guess is Korova was using her to get Longhorn to do shady stuff for him, and when he'd had enough, he took care of Korova and rescued his daughter!"

Longhorn nodded frantically as he attempted to speak. "Korova…wanted…me…kidnap…Twilight…Sparkle's…ward."

Mare-velous let out a small gasp and looked down at Humdrum, whose eyes were pleading in desperation.

"I know he's done terrible things, Mare-velous," he said, his voice cracking, "and you might never forgive him for what he did to your parents, but how will killing him make you any better than he is?" He glanced sideways at Madcow. "Would you also make a child parentless?"

Mare-velous locked eyes with the calf. Tears were coming out of them. For a split second, those black eyes were green, and the calf was an orange filly with blonde hair. Mare-velous could hear her own sobs from the past, could hear her small cries of fury, could hear her young, cursing voice.

"You killed 'em! You killed my Ma and Pa!"

She looked down at Longhorn, whose face was turning from gray to blue.

"I'll kill ya! I'll kill ya like you killed them!"

The rope fell from her hooves, allowing Longhorn to pull it away from his neck. Gasping, he fell to his knees and Mare-velous slid off his back and onto the table. She sat down and stared down at her hooves, horrified at what she had almost done.

"Daddy!" Madcow cried happily, running to him.

Jumping onto the table, she threw her hooves around Longhorn's neck, but not too tight as to choke him a gain. With an exhausted chuckle, Longhorn held her close as well.

Mare-velous watched the two of them until the sound of police sirens reached her ears.





As the police hauled Longhorn into the wagon along with his gang, he looked at the social worker's car where he could see Madcow through the window. She gave him a sad wave, which made him smile a little bit.

Mare-velous watched the entire scene from afar as she dealt with her mixed emotions.

"They'll be putting Madcow into foster care," Humdrum said, walking up to her side.

She hung her head. "She must hate me."

He shook his head. "She still has her daddy, thanks to you."

Closing her eyes, she said, "She almost didn't." She looked down at him. "How'd ya know about Longhorn's daughter?"

"Well, after hearing the information about the doll and the dresses and the child's room in Korova's mansion, it wasn't hard to put two and two together."

Biting her lip, she tore her gaze from him. "I'm sorry for makin' ya feel like ya weren't cut out for all this. Truth is I just didn't wanna see ya get hurt."

He gently took her hoof, causing her to glance down at his claw. "I know."

He held her hoof for a few seconds before she slipped it away.

"I could've made the biggest mistake of my life," she murmured, "if it hadn't been for you." She smiled softly. "You're a good kid, Spike."

The dragon blushed. "That's what friends are for."

The Matter-Horn walked up to them. "You did a good job. Both of you." She glared down at Humdrum. "Even if it's way past somebody's bedtime."

Laughing nervously, he asked, "How'd you even know I was following her? I mean before you checked our commlink signals."

The alicorn smirked. "I know you, Humdrum." She nudged him playfully. "You're just as stubborn as Mare-velous."

Mare-velous scoffed. "No argument here."

"Come on," the Matter-Horn said, crouching down. "Let's get you home. It's been a long night."

As he climbed onto her back, Humdrum looked at Mare-velous. "You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah. I best get home to my little sis," she said with a grin, "tell her I love her."





Apple Bloom, Delancey and Fluttershy were curled up on the couch, eating from a bowl of popcorn as they watched the movie Spidermane. They were at the part where the hero in his civilian identity was talking to his love interest while visiting his aunt in the hospital.

"Oh, I'm real tight with Spidermane," he said onscreen. "Why just the other day he was asking about you."

"What'd you say?" the mare onscreen asked hopefully.

"I said…the best thing about MJ, is that when you look into her eyes…"

"Oh, just tell her you love her, ya idiot!" Apple Bloom cried, throwing a piece of popcorn at the TV. "She obviously likes both sides of ya!"

Fluttershy giggled as she reached for some popcorn, only for her hoof to brush against Delancey's. They locked gaze for a moment and then turned away blushing.

As the movie went on, Delancey started to hear snoring and turned to find Apple Bloom asleep on his shoulder.

"Should we put her to bed?" he asked, not sure what to do in a situation like this.

"We shouldn't," Fluttershy said, leaning against his other shoulder. "She looks comfortable."

Delancey's face turned red. He was unable to concentrate on the movie as he was too focused on the feel of Fluttershy's face on his shoulder.

At the end of the movie, Spidermane's love interest was declaring her love for him, but he told her that they could only be friends, causing her to cry. Looking down at Fluttershy, Delancey discovered that she too had fallen asleep.

He watched her as the credits rolled, taking note of how lightly she breathed when she slept, making no sounds whatsoever. Glancing back to make sure Apple Bloom was asleep, he focused on his left hoof and morphed it into an eagle's claw. Fluttershy moaned blissfully as he ran his claw through her mane.

"My dear, sweet Fluttershy," he whispered, gently taking a strand of soft hair between his fingers, "you have no idea how much you mean to me." He gazed down at her tranquil smile. "I more than just love you. I worship you." He smirked. "Imagine that. A god worshipping a mortal.

"But it's true. I owe my freedom to you." He rested his claw on her head. "Everything just feels so right when I'm with you, even if I have to keep up this pretense to be with you." He sighed sadly. "I don't like pretending. I want you to love me. All of me. But I can't give you what you deserve. Not as a god, nor as a mortal."

He whispered in her ear. "You deserve to be happy, my darling. But don't worry. Once I have my amulet—"

The sound of the door unlocking made him stop. Quickly, he turned the claw back into a hoof and stood up, his horn ready for the intruder. The door opened and the lights were switched on.

With a mighty cry, Delancey summoned a pie and tossed it at the doorway. The intruder screeched and ducked as the pie went over her head and hit the wall behind her.

"What in tarnation?" Applejack said.

"Who are you?" Delancey demanded, taking a step forward.

"Who are you? This is my apartment!"

His magic diminished. "You're Fluttershy's roommate?"

"Yeah," Applejack said, crossing her hooves. "I'll ask again. Who are you?"

Blushing, the stallion bowed apologetically. "Delancey. Sorry."

"Oh." She sighed in relief. "Right. You're Fluttershy's new beau."

By this time, Fluttershy and Apple Bloom were stirring awake. When Fluttershy saw her roommate, she gasped and rushed to Delancey's side.

"Oh, Applejack, I'm so sorry! I'd forgotten that I'd set up a date with Delancey so when he came over I suggested he help me protect Apple Bloom and he's been so good with her I thought it was alright and please don't be mad at—"

"I'm not mad," Applejack said, chuckling. "Just wish ya'd introduced him to me before he threw a pie at me."

She sent him a glare, making Delancey stiffen.

"Guess that's my cue to leave," he said, already skittering towards the door. "Shall we reschedule our picnic for tomorrow?"

"Sounds good!" Fluttershy called, waving.

"I'll be counting the minutes!"

He flashed her one last smile before shutting the door. Applejack shook her head.

"When ya said ya were seein' some pony, I didn't think it'd be any pony so…energetic."

"Applejack?" Apple Bloom muttered, rubbing her eyes sleepily.

Applejack was immediately at her side. "I'm here, sis."

She looked up at her older sister. "Did ya get Longhorn?"

Applejack grinned widely as tears started rolling down her cheeks. "He's goin' away for a long time, Apple Bloom. He won't be hurtin' us anymore."

Apple Bloom cried out in happiness as she threw her hooves around her sister.

"I love ya sis," Applejack whispered, holding her tightly. "And I ain't never lettin' ya go again."





Twilight yawned as she entered her bedroom. Dropping the towel from her body, she reached for her silk purple bathrobe on the door's hook. She was more than ready to get to bed as she tied the sash around her waist.

"Never took you for the silk robe type."

With a shriek, Twilight spun around, shocked to find the Phoenix sitting cross-legged on her bed. Twilight immediately wrapped her hooves around her body, wondering how long she had been there.

"Oh, do relax," the Phoenix said, rolling her eyes. "Like I haven't seen you naked before. You didn't exactly wear clothes that often in school."

Twilight looked at the locked window. Not that she expected it to be open, as it would've set off the alarm.

"How'd you get in here?"

The Phoenix uncrossed her back legs. "Came down the chimney."

The billionaire blinked. "I don't have a chimney."

"Exactly," the thief said, sliding off the bed.

Deciding it wasn't worth dwelling on, Twilight shook her head. "What are you doing in my bedroom? If this is another seduction attempt—"

The Phoenix scoffed. "If I was here to seduce you," she said, pulling on the front of her jumpsuit, "I would've slipped into something more comfortable."

She let the fabric snap back into place. "No. I just thought I should inform you that I saw a particularly small, purple dragon at the bar today. A criminal bar, I might add." She looked accusingly at Twilight. "But of course, you already knew that, didn't you?"

The lavender mare narrowed her eyes. "What's your point?"

"My point is that I don't mind this little hero biz of yours. It's quite fun, actually." The Phoenix stalked towards her. "On the other hand, getting Spike involved—a ten-year-old who should be in school rather than chasing criminals—now that's something I don't quite approve of."

"Spike," Twilight said through her teeth, "is none of your business."

"He was my business," the Phoenix said, thrusting her face into hers, "the moment I helped you save his egg from those smugglers!" She narrowed her gaze. "You're lucky I was able to get him out of that scrape at the bar, because if anything happens to Spike on your watch," she stepped back with determination, "our little pact is off.

"Of course," she said, turning her back to her, "I'm all up for a custody battle."

Growling, Twilight stepped forward. "You stay away from Spike!"

"Like I said," the Phoenix said, glancing back at her. "If anything happens to him, look out."

Her horn illuminated and she disappeared in a burst of flames, setting off the sprinkler system. As the water rained down on her, Twilight glared at the ring of ash on her carpet.